33. The Act of 1976 is amended by substituting for section 8 (as amended by the European Communities (Internal Market in Natural Gas) (BGÉ) Regulations 2005 (S.I. No. 760 of 2005) the following:

“8. (1) (a) The Board shall own, operate, develop and maintain a system for the transmission and distribution of natural gas being a system that is both economical and efficient and appears to the Board to be requisite for the time being.

(b) Nothing in paragraph (a) shall be construed as imposing on the Board, either directly or indirectly, any form of duty or liability enforceable by proceedings before any court to which it would not otherwise be subject.

(2) The Board shall carry out its obligations under this Act in accordance with Directive 2009/73/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 July 2009⁴ and having regard to the need to ensure the safety and security of the transmission, distribution and supply of natural gas.

(3) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1) or to any provision of this Act apart from this section, within or outside the State, and subject to any requirements of law the Board may—

(a) transmit and distribute natural gas (whether or not such gas has been prepared, processed or treated),

(b) liquify or otherwise prepare, process or treat natural gas,

(c) fix, make and recover charges for any service or facility provided or thing undertaken pursuant to this section by the Board, or fix and accept subscriptions for any service or facility so provided,

(d) attach such terms and conditions as the Board shall think fit to any service or facility provided by it,

(e) provide, operate or maintain, or provide, operate and maintain, whether for use by the Board or any other person, such pipelines, terminals, pressure-reducing stations, off-take stations, vessels, vehicles, works, services, facilities or other things as are necessary or expedient in relation to, or ancillary to, the provision, development or maintenance of a gas transmission system and a distribution system,

(f) provide any or all of the following services and facilities relating to the development, transmission or distribution of gas, namely, advice or assistance, research services or research or training facilities,

(g) subject to subsection (4), subscribe or guarantee money for charitable or benevolent objects or to, or for, any institution or for any public, general or useful object,

(h) draw, make, accept, endorse, discount, negotiate or issue bills of exchange, promissory notes or other negotiable or transferable instruments,

(i) subject to subsection (5), accept a gift of money, land or other property upon such trusts and conditions (if any) as may be specified by the person making the gift,

(j) carry on any activity which appears to the Board to be requisite, advantageous or incidental to, or which appears to the Board to facilitate, the performance by the Board of any function under this Act.

(4) In case the Board pursuant to subsection (3)(g)—

(a) gives a subscription exceeding €2,000, or

(b) in any particular year gives for, or to, a particular object or institution two or more subscriptions the aggregate of which exceeds €2,000,

the subscription or subscriptions, as may be appropriate, together with the object or institution to which it or they relate shall be specified in the accounts kept by the Board pursuant to this Act.

(5) The Board shall not accept a gift pursuant to subsection (3)(i) if the trusts and conditions attached by the donor to its acceptance are inconsistent with the functions of the Board.

(6) Where the Board proposes to transfer to another person an interest in a pipeline or a part thereof that has been constructed by it pursuant to and in accordance with a consent given under this Act the Board shall obtain the prior consent of the majority-shareholding Minister, given with the approval of the Government, for such a transfer and the majority-shareholding Minister may attach such conditions as he or she deems appropriate to such a prior consent.

(7) In subsection (6)—

‘interest’ means any estate, right, title or other interest, legal or equitable and includes a licence;

‘transfer’ includes grant, demise and assign or, as appropriate, a grant, demise and an assignment.”.