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Canadian Energy Regulator Act (S.C. 2019, c. 28, s. 10)

Act current to 2024-03-06 and last amended on 2022-06-23. Previous Versions

PART 4International and Interprovincial Power Lines (continued)

Abandonment

Marginal note:Prohibition

  •  (1) A person must not, without the leave of the Commission, abandon the operation of an international power line or of an interprovincial power line designated by an order under section 261.

  • Marginal note:Leave to abandon

    (2) On the application of the holder of a permit or certificate, the Commission may, by order, grant leave to abandon the operation of the power line.

Permits and Certificates

Marginal note:Conditions — permit

  •  (1) The Commission may, on the issuance of a permit, make the permit subject to the conditions respecting the matters prescribed by the regulations that the Commission considers necessary or in the public interest.

  • Marginal note:Conditions — certificate

    (2) The Commission may, on the issuance of a certificate, make the certificate subject to the conditions that the Commission considers necessary or in the public interest.

Marginal note:Compliance

 Every permit and certificate is subject to the condition that the provisions of this Act and the regulations, as well as every order made under the authority of this Act or of the laws of a province that are applicable under section 253, must be complied with.

Marginal note:Variation or transfer of certificates

  •  (1) The Commission may, on application or on its own initiative, vary a certificate issued under this Part and may, on application, transfer a certificate issued under this Part. However, the Minister may, if he or she considers that it is in the public interest to do so, direct the Commission to make a recommendation to the Governor in Council with respect to the variation or transfer instead.

  • Marginal note:Recommendations

    (2) A recommendation that a certificate be varied or transferred must set out any conditions that the Commission would impose under subsection (3) if the Commission were to vary or transfer the certificate.

  • Marginal note:Conditions

    (3) In varying or transferring a certificate, the Commission may impose — in addition to or in lieu of any conditions to which the certificate was previously subject — any conditions that the Commission considers necessary or appropriate in order to give effect to the purposes and provisions of this Act.

Marginal note:Recommendation to vary or transfer

 If the Commission recommends to the Governor in Council that a certificate be varied or transferred, the Governor in Council may, by order, direct the Commission

  • (a) to vary or transfer the certificate as recommended;

  • (b) not to vary or transfer the certificate; or

  • (c) to reconsider the matter.

Marginal note:Recommendation not to vary or transfer

 If the Commission recommends to the Governor in Council that a certificate not be varied or transferred, the Governor in Council may, by order, direct the Commission not to vary or transfer the certificate or to reconsider the matter.

Marginal note:Order to reconsider

  •  (1) In an order directing a reconsideration, the Governor in Council may specify factors that the Commission is to take into account in the reconsideration and may require the Commission to complete the reconsideration within a specified time limit.

  • Marginal note:Changes to recommendation

    (2) If the Commission makes any changes to a recommendation as a result of a reconsideration, the Commission must provide a report to the Governor in Council that summarizes the changes.

Marginal note:Publication of order

 An order under section 281 or 282 must be published in the Canada Gazette within 15 days after the day on which it is made.

Marginal note:Suspension of certificates

  •  (1) The Commission may, by order, suspend a certificate issued under this Part if the holder applies for or consents to the suspension or the holder has contravened a condition of the certificate.

  • Marginal note:Notice

    (2) The Commission must not make an order under subsection (1) for a contravention unless the Commission provides the holder with notice of the alleged contravention and gives them an opportunity to be heard.

Marginal note:Revocation of certificates — application or consent

 The Commission may, by order, revoke a certificate issued under this Part on application by or with the consent of the holder.

Marginal note:Revocation of certificates — contravention

  •  (1) The Commission may, by order, with the approval of the Governor in Council, revoke a certificate issued under this Part if the holder has contravened a condition of the certificate.

  • Marginal note:Notice

    (2) The Commission must not make an order under subsection (1) unless the Commission provides the holder with notice of the alleged contravention and gives them an opportunity to be heard.

Marginal note:Variation or transfer of permits

  •  (1) The Commission may, on application or on its own initiative, vary a permit issued under this Part and may, on application, transfer a permit issued under this Part.

  • Marginal note:Conditions

    (2) In varying or transferring a permit, the Commission may impose — in addition to or in lieu of any conditions to which the permit was previously subject — any conditions respecting the matters prescribed by regulations made under section 291 that the Commission considers necessary or appropriate in order to give effect to the purposes and provisions of this Act.

Marginal note:Suspension or revocation of permits

  •  (1) The Commission may, by order, suspend or revoke a permit issued under this Part if the holder applies for or consents to the suspension or revocation or the holder has contravened a condition of the permit.

  • Marginal note:Notice

    (2) The Commission must not make an order under subsection (1) for a contravention unless the Commission provides the holder with notice of the alleged contravention and gives them an opportunity to be heard.

General Provisions

Marginal note:Application of certain provisions

  •  (1) Section 315, subsections 316(1) to (3) and sections 317, 318 and 341 apply in respect of international power lines and of interprovincial power lines in respect of which an order made under section 261 is in force.

  • Marginal note:Application of references

    (2) The provisions of this Act referred to in subsection (1) apply in respect of an international power line as if each reference in those provisions to

    • (a) a company were a reference to the holder of the permit or certificate issued in respect of the line; and

    • (b) a pipeline were a reference to the international or interprovincial power line.

  • Marginal note:Non-application of subsections 316(1) to (3)

    (3) Despite subsection (1), subsections 316(1) to (3) do not apply in respect of any of the following:

    • (a) anything done under leave obtained under subsection 272(2) or (5) in respect of an international power line or of an interprovincial power line referred to in subsection (1);

    • (b) in the case of an interprovincial power line referred to in subsection (1),

      • (i) any section or part of the power line that passes on, over, along or under a facility if a certificate has been issued in respect of the power line and the certificate contains a condition relating to that facility, or

      • (ii) any section or part of the power line that passes in, on, over, under, through or across a navigable water if a certificate has been issued in respect of the power line;

    • (c) in the case of an international power line,

      • (i) any section or part of the line that passes on, over, along or under a facility if a permit referred to in section 248, or a certificate, has been issued in respect of the line and the permit or certificate contains a condition relating to that facility, or

      • (ii) any section or part of the line that passes in, on, over, under, through or across a navigable water if a permit referred to in section 248, or a certificate, has been issued in respect of the line;

    • (d) anything done under any leave obtained under section 108 of the National Energy Board Act at any time before July 3, 2013.

Marginal note:Regulations

 The Governor in Council may make regulations for carrying into effect the purposes and provisions of this Part, including regulations

  • (a) prescribing matters in respect of which conditions of permits may be imposed;

  • (b) respecting the information to be furnished in connection with applications for permits;

  • (c) specifying considerations to which the Commission must have regard in deciding whether to recommend to the Minister that an international power line be designated by order of the Governor in Council under section 258; and

  • (d) prescribing the form of elections filed under section 259.

Marginal note:Regulations — excluded periods

 The Regulator may make regulations prescribing, for the purposes of subsection 262(6), the circumstances in which periods may be excluded from the calculation of the time limit.

Offences

Marginal note:Offence and punishment

  •  (1) Every person who contravenes section 267, subsection 272(1), 273(1) or (2), 295(2) or (3), an order made under subsection 273(3) or an order or regulation made under section 275 is guilty of an offence and is liable

    • (a) on conviction on indictment, to a fine of not more than $1,000,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than five years, or to both; or

    • (b) on summary conviction, to a fine of not more than $100,000 or to imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or to both.

  • Marginal note:Application of subsections 379(2) to (6)

    (2) Subsections 379(2) to (6) apply, with any modifications that the circumstances require, in respect of an offence under this section.

Marginal note:Offence

  •  (1) Every person who contravenes a regulation made under section 270 is guilty of an offence punishable on summary conviction.

  • Marginal note:Defence

    (2) A person is not to be found guilty of an offence under this section if they establish that they exercised due diligence to prevent the commission of the offence.

Application of Certain Provisions

Marginal note:Certificate or order before June 1, 1990

  •  (1) Sections 182 and 199 to 211 and Part 6, except sections 315 to 318, 335, 341 and 342, apply in respect of international power lines in respect of which a certificate was issued under the National Energy Board Act before June 1, 1990, or an order was made under subsection 58(2) of that Act as that subsection read before that date, as if each reference in any of those provisions to

    • (a) a company were a reference to the applicant for or holder of the certificate issued in respect of the power line or the person who operates the line in respect of which the order was made;

    • (b) a pipeline were a reference to the international power line; and

    • (c) hydrocarbons or any other commodity were a reference to electricity.

  • Marginal note:Exception

    (2) A reference to an abandoned pipeline in the provisions referred to in subsection (1) is not a reference to an abandoned international or interprovincial power line.

Marginal note:Terms and conditions before July 3, 2013

  •  (1) Terms and conditions in respect of any international or interprovincial power line that were, at any time before July 3, 2013, imposed under section 58.29 or 108 of the National Energy Board Act or by the Minister of Transport under the Canadian Navigable Waters Act apply as if they were conditions set out in the certificate or permit, as the case may be, issued in respect of the power line.

  • Marginal note:Construction without leave

    (2) If, at any time before July 3, 2013, the Minister of Transport had provided under section 58.3 or 108 of the National Energy Board Act that leave under either section, as the case may be, was not necessary because the power line was to be constructed in accordance with certain orders, regulations, plans and specifications, a person must not construct the power line otherwise than in accordance with those orders, regulations, plans and specifications or as specified by the Commission of the Regulator.

  • Marginal note:Construction without leave

    (3) If, at any time before July 3, 2013, the National Energy Board had provided under section 58.33 or 108 of the National Energy Board Act that leave under section 58.29 or 108 of that Act, as the case may be, was not necessary because the power line was to be constructed in accordance with certain orders or regulations, a person must not construct the power line otherwise than in accordance with those orders or regulations or as specified by the Commission of the Regulator.

PART 5Offshore Renewable Energy Projects and Offshore Power Lines

Marginal note:Definitions

  •  (1) The following definitions apply in this Part.

    authorization

    authorization means an authorization issued under section 298. (autorisation)

    debris

    debris means any facility, equipment or system that was put in place in the course of any work or activity required to be authorized under this Part and that has been abandoned without an authorization, or anything that has broken away or been jettisoned or displaced in the course of any such work or activity. (débris)

  • Marginal note:Application

    (2) A reference in this Part to “in a province” is, in relation to the Northwest Territories, a reference to “in the onshore, as defined in section 2 of the Northwest Territories Act”.

Prohibition

Marginal note:Prohibition — work or activity

 A person must not, except in accordance with an authorization,

  • (a) carry on, in the offshore area, any work or activity that is related to an offshore renewable energy project or to an offshore power line; or

  • (b) carry on any work or activity to construct, operate or abandon any part of an offshore power line that is in a province.

Authorizations

Marginal note:Issuance

  •  (1) On application, the Commission may issue an authorization for

    • (a) each work or activity that is proposed to be carried on, in the offshore area, in relation to an offshore renewable energy project or to an offshore power line; and

    • (b) each work or activity that is proposed to be carried on to construct, operate or abandon any part of an offshore power line that is in a province.

  • Marginal note:Contents of application

    (2) An application must include any information that may be required by the Regulator, or prescribed by regulation, with respect to the proposed work or activity and to the offshore renewable energy project or offshore power line, including information with respect to any facility, equipment, system or vessel related to the project or power line.

  • Marginal note:Factors to consider

    (3) In determining whether to issue an authorization, the Commission must take into account — in light of, among other things, any Indigenous knowledge that has been provided to the Commission and scientific information and data — all considerations that appear to it to be relevant and directly related to the offshore renewable energy project or offshore power line, including

    • (a) the environmental effects, including any cumulative environmental effects;

    • (b) the safety and security of persons and the protection of property and the environment;

    • (c) the health, social and economic effects, including with respect to the intersection of sex and gender with other identity factors;

    • (d) the interests and concerns of the Indigenous peoples of Canada, including with respect to their current use of lands and resources for traditional purposes;

    • (e) the effects on the rights of the Indigenous peoples of Canada recognized and affirmed by section 35 of the Constitution Act, 1982;

    • (f) the extent to which the effects of the project or power line hinder or contribute to the Government of Canada’s ability to meet its environmental obligations and its commitments in respect of climate change; and

    • (g) any relevant assessment referred to in section 92, 93 or 95 of the Impact Assessment Act.

  • Marginal note:Time limit

    (4) The Commission must, within the time limit specified by the Lead Commissioner, issue the authorization or dismiss the application.

  • Marginal note:Maximum time limit

    (5) The specified time limit must be no longer than 300 days after the day on which the applicant has, in the Commission’s opinion, provided a complete application.

  • Marginal note:Excluded period

    (6) In the circumstances prescribed by regulations made under section 312.1, the Lead Commissioner may specify that a period is to be excluded from the calculation of the time limit within which the Commission must make its decision. The Lead Commissioner must provide reasons for doing so.

  • Marginal note:Extension

    (7) The Minister may, by order, grant one or more extensions of the time limit specified under subsection (4).

  • Marginal note:Publication

    (8) The Commission must make public the time limit specified under subsection (4), any period that is excluded and the reasons for the exclusion and any extension of time granted under subsection (7).

  • Marginal note:Conditions of authorization

    (9) An authorization is subject to any conditions that may be imposed by the Commission or under the regulations, including conditions with respect to

    • (a) approvals;

    • (b) deposits of money;

    • (c) liability for loss, damage, costs or expenses related to debris;

    • (d) the carrying out of safety studies or environmental programs or studies; and

    • (e) certificates of fitness and who may issue them.

  • Marginal note:Compliance

    (10) Every authorization is subject to the condition that the provisions of this Act and of the regulations, as well as every order made under the authority of this Act, will be complied with.

  • Marginal note:Continuation of jurisdiction and obligation

    (11) A failure by the Commission to comply with subsection (4) within the required time limit does not affect its jurisdiction to deal with the application or its obligation to issue the authorization or dismiss the application, and anything done by it in relation to the application remains valid.

 

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