Significant Changes To The Alberta Energy Regulator Rules Of Practice

On November 30, 2013 the Alberta Energy Regulator Rules of Practice Amendment Regulation (Amended Rules) will be proclaimed into force which will bring significant changes to the regulatory process before the Alberta Energy Regulator (AER).  The Amended Rules have been developed in an effort to re-define and clarify certain procedural issues that have occurred since the creation of the AER in June 2013.  Noteworthy aspects of the changes include:

• Expedited applications. The Amended Rules set out a variety of types of applications for which the AER may make a decision prior to inviting statements of concern from potentially affected parties. These include routine applications under the AER's Directive 56, applications under the Public Lands Act Enhanced Approval Process, and temporary field authorizations under the Public Lands Act. This provision will also apply to water licence applications once the AER assumes responsibilities under the Water Act (which is