Agreement Relating to the Implementation of Part XI of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea

7. An application for approval of a plan of work shall be accompanied by
an assessment of the potential environmental impacts of the proposed
activities and by a description of a programme for oceanographic and
baseline environmental studies in accordance with the rules, regulations
and procedures adopted by the Authority.

8. An application for approval of a plan of work for exploration,
subject to paragraph 6 (a) (i) or (ii), shall be processed in accordance
with the procedures set out in section 3, paragraph 11, of this Annex.

9. A plan of work for exploration shall be approved for a period of 15
years. Upon the expiration of a plan of work for exploration, the
contractor shall apply for a plan of work for exploitation unless the
contractor has already done so or has obtained an extension for the plan
of work for exploration. Contractors may apply for such extensions for
periods of not more than five years each. Such extensions shall be
approved if the contractor has made efforts in good faith to comply with
the requirements of the plan of work but for reasons beyond the
contractor’s control has been unable to complete the necessary
preparatory work for proceeding to the exploitation stage or if the
prevailing economic circumstances do not justify proceeding to the
exploitation stage.

10. Designation of a reserved area for the Authority in accordance with
Annex III, article 8, of the Convention shall take place in connection
with approval of an application for a plan of work for exploration or
approval of an application for a plan of work for exploration and
exploitation.

11. Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 9, an approved plan of
work for exploration which is sponsored by at least one State
provisionally applying this Agreement shall terminate if such a State
ceases to apply this Agreement provisionally and has not become a member
on a provisional basis in accordance with paragraph 12 or has not become
a State Party.

12. Upon the entry into force of this Agreement, States and entities
referred to in article 3 of this Agreement which have been applying it
provisionally in accordance with article 7 and for which it is not in
force may continue to be members of the Authority on a provisional basis
pending its entry into force for such States and entities, in accordance
with the following subparagraphs:

(a) If this Agreement enters into force before 16 November 1996, such
States and entities shall be entitled to continue to participate as
members of the Authority on a provisional basis upon notification to the
depositary of the Agreement by such a State or entity of its intention to
participate as a member on a provisional basis. Such membership shall
terminate either on 16 November 1996 or upon the entry into force of this
Agreement and the Convention for such member, whichever is earlier. The
Council may, upon the request of the State or entity concerned, extend
such membership beyond 16 November 1996 for a further period or periods
not exceeding a total of two years provided that the Council is satisfied
that the State or entity concerned has been making efforts in good faith
to become a party to the Agreement and the Convention;

(b) If this Agreement enters into force after 15 November 1996, such
States and entities may request the Council to grant continued membership
in the Authority on a provisional basis for a period or periods not
extending beyond 16 November 1998. The Council shall grant such
membership with effect from the date of the request if it is satisfied
that the State or entity has been making efforts in good faith to become
a party to the Agreement and the Convention;

(c) States and entities which are members of the Authority on a
provisional basis in accordance with subparagraph (a) or (b) shall apply
the terms of Part XI and this Agreement in accordance with their national
or internal laws, regulations and annual budgetary appropriations and
shall have the same rights and obligations as other members, including:

(i) The obligation to contribute to the administrative budget of
the Authority in accordance with the scale of assessed
contributions;

(ii) The right to sponsor an application for approval of a plan of
work for exploration. In the case of entities whose
components are natural or juridical persons possessing the
nationality of more than one State, a plan of work for
exploration shall not be approved unless all the States whose
natural or juridical persons comprise those entities are
States Parties or members on a provisional basis;

(d) Notwithstanding the provisions of paragraph 9, an approved plan of
work in the form of a contract for exploration which was sponsored
pursuant to subparagraph (c) (ii) by a State which was a member on a
provisional basis shall terminate if such membership ceases and the State
or entity has not become a State Party;

(e) If such a member has failed to make its assessed contributions or
otherwise failed to comply with its obligations in accordance with this
paragraph, its membership on a provisional basis shall be terminated.
13. The reference in Annex III, article 10, of the Convention to
performance which has not been satisfactory shall be interpreted to mean
that the contractor has failed to comply with the requirements of an
approved plan of work in spite of a written warning or warnings from the
Authority to the contractor to comply therewith.

14. The Authority shall have its own budget. Until the end of the year
following the year during which this Agreement enters into force, the
administrative expenses of the Authority shall be met through the budget
of the United Nations. Thereafter, the administrative expenses of the
Authority shall be met by assessed contributions of its members,
including any members on a provisional basis, in accordance with articles
171, subparagraph (a), and 173 of the Convention and this Agreement,
until the Authority has sufficient funds from other sources to meet those
expenses. The Authority shall not exercise the power referred to in
article 174, paragraph 1, of the Convention to borrow funds to finance
its administrative budget.

15. The Authority shall elaborate and adopt, in accordance with article
162, paragraph 2 (o) (ii), of the Convention, rules, regulations and
procedures based on the principles contained in sections 2, 5, 6, 7 and 8
of this Annex, as well as any additional rules, regulations and
procedures necessary to facilitate the approval of plans of work for
exploration or exploitation, in accordance with the following
subparagraphs:

(a) The Council may undertake such elaboration any time it deems that
all or any of such rules, regulations or procedures are required for the
conduct of activities in the Area, or when it determines that commercial
exploitation is imminent, or at the request of a State whose national
intends to apply for approval of a plan of work for exploitation;

(b) If a request is made by a State referred to in subparagraph (a)
the Council shall, in accordance with article 162, paragraph 2 (o), of
the Convention, complete the adoption of such rules, regulations and
procedures within two years of the request;

(c) If the Council has not completed the elaboration of the rules,
regulations and procedures relating to exploitation within the prescribed
time and an application for approval of a plan of work for exploitation
is pending, it shall none the less consider and provisionally approve
such plan of work based on the provisions of the Convention and any
rules, regulations and procedures that the Council may have adopted
provisionally, or on the basis of the norms contained in the Convention
and the terms and principles contained in this Annex as well as the
principle of non-discrimination among contractors.

16. The draft rules, regulations and procedures and any recommendations
relating to the provisions of Part XI, as contained in the reports and
recommendations of the Preparatory Commission, shall be taken into
account by the Authority in the adoption of rules, regulations and
procedures in accordance with Part XI and this Agreement.

17. The relevant provisions of Part XI, section 4, of the Convention
shall be interpreted and applied in accordance with this Agreement.

SECTION 2. THE ENTERPRISE

1. The Secretariat of the Authority shall perform the functions of the
Enterprise until it begins to operate independently of the Secretariat.
The Secretary-General of the Authority shall appoint from within the
staff of the Authority an interim Director-General to oversee the
performance of these functions by the Secretariat.

These functions shall be:

(a) Monitoring and review of trends and developments relating to deep
seabed mining activities, including regular analysis of world metal
market conditions and metal prices, trends and prospects;

(b) Assessment of the results of the conduct of marine scientific
research with respect to activities in the Area, with particular emphasis
on research related to the environmental impact of activities in the
Area;

(c) Assessment of available data relating to prospecting and
exploration, including the criteria for such activities;

(d) Assessment of technological developments relevant to activities in
the Area, in particular technology relating to the protection and
preservation of the marine environment;

(e) Evaluation of information and data relating to areas reserved for
the Authority;

(f) Assessment of approaches to joint-venture operations;

(g) Collection of information on the availability of trained manpower;

(h) Study of managerial policy options for the administration of the
Enterprise at different stages of its operations.

Author: international

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