Canada Oil and Gas Operations Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. O-7)

Marginal note:Quorum

• 9 (1) A majority of the members, including one member who is not an employee in the federal public administration, constitutes a quorum of the Committee.

• Marginal note:Powers of Committee

  (2) The Committee may make general rules regulating its practice and procedure and the places and times of its sittings.

Jurisdiction and Powers

Marginal note:Jurisdiction

• 10 (1) Where, under this Act, the Committee is charged with a duty to hold an inquiry or to hear an appeal, the Committee has full jurisdiction to inquire into, hear and determine the matter of the inquiry or appeal and to make any order or give any direction that pursuant to this Act the Committee is authorized to make or give or with respect to any matter, act or thing that by this Act may be prohibited or approved by the Committee or required by the Committee to be done.

• Marginal note:Powers of Committee

  (2) For the purpose of any inquiry, hearing or appeal or the making of any order pursuant to this Act, the Committee has, regarding the attendance, swearing and examination of witnesses, the production and inspection of documents, the entry on and inspection of property, the enforcement of its orders and regarding other matters necessary or proper for the due exercise of its jurisdiction pursuant to this Act, all such powers, rights and privileges as are vested in a superior court of record.

• Marginal note:Finding of fact conclusive

  (3) The finding or determination of the Committee on any question of fact within its jurisdiction is binding and conclusive.

Marginal note:Deputing member to hold inquiry

• 11 (1) The Committee may authorize and depute any member thereof to inquire into such matter before the Committee as may be directed by the Committee and to report the evidence and findings, if any, thereon to the Committee, and when the report is made to the Committee, it may be adopted as a finding of the Committee or otherwise dealt with as the Committee considers advisable.

• Marginal note:Powers of deputed member

  (2) Where an inquiry is held by a member under subsection (1), the member has all the powers of the Committee for the purpose of taking evidence or acquiring information for the purposes of the report to the Committee.

Marginal note:Advisory functions

12 The Minister may at any time refer to the Committee for a report or recommendation any question, matter or thing arising under this Act or relating to the conservation, production, storage, processing or transportation of oil or gas.

Enforcement

Marginal note:Enforcement of Committee orders

• 13 (1) Any order made by the Committee may, for the purpose of enforcement thereof, be made an order of the Federal Court and shall be enforced in like manner as any order of that Court.

• Marginal note:Procedure for enforcement

  (2) To make an order of the Committee an order of the Federal Court, the usual practice and procedure of that Court in such matters may be followed or in lieu thereof the secretary or another officer of the Committee may file in the Registry of the Federal Court a certified copy of the order and thereupon the order becomes an order of the Federal Court.

• Marginal note:When order rescinded or replaced

  (3) When an order of the Committee has been made an order of the Federal Court, any order of the Committee, or of the Governor in Council under section 51, rescinding or replacing the first mentioned order of the Committee, shall be deemed to cancel the order of the Court and may in like manner be made an order of the Court.

PART 0.1Traffic, Tolls and Tariffs

Interpretation

Marginal note:Definitions

13.01 The following definitions apply in this Part.

holder

holder means a holder of an authorization to construct or operate a pipeline issued under paragraph 5(1)(b). (titulaire)

tariff

tariff means a schedule of tolls, terms and conditions, classifications, practices or rules and regulations applicable to the provision of a service by a holder and includes rules respecting the calculation of tolls. (tarif)

toll

toll includes any rate, charge or allowance charged or made

• (a) for the shipment, transportation, transmission, care, handling or delivery of oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas that is transmitted through a pipeline, or for storage or demurrage or the like;

• (b) for the provision of a pipeline when the pipeline is available and ready to provide for the transmission of oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas; and

• (c) in respect of the purchase and sale of gas that is the property of a holder and that is transmitted by the holder through its pipeline, from which is subtracted the cost to the holder of the gas at the point where it enters the pipeline. (droit)

Powers of Commission

Marginal note:Regulation of traffic, etc.

13.02 The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may make orders with respect to all matters relating to traffic, tolls or tariffs.

Filing of Tariff

Marginal note:Tolls to be filed

• 13.03 (1) A holder shall not charge any tolls except tolls that are

  • (a) specified in a tariff that has been filed with the Canadian Energy Regulator and is in effect; or

  • (b) approved by an order of the Regulator.

• Marginal note:Tariff — gas

  (2) If gas transmitted by a holder through its pipeline is the property of the holder, the holder shall file with the Canadian Energy Regulator true copies of all the contracts it makes for the sale of the gas, at the time they are made, and any amendments to those contracts made from time to time, and the true copies constitute, for the purposes of this Part, a tariff under subsection (1).

Marginal note:Commencement of tariff

13.04 If a holder files a tariff with the Canadian Energy Regulator and the holder proposes to charge a toll referred to in paragraph (b) of the definition toll in section 13.01, the Regulator may establish the day on which the tariff is to come into effect and the holder shall not begin charging the toll before that day.

Just and Reasonable Tolls

Marginal note:Tolls to be just and reasonable

13.05 All tolls shall be just and reasonable and shall always, under substantially similar circumstances and conditions with respect to all traffic of the same description carried over the same route, be charged equally to all persons at the same rate.

Marginal note:Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator determinations

13.06 The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may determine, as questions of fact, whether or not traffic is or has been carried out under substantially similar circumstances and conditions referred to in section 13.05, whether in any case a holder has or has not complied with the provisions of that section, and whether there has, in any case, been unjust discrimination as set out in section 13.1.

Marginal note:Interim tolls

13.07 If the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator has made an interim order authorizing a holder to charge tolls until a specified time or the happening of a specified event, the Commission may, in any subsequent order, direct the holder

• (a) to refund, in a manner satisfactory to the Commission, any part of the tolls charged by the holder under the interim order that is in excess of the tolls determined by the Commission to be just and reasonable, together with interest on the amount so refunded; or

• (b) to recover in its tolls, in a manner satisfactory to the Commission, the amount by which the tolls determined by the Commission to be just and reasonable exceed the tolls charged by the holder under the interim order, together with interest on the amount so recovered.

Disallowance of Tariff

Marginal note:Disallowance of tariff

13.08 The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may disallow any tariff or any portion of any tariff that it considers to be contrary to any of the provisions of this Act or any order of the Commission and may require a holder, within a time fixed by the Commission, to substitute for it a tariff satisfactory to the Commission or may establish other tariffs in lieu of the tariff or the portion so disallowed.

Marginal note:Suspension of tariff

13.09 The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may suspend any tariff or any portion of any tariff before or after the tariff goes into effect.

Discrimination

Marginal note:No unjust discrimination

13.1 A holder shall not make any unjust discrimination in tolls, service or facilities against any person or locality.

Marginal note:Burden of proof

13.11 If it is shown that a holder makes any discrimination in tolls, service or facilities against any person or locality, the burden of proving that the discrimination is not unjust lies on the holder.

Marginal note:No rebates, etc.

• 13.12 (1) No holder or shipper or an officer or employee, or an agent or mandatary, of a holder or shipper shall

  • (a) offer, grant, give, solicit, accept or receive a rebate, concession or discrimination whereby a person obtains transmission of oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas by a holder at a rate less than that named in the tariffs then in force; or

  • (b) knowingly be party or privy to a false billing, false classification, false report or other device resulting in a rate being charged that is less than that named in the tariffs then in force.

• Marginal note:Prosecution

  (2) No prosecution shall be instituted for an offence under this section without leave of the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator.

Contracts Limiting Liabilities

Marginal note:Contracts limiting liability

• 13.13 (1) Except as provided in this section, no contract, condition or notice made or given by a holder limiting its liability in respect of the transmission of oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas relieves the holder from its liability, unless that class of contract, condition or notice is included as a term or condition of its tariffs as filed or has been first authorized or approved by order of the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator.

• Marginal note:Commission may determine limits

  (2) The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may determine the extent to which the liability of a holder may be impaired, restricted or limited as provided in this section.

• Marginal note:Terms and conditions

  (3) The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may establish the terms and conditions under which oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas may be transmitted by a holder.

Transmission of Oil or Gas

Marginal note:Duty of holder of an operating licence or authorization under subsection 5(1)

• 13.14 (1) Subject to any exemptions or conditions that the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may establish, a holder operating a pipeline for the transmission of oil shall, according to its powers, without delay and with due care and diligence, receive, transport and deliver all oil and any other substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil offered for transmission by means of its pipeline.

• Marginal note:Orders for transmission of commodities

  (2) The Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator may, by order, on any terms and conditions that it may specify in the order, require a holder operating a pipeline for the transmission of gas to receive, transport and deliver, according to its powers, gas and any other substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of gas offered for transmission by means of its pipeline.

• Marginal note:Extension of facilities

  (3) If the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator finds that no undue burden will be placed on the holder by requiring the holder to do so and if it considers it necessary or desirable to do so in the public interest, the Commission may require a holder operating a pipeline for the transmission of oil or gas to provide adequate and suitable facilities for

  • (a) the receipt, transmission and delivery of the oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas offered for transmission by means of its pipeline;

  • (b) the storage of the oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas; and

  • (c) the junction of its pipeline with other facilities for the transmission of the oil, gas or any substance, including water, incidental to the drilling for or production of oil or gas.

Transmission and Sale of Gas

Marginal note:Extension of services of gas pipeline companies

• 13.15 (1) If the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator considers it necessary or desirable to do so in the public interest, it may direct a holder operating a pipeline for the transmission of gas to extend or improve its transmission facilities to provide facilities for the junction of its pipeline with any facilities of, and sell gas to, any person or municipality engaged or legally authorized to engage in the local distribution of gas to the public, and for those purposes to construct branch lines to communities immediately adjacent to its pipeline, if the Commission finds that to do so will not place an undue burden on the holder.

• Marginal note:Limitation on extension

  (2) Subsection (1) does not empower the Commission of the Canadian Energy Regulator to compel a holder to sell gas to additional customers if to do so would impair its ability to render adequate service to its existing customers.