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Filing Manual - Guide A - Facilities Applications

A proposed project that involves constructing or modifying facilities may require:

  • a certificate pursuant to section 52 of the NEB Act; or
  • an order pursuant to section 58 of the NEB Act.

When assessing applications pursuant to these sections, the Board must satisfy itself that the facilities are and will be required for the public convenience and necessity. In making this determination, the Board may consider information relating to:

  • engineering;
  • environment and socio-economics;
  • economics and financial matters;
  • lands; and
  • any public interest that may be affected by the granting or refusing of the application.
Guide A establishes the information required in each of these instances.

Section 52 Applications

Applications under section 52 of the NEB Act trigger a public hearing, either written or oral. Applicants should refer to the information requirements outlined in:

  • Chapter 3 - Common Information Requirements;
  • Chapter 4 - Physical Projects, including sections 4.1 and 4.2 and all subsections within Guide A - Facilities Applications (NEB Act s. 52 and s. 58).

Section 58 Applications

Section 58 of the NEB Act permits the Board to make orders exempting certain facilities from any or all of the provisions of sections 29 to 33 and section 47 of the NEB Act.

58. (1) The Board may make orders exempting

(a) pipelines or branches of or extensions to pipelines, not exceeding in any case forty kilometres in length, and

(b) such tanks, reservoirs, storage facilities, pumps, racks, compressors, loading facilities, interstation systems of communication by telephone, telegraph or radio, and real and personal property and works connected therewith, as the Board considers proper,

from any or all of the provisions of sections 29 to 33 and 47.

While applications made under section 58 do not automatically trigger a public hearing, the Board will still assess the application with respect to:

  • public consultation;
  • engineering;
  • environment and socio-economics;
  • economics; and
  • lands.

As such, applicants should refer to the information requirements outlined in:

  • Chapter 3, Common Information Requirements;
  • Chapter 4, Physical Projects, including sections 4.1 and 4.2 and all subsections within Guide A - Facilities Applications (NEB Act s. 52 and s. 58).

Operations and Maintenance Activities

Operations and maintenance activities are defined within the National Energy Board's "Regulation of Operations and Maintenance Activities on Pipelines Under the National Energy Board Act and Guidance Notes" (2005). Operations and maintenance activities do not require an application under section 58 of the National Energy Board Act. The Board recommends that Companies review the requirements and guidance notes for operations and maintenance activities to determine if notification of these activities is required.

The NEB has issued an order pursuant to section 58 called the Section 58 Streamlining Order XG/XO-100-2005, dated 7 July 2005. It replaced Order XG/XO-100-2002 dated 18 December 2002. The order permits projects related to the ongoing operation of NEB regulated oil and gas pipelines that do not warrant additional regulatory oversight, to proceed without an application pursuant to section 58 of the NEB Act. A copy of this order can be found immediately following this subsection.

Section 58 Streamlining Order

Included within this order is Schedule "A", which identifies the types of projects that qualify and the potential impacts or effects of the project that would render an otherwise eligible project, ineligible. If the proposed project meets all the requirements found within Schedule "A", an application is not necessary.

Should a project not be subject to the Streamlining Order, companies, in filing their section 58 applications, may identify the criteria set out in Schedule "A" that the project satisfies in order to improve efficiency in the application process.

The Board reminds applicants to follow the intent of this statement when filing a section 58 application for a project that qualifies under Step 1 within Schedule "A" as an eligible project, but is not subject to the Streamlining Order due to answering "No" to at least one of the questions in Step 2 or "Yes" to at least one of the questions in Step 3.

An example of this would be:

  • a project qualifies as an eligible project under Step 1;
  • all questions in Step 2 are answered "Yes" and
  • one or more of the questions in Step 3 is answered "Yes"

In that case, the applicant should indicate that the application contains the filing requirements outlined in Chapter 3 - Common Information. In addressing the filing requirements outlined in Chapter 4, the content of the application should focus on the criteria that the project did not meet to enable exemption under the Streamlining Order.

 

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Date Modified:
2012-01-12