Water Industry Act 2012

The Commission must consider an application for the issue of a licence and may, subject to this Division, issue or refuse to issue the licence.

The Commission must have regard to the general factors specified in

the applicant is a suitable person to hold the licence;

the applicant will be able to meet reasonably foreseeable obligations under contracts for the sale or supply of water or the sale or supply of sewerage services (or both), as the case may require;

the water infrastructure or the sewerage infrastructure (or both), as the case may require, to be used in connection with the relevant service is (or proposed infrastructure will be) appropriate for the purposes for which it will be used; and

the applicant has the capacity (including financial, technical, organisational and other necessary capacity) to provide the services safely and to appropriate standards that would be authorised by the licence;

the applicant meets any special requirements imposed by the regulations for the holding of the licence; and

the grant of the licence would be consistent with criteria (if any) prescribed by the regulations.

In deciding whether an applicant is a suitable person to hold a licence, the Commission may consider—

the applicant's previous commercial and other dealings and the standard of honesty and integrity shown in those dealings; and

the financial, technical and human resources available to the applicant; and

the officers and, if applicable, major shareholders of the applicant and their previous commercial and other dealings and the standard of honesty and integrity shown in those dealings (including breaches of statutory and other legal obligations); and

other matters prescribed by regulation or considered relevant by the Commission.

If—

a person carries on or proposes to carry on operations for which a licence is required as agent of another person; and

the agent makes application for the issue of such a licence on the agent's own behalf and on behalf of the principal; and

the Commission is satisfied that the criteria for the issue of the licence are met in relation to the agent, the Commission may, at the Commission's discretion, dispense with the requirement that the Commission be satisfied that the criteria are met in relation to the principal and issue the licence to the agent and the principal to be held by them jointly.