De-amalgamate an environmental authority

You may wish to de-amalgamate an environmental authority (EA) where a single EA covers multiple activities or tenures, for example where an EA is approved for a single integrated operation, or where multiple EAs were amalgamated following their approval.

Note: If a progressive rehabilitation and closure plan schedule applies to your EA, your de-amalgamated EA application needs to be accompanied by proposed de-amalgamated PRC plans.

Note: If an estimated rehabilitation cost (ERC) decision is, or has been, in effect for the EA, your de-amalgamation EA application must be accompanied by an application for an ERC decision for each of the proposed de-amalgamated EAs.

In either of these cases, you may apply to de-amalgamate a single EA that covers multiple activities or that includes multiple resource tenures.

A resource project EA can only be de-amalgamated if:

• the project is no longer being carried out as a single integrated operation
• it is proposed that the project will no longer be carried out as a single integrated operation, or
• the existing holder is proposing to transfer the EA to another person for a resource tenure (a transfer tenure).

You must complete the declaration in the application form that you meet these requirements if you are de-amalgamating a resource project EA.

Follow the processes below to de-amalgamate your EA.

Application to de-amalgamate a relevant EA

You can apply to de-amalgamate a relevant EA at any time.

Submit an application to de-amalgamate an EA (ESR/2015/1729) (DOCX, 170KB) to your administering authority (the organisation that issued your original EA). No application fee applies.

We will make a decision on your de-amalgamation application within 15 business days of receiving it.

Where an ERC is, or has been, in effect for the EA, the administering authority can only de-amalgamate your EA if an ERC decision has been made for each of the proposed de-amalgamated EAs. The application to de-amalgamate an EA must be accompanied by an application for a decision on the ERC (ESR/2018/4426) (DOCX, 170KB) for each proposed de-amalgamated EA. Also, the de-amalgamation of the EA only takes affect if the proposed holder of each de-amalgamated EA has paid a contribute to the scheme fund or given a surety for the EA under the Mineral and Energy Resources (Financial Provisioning) Act 2018.