The Qualifying Oil Fields Order 2012
This Order defines large deep water oil fields (“LDOF”) and large shallow water gas fields (“LSGF”) and specifies that oil fields that satisfy either definition are “qualifying oil fields” for the purposes of Chapter 7, Part 8 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 (c.4) (“CTA 2010”). Companies holding a licence or a share in a licence in “qualifying oil fields” are entitled to a “field allowance” which reduces the extent to which their profits are subject to the supplementary charge. In addition, this Order revokes the Field Allowance for New Oil Fields Order 2010 (S.I. 2010/610) (“the 2010 Order”) which specified that deep water gas fields (“DWGF”) are “qualifying fields” and incorporates the amendments made by the 2010 Order directly into the CTA 2010. Finally, this Order extends the definition of a “small oil field” (“SOF”), which is an existing form of “qualifying oil field”, from a field which has reserves of 3,500,000 tonnes or less to one which has reserves of 7,000,000 tonnes or less; and increases the amount of the total field allowance available to SOF from £75,000,000 to £150,000,000.