Amendments to the Fuel Quality Standards Regulations 2001
The amendments have arisen from recommendations from the first statutory review of the Fuel Quality Standards Act 2000 (the Act) and from issues with the practical application of the legislation.
The amendments, which apply from 1 November 2008, relate to:
- the application of fees for approvals to vary fuel standards as specified under regulations 5 and 6
- a requirement that regulation 24 records be kept at the location where the fuel is supplied
- the process for taking fuel samples under regulation 17
- removal of "diesohol" from the definition of fuel under regulation 3
- updating the email address for lodgement of annual statements required under regulation 29.
Amendment 1: Removal of diesohol from the definition of fuel (regulation 3(2))
Diesohol has now been removed from the definition of fuel in regulation 3(2) in line with a new management approach for diesohol under the Act. Diesohol will be managed through the section 13 approvals process as a variation to the Fuel Standard (Automotive) Diesel Determination 2001 with conditions to address the potential safety issues associated with its supply.Amendment 2: Section 13 approval fee structure (regulation 5(1))
A new fee structure has been introduced to reflect a cost recovery framework based on the amount of fuel to be covered by the approval, not the number of pages in the application. The new fees below apply from 1 November 2008.
| Tier | Application Threshold (Megalitres) |
Unit Charge (per application) |
|---|---|---|
| Tier 1: | <1 ML | $2,575 |
| Tier 2: | 1 ML – 25 ML | $25,000 |
| Tier 3: | 25 ML – 100 ML | $ 70,000 |
| Tier 4: | >100 ML | $130,000 |
Amendment 3: Waiver of applications fees (regulation 5(2))
The exemption from payment of application fees for section 13 approvals for Commonwealth, State and Territory agencies has been removed.
Amendment 4: Process specified for fuel sampling (regulation 17)
The fuel sampling procedures specified in the regulations were originally developed with petrol and diesel in mind and did not take into account the logistics of handling gas samples. Regulation 17 has been amended to specify a more practical process applying to gas samples where a portion of the sample will not be required to be left with the fuel supplier. Leaving gas sample cylinders with the occupier of fuel supply sites is both expensive and dangerous.
Amendment 5: Record keeping (regulation 24)
The regulations now include a provision that records required to be kept by fuel suppliers as specified by regulation 24 must be kept at the site from which the fuel is supplied.
Amendment 6: Annual statements (regulation 29)
Regulation 29 no longer specifies departmental names and addresses for the supply of annual statements as these can change with a new government or a departmental name change. The regulation now simply refers to "the Department's postal address" and "email address for fuel quality matters".