42 U.S.C. § 9111

Current through P.L. 118-107 (published on www.congress.gov on 11/21/2024)

Section 9111 - License for ownership, construction, and operation of ocean thermal energy conversion facilities or plantships

(a) License requirement

No person may engage in the ownership, construction, or operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility which is documented under the laws of the United States, which is located in whole or in part between the highwater mark and the seaward boundary of the territorial sea of the United States, or which is connected to the United States by pipeline or cable, except in accordance with a license issued pursuant to this chapter. No citizen of the United States may engage in the ownership, construction or operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion plantship except in accordance with a license issued pursuant to this chapter, or in accordance with a license issued by a foreign nation whose licenses are found by the Administrator, after consultation with the Secretary of State, to be compatible with licenses issued pursuant to this chapter.

(b) Documented plantships; documented facilities; facilities located in territorial sea; facilities connected to United States by pipeline or cable

The Administrator shall, upon application and in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, issue, transfer, amend, or renew licenses for the ownership, construction, and operation of-

(1) ocean thermal energy conversion plantships documented under the laws of the United States, and

(2) ocean thermal energy conversion facilities documented under the laws of the United States, located in whole or in part between the highwater mark and the seaward boundary of the territorial sea of the United States, or connected to the United States by pipeline or cable.

(c) License issuance prerequisites

The Administrator may issue a license to a citizen of the United States in accordance with the provisions of this chapter unless-

(1) he determines that the applicant cannot or will not comply with applicable laws, regulations, and license conditions;

(2) he determines that the construction and operation of the ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship will not be in the national interest and consistent with national security and other national policy goals and objectives, including energy self-sufficiency and environmental quality;

(3) he determines, after consultation with the Secretary of the department in which the Coast Guard is operating, that the ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship will not be operated with reasonable regard to the freedom of navigation or other reasonable uses of the high seas and authorized uses of the Continental Shelf, as defined by United States law, treaty, convention, or customary international law;

(4) he has been informed, within 45 days after the conclusion of public hearings on that application, or on proposed licenses for the designated application area, by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency that the ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship will not conform with all applicable provisions of any law for which he has regulatory authority;

(5) he has received the opinion of the Attorney General, pursuant to section 9114 of this title, stating that issuance of the license would create a situation in violation of the antitrust laws, or the 90-day period provided in section 9114 of this title has not expired;

(6) he has consulted with the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of Transportation, the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of Defense, to determine their views on the adequacy of the application, and its effect on programs within their respective jurisdictions and determines on the basis thereof, that the application for a license is inadequate;

(7) the proposed ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship will be documented under the laws of a foreign nation;

(8) the applicant has not agreed to the condition that no vessel may be used for the transportation to the United States of things produced, processed, refined, or manufactured at the ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship unless such vessel is documented under the laws of the United States;

(9) when the license is for an ocean thermal energy conversion facility, he determines that the facility, including any submarine electric transmission cables and equipment or pipelines which are components of the facility, will not be located and designed so as to minimize interference with other uses of the high seas or the Continental Shelf, including cables or pipelines already in position on or in the seabed and the possibility of their repair;

(10) the Governor of any adjacent coastal State with an approved coastal zone management program in good standing pursuant to the Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972 (16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.) determines that, in his or her view, the application is inadequate or inconsistent with respect to programs within his or her jurisdiction;

(11) when the license is for an ocean thermal energy conversion facility, he determines that the thermal plume of the facility is expected to impinge on so as to degrade the thermal gradient used by any other ocean thermal energy conversion facility already licensed or operating, without the consent of its owner;

(12) when the license is for an ocean thermal energy conversion facility, he determines that the thermal plume of the facility is expected to impinge on so as to adversely affect the territorial sea or area of national resource jurisdiction, as recognized by the United States, of any other nation, unless the Secretary of State approves such impingement after consultation with such nation;

(13) when the license is for an ocean thermal energy conversion plantship, he determines that the applicant has not provided adequate assurance that the plantship will be operated in such a way as to prevent its thermal plume from impinging on so as to degrade the thermal gradient used by any other ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship without the consent of its owner, and from impinging on so as to adversely affect the territorial sea or area of national resource jurisdiction, as recognized by the United States, of any other nation unless the Secretary of State approves such impingement after consultation with such nation; or

(14) if a regulation has been adopted which places an upper limit on the number or total capacity of ocean thermal energy conversion facilities or plantships to be licensed under this chapter for simultaneous operation, either overall or within specific geographic areas, pursuant to a determination under the provisions of section 9117(b)(4) of this title, issuance of the license will cause such upper limit to be exceeded.

(d) Issuance conditions; written agreement of compliance; disposal or removal requirements

(1) In issuing a license for the ownership, construction, and operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship, the Administrator shall prescribe conditions which he deems necessary to carry out the provisions of this chapter, or which are otherwise required by any Federal department or agency pursuant to the terms of this chapter.

(2) No license shall be issued, transferred, or renewed under this chapter unless the applicant, licensee or transferee first agrees in writing that (A) there will be no substantial change from the plans, operational systems, and methods, procedures, and safeguards set forth in his application, as approved, without prior approval in writing from the Administrator, and (B) he will comply with conditions the Administrator may prescribe in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(3) The Administrator shall establish such bonding requirements or other assurances as he deems necessary to assure that, upon the revocation, termination, relinquishment, or surrender of a license, the licensee will dispose of or remove all components of the ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship as directed by the Administrator. In the case of components which another applicant or licensee desires to use, the Administrator may waive the disposal or removal requirements until he has reached a decision on the application. In the case of components lying on or below the seabed, the Administrator may waive the disposal or removal requirements if he finds that such removal is not otherwise necessary and that the remaining components do not constitute any threat to the environment, navigation, fishing, or other uses of the seabed.

(e) License transfer

Upon application, a license issued under this chapter may be transferred if the Administrator determines that such transfer is in the public interest and that the transferee meets the requirements of this chapter and the prerequisites to issuance under subsection (c) of this section.

(f) License eligibility

Any United States citizen who otherwise qualifies under the terms of this chapter shall be eligible to be issued a license for the ownership, construction, and operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship.

(g) License term and renewal

Licenses issued under this chapter shall be for a term of not to exceed 25 years. Each licensee shall have a preferential right to renew his license subject to the requirements of subsection (c) of this section, upon such conditions and for such term, not to exceed an additional 10 years upon each renewal, as the Administrator determines to be reasonable and appropriate.

42 U.S.C. § 9111

Pub. L. 96-320, title I, §101, Aug. 3, 1980, 94 Stat. 976; Pub. L. 98-623, title VI, §602(a)(3)-(5), (b), (e) (8)-(11), Nov. 8, 1984, 98 Stat. 3410-3412.

EDITORIAL NOTES

REFERENCES IN TEXTThis chapter, referred to in text, was in the original "this Act", meaning Pub. L. 96-320, Aug. 3, 1980, 94 Stat. 974, known as the Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Act of 1980, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 9101 of this title and Tables.The Coastal Zone Management Act of 1972, referred to in subsec. (c)(10), is title III of Pub. L. 89-454 as added by Pub. L. 92-583, Oct. 27, 1972, 86 Stat. 1280, which is classified generally to chapter 33 (§1451 et seq.) of Title 16, Conservation. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see Short Title note set out under section 1451 of Title 16 and Tables.

AMENDMENTS1984-Subsecs. (a), (b)(2). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(a)(3), (4), substituted "located in whole or in part between the highwater mark and the seaward boundary of the territorial sea" for "located in the territorial sea". Subsec. (c)(1). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(b)(1), substituted "cannot or will not" for "cannot and will not".Subsec. (c)(4). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(e)(8), substituted "regulatory authority" for "enforcement authority".Subsec. (c)(5). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(b)(2), substituted "has not expired" for "has expired". Subsec. (c)(6). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(e)(9), substituted "application for a license" for "application for license".Subsec. (c)(7). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(a)(5), substituted "will be documented under the laws of a foreign nation" for "will not be documented under the laws of the United States".Subsec. (c)(10). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(b)(3), (5), substituted "any adjacent" for "each adjacent" and "(16 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.)" for "( 33 U.S.C. 1451 et seq.)".Subsec. (c)(13). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(b)(4), substituted "or" for "and" after the semicolon at the end.Subsec. (c)(14). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(e)(10), substituted "if a regulation" for "when a regulation". Subsec. (d)(2). Pub. L. 98-623, §602(e)(11), substituted "applicant, licensee" for "licensee".

STATUTORY NOTES AND RELATED SUBSIDIARIES

TRANSFER OF FUNCTIONS For transfer of authorities, functions, personnel, and assets of the Coast Guard, including the authorities and functions of the Secretary of Transportation relating thereto, to the Department of Homeland Security, and for treatment of related references, see sections 468(b), 551(d), 552(d), and 557 of Title 6, Domestic Security, and the Department of Homeland Security Reorganization Plan of November 25, 2002, as modified, set out as a note under section 542 of Title 6.

EXECUTIVE DOCUMENTS

TERRITORIAL SEA OF UNITED STATES For extension of territorial sea of United States, see Proc. No. 5928, set out as a note under section 1331 of Title 43, Public Lands.

Governor: "Governor" means the Governor of a State or the person designated by law to exercise the powers granted to the Governor pursuant to this chapter;
State: "State" means each of the several States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas, and any other Commonwealth, territory, or possession over which the United States has jurisdiction;
United States citizen: "United States citizen" means (A) any individual who is a citizen of the United States by law, birth, or naturalization; (B) any Federal, State, or local government in the United States, or any entity of any such government; or (C) any corporation, partnership, association, or other entity, organized or existing under the laws of the United States, or of any State, which has as its president or other executive officer and as its chairman of the board of directors, or holder of similar office, an individual who is a United States citizen and which has no more of its directors who are not United States citizens than constitute a minority of the number required for a quorum necessary to conduct the business of the board.
adjacent coastal State: "adjacent coastal State" means any coastal State which is required to be designated as such by section 9115(a)(1) of this title or is designated as such by the Administrator in accordance with section 9115(a)(2) of this title;
antitrust laws: "antitrust laws" includes the Act of July 2, 1890, as amended [15 U.S.C. 1 et seq.], the Act of October 15, 1914, as amended [15 U.S.C. 12 et seq.], and sections 73 and 74 of the Act of August 27, 1894, as amended [15 U.S.C. 8 and 9] ;
application: "application" means any application submitted under this chapter (A) for issuance of a license for the ownership, construction, and operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship; (B) for transfer or renewal of any such license; or (C) for any substantial change in any of the conditions and provisions of any such license;
construction: "construction" means any activities conducted at sea to supervise, inspect, actually build, or perform other functions incidental to the building, repairing, or expanding of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship or any of its components, including but not limited to, piledriving, emplacement of mooring devices, emplacement of cables and pipelines, and deployment of the cold water pipe, and alterations, modifications, or additions to an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship;
facility: "facility" means an ocean thermal energy conversion facility;
high seas: "high seas" means that part of the oceans lying seaward of the territorial sea of the United States and outside the territorial sea, as recognized by the United States, of any other nation;
licensee: "licensee" means the holder of a valid license for the ownership, construction, and operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship that was issued, transferred, or renewed pursuant to this chapter;
ocean thermal energy conversion facility: "ocean thermal energy conversion facility" means any facility which is standing, fixed or moored in whole or in part seaward of the highwater mark and which is designed to use temperature differences in ocean water to produce electricity or another form of energy capable of being used directly to perform work, and includes any equipment installed on such facility to use such electricity or other form of energy to produce, process, refine, or manufacture a product, and any cable or pipeline used to deliver such electricity, fresh water, or product to shore, and all other associated equipment and appurtenances of such facility, to the extent they are located seaward of the highwater mark;
ocean thermal energy conversion plantship: "ocean thermal energy conversion plantship" means any vessel which is designed to use temperature differences in ocean water while floating unmoored or moving through such water, to produce electricity or another form of energy capable of being used directly to perform work, and includes any equipment installed on such vessel to use such electricity or other form of energy to produce, process, refine, or manufacture a product, and any equipment used to transfer such product to other vessels for transportation to users, and all other associated equipment and appurtenances of such vessel;
person: "person" means any individual (whether or not a citizen of the United States), any corporation, partnership, association, or other entity organized or existing under the laws of any nation, and any Federal, State, local or foreign government or any entity of any such government;
plantship: "plantship" means an ocean thermal energy conversion plantship;
thermal plume: "thermal plume" means the area of the ocean in which a significant difference in temperature, as defined in regulations by the Administrator, occurs as a result of the operation of an ocean thermal energy conversion facility or plantship; and
Administrator: The term "Administrator" means the Administrator of General Services.
owner: The term "owner" means, with respect to federally assisted housing, the entity or private person, including a cooperative or public housing agency, that has the legal right to lease or sublease dwelling units in such housing.
Secretary: the term "Secretary" means- (A) the Secretary of Education for purposes of subtitle A (other than section 3201),(B) the Secretary of Agriculture for purposes of the amendments made by section 3201, and(C) the Secretary of Health and Human Services for purposes of subtitle B,