Water Management Act 2000

Application of section Without limiting section 71N, this section applies to access licences except local water utility access licences and major utility access licences.

Creation of term water allocation transfers The holder of an access licence to which this section applies (the holder of the primary access licence) may transfer, for a specified period, an entitlement for a water allocation to be credited to the water allocation account for the licence to another person holding an access licence (the transferee) to which this section applies.

A transfer referred to in subsection (2) (a term water allocation transfer) may provide for all or part of the entitlement for the water allocation concerned to be transferred.

The specified period for a term water allocation transfer—

must not exceed a period of 10 years, and

must commence on 1 July of a year and expire on 30 June of another year, and

must not commence on 1 July of another year that is more than 5 years ahead (calculated from 1 July of the year the transfer is executed).

The consents of both the Minister and the proposed transferee to the term water allocation transfer are required.

Effect of term water allocation transfers A term water allocation transfer does not operate to transfer the share component of an access licence to the transferee, but only operates to transfer all or part (as the case requires) of the entitlement to be credited with a water allocation.

During the period for which a term water allocation transfer has effect—

the transferee is taken to be entitled to have all or part of the water allocation (as the case requires) that the holder of the primary access licence would have been entitled to have credited to the water allocation account for the primary licence credited to the water allocation account for the transferee’s access licence, and

the holder of the primary access licence is taken not to be entitled to have any or that part (as the case requires) of the water allocation credited to the water allocation account for the primary access licence, and

the transferee is taken to be the holder of the primary access licence concerned in relation to all or that part (as the case requires) of the water allocation, to the exclusion of the holder of the primary access licence, for the following purposes—

the payment of charges with respect to the usage of water credited to the water allocation account for the licence,

any other purpose prescribed by the regulations.

Termination and cancellation of term water allocation transfers A term water allocation transfer may be terminated before its expiry—

by agreement of both the holder of the primary access licence and the transferee, or

by the holder of the primary access licence if the transferee does not comply with any obligation imposed on the transferee by the contract or other arrangement under which the transfer was effected.

If a term water allocation transfer is terminated—

the holder of the primary access licence is not entitled to have recredited to the water allocation account for the primary access licence any of the transferred water allocation that has already been credited to the water allocation account of the transferee’s access licence, and

the transferee continues to be entitled to any of the transferred water allocation that has already been credited to the water allocation account of the transferee’s access licence.

A term water allocation transfer may be cancelled before it commences by agreement of both the holder of the primary access licence and the transferee.

Extension of term water allocation transfers A term water allocation transfer may, with the consent of the Minister, be extended before it expires by agreement of both the holder of the primary access licence and the transferee, but not so as to result in an extended period that exceeds 10 years in total.

Alteration of commencement date for term water allocation transfers The commencement date for a term water allocation transfer may, by agreement of both the holder of the primary access licence and the transferee, be altered before the date on which the transfer is due to commence.

An application to record an alteration to the commencement date for a term water allocation transfer in the Access Register must be lodged before 31 March in the calendar year in which the transfer is to take effect.

Time for making applications for Ministerial consent and registration The holder of the primary access licence must lodge both an application for the consent of the Minister to any of the following dealings and an application for any such dealing to be registered in the Access Register before 31 March in the calendar year in which the dealing is to take effect—

the creation of a term water allocation transfer,

the extension of the term for a term water allocation transfer.

Regulation-making powers The regulations may make provision for or with respect to the manner in which term water allocation transfers are to be terminated, extended, cancelled or altered for the purposes of this section.