Oil Taxation Act 1983 section 6B

The condition for being a qualifying existing field

Section 6B sets out the test that an existing oil field must pass in order to be classified as a "qualifying existing field" for the purposes of the tax exemption on tariffing receipts under section 6A.

• An existing field qualifies only if no "disqualifying asset" was used in a UK area in relation to that field, or oil won from it, at any point during the six years ending on 8 April 2003.
• A disqualifying asset is any asset that was a qualifying asset of a participator in an oil field, unless it falls into one of the specified categories of "excepted assets" — broadly, assets wholly within the field itself, non-dedicated tankers transporting the field's oil, and certain other assets linked to gas transport or excess capacity elections.
• Where an asset serves both a UK-sector participator and a foreign-sector participator, its use in relation to the existing field is split on a just and reasonable basis: the portion attributable to the UK-sector participator counts as use of a qualifying asset (and therefore potentially disqualifying), while the portion attributable to the foreign-sector participator is ignored.
• Additional exceptions apply where the field is expected not to be a "tanker loading field" — meaning virtually all non-gas oil from the field will be transported by means other than tanker — in which case dedicated tankers and assets used in connection with them are also treated as excepted assets.

---