Notional Field Development Final Report - EBN

EBN Notional Field Development Plan
4.2.14.1 Land access
According to Article 4 of the MA, landowners within a license have to allow all mining activities that take
place deeper than 100 meters below ground level. In case of refusal, a court order might be required.
This can easily take longer than a year.
There are different approaches to achieve an approval for land use with a landowner.
The approach to follow depends on future investment at a site and the approach taken by the E&P
Operator/developer. In general, the operator would prefer to become landowner of sites where wells or
production station(s) will be situated, or if a long duration of activities is foreseen. This includes (certain
rights with respect to) a certain buffer zone around the facilities. However, a rent or lease (sale/saleback)
construction (agreement) may be better suited, in cases where exploratory drilling takes place,
and where duration of activities are expected to be undertaken within a far shorter timeframe.
It is more common to achieve a settlement of Business Rights for the routing of (underground) pipelines,
in accordance with Dutch law (via an annual or ‘one-off’ payment). In all cases, there is an obligation to
compensate the landowner for damage (if any) and the use of the property (ref. article 4, MA).
Settlement of Business Right to use the property;
After constructing a well pad and/or a pipeline, a Settlement of Business Rights should be prepared to
ensure an operator has the right (to drill) on a landowner’s property. This settlement of Business Rights
is a clear and transparent contract between the operator and landowner, which stipulates the juridical
property of the pad, the well, and the pipeline, and practical appointments such as service activities,
repair, access etc. Furthermore, this contract defines the rules for compensation in case of damage,
disputes or any other irregularities. An environmental ’base-line’-survey (‘0’-study) is conducted, and
then added as part of the agreement.
Amicable expropriation of the property;
During the design phase of the project (in particular towards the large scale production phase), a
landowner feasibility study needs to be conducted. This study should provide an overview of
landowners who are willing to cooperate on the roll-out of the infrastructure (access roads, well pads
and pipeline routes). Such an approach should make it possible to acquire a property portfolio via
amicable expropriation. After selecting the most suitable instrument per landowner, the execution
stage follows. This will include all aspects of the expropriation, including negotiation, taxation,
settlement of the contract and entry into the national land registry (‘Kadaster’).
As a final remark on the subject of land access: In case the ‘National Coordination Procedure’ (NCP) is
declared applicable, additional powers to enforce dispossession are assigned to the Minister related to
the use and acquisition of private plots.
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