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S.M. 1988-89, c. 40
Bill 5, 1st Session, 34th Legislature
The Greater Winnipeg Gas Distribution Act
Enacted by S.M. 1988-89, c. 2, Schedule C
HER MAJESTY, by and with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, enacts as follows:
In this Act,
"authority" means the corporation, agency, or other authority to which reference is made in section 10, or such other corporation, organization, or authority as may be designated by the minister under subsection 10(6); («autorité»)
"board" means The Public Utilities Board; («Régie»)
"committee" means Greater Winnipeg Gas Distribution Negotiating Committee constituted and established under section 8 or subsection 10(3) or 11(2); («Comité»)
"company" means Greater Winnipeg Gas Company; («compagnie»)
"distribution system" means gas pipe lines that are used for the distribution of gas to the building or structures in which it is used by the ultimate consumer thereof; («réseau de distribution»)
"franchise" means the authority granted under this Act to the company to operate its distribution system in a municipality and including the provisions set out in the Schedule; («concession»)
"gas" means all manufactured gas and all natural gas, both before and after it has been subjected to any treatment or process by absorption, purification, scrubbing, or otherwise, and includes liquefied petroleum gas; («gaz»)
"gas pipe line" means a pipe line for the transportation, transmission, or conduct of gas and includes all property, real and personal, required for the purposes thereof, and, without restricting the generality of the foregoing, further includes any system, works, plant, pipe line, or equipment for the production, transmission, delivery, or furnishing of gas, directly or indirectly, to the public; («gazoduc»)
"Greater Winnipeg" means the area comprising The City of Winnipeg, The Rural Municipality of East St. Paul and The Rural Municipality of West St. Paul; («conurbation de Winnipeg»)
"minister" means the member of the Executive Council charged by the Lieutenant Governor in Council with the administration of this Act; («ministre»)
"municipality" means a municipality in Greater Winnipeg. («municipalité»)
Greater Winnipeg Gas Company has, subject as herein provided, the sole and exclusive right to operate a distribution system in Greater Winnipeg and, by means thereof, to distribute and sell gas to consumers in Greater Winnipeg, and for that purpose has the powers and authority, and is subject to the terms, conditions, and restrictions, set out in the Schedule; but the Schedule is subject to sections 1 to 17 of this Act, and should there be conflict between a provision in sections 1 to 17 of this Act and a provision in the Schedule, the provision in sections 1 to 17 prevails.
Nothing herein impairs or otherwise affects
(a) any agreement made by any corporation, before the coming into force of this Act, with The City of Winnipeg, or any renewal thereof, whereby the corporation is authorized to lay a pipe line in the streets, lanes, squares, and other public places in The City of Winnipeg, and to make use of the pipe line for the sole purpose of conveying to Canadian Pacific Railway Company, and no other, oxygen gas for the use of Canadian Pacific Railway Company in its operations; or
(b) the rights of the corporation or The City of Winnipeg under any such agreement or any renewal thereof; or
(c) any permit, licence, or authority granted to the corporation pursuant to any such agreement or any renewal thereof.
Agreements with other municipalities
Nothing herein precludes the company from entering into an agreement, subject to the approval of the board, with a city, town, village, or rural municipality, that is not mentioned in the definition "Greater Winnipeg", in section 1, to operate a distribution system, either as an extension of its distribution system operated in Greater Winnipeg under section 2, or as a separate distribution system, and to distribute and sell gas to consumers, within the city, town, village, or rural municipality, or a part thereof.
Notwithstanding section 5, an agreement mentioned in subsection (1) may or may not be subject to the terms, conditions, and restrictions set out in the Schedule.
Where an agreement mentioned in subsection (1) has been entered into, the board may order that the city, town, village, or rural municipality, or that part thereof that is affected by the agreement, is included in the area comprising Greater Winnipeg; and thereafter the city, town, village, or rural municipality, or that part thereof affected by the order, shall, for the purposes of this Act, be conclusively deemed to be within the area comprising Greater Winnipeg, and to be a municipality in Greater Winnipeg.
Operations under existing authority
Where the company, by virtue of any authority, right, or power, heretofore received, possessed, or claimed by it, is operating a distribution system in any municipality, it shall be conclusively deemed to be doing so subject to this Act and by virtue of a franchise under this Act and not otherwise.
A franchise under this Act shall be conclusively deemed to include the provisions set forth in the Schedule.
Distribution system a public utility
The distribution system operated by the company in Greater Winnipeg is, subject as herein expressly otherwise provided, a public utility within the meaning of The Public Utilities Board Act.
Subject as herein provided, every franchise under this Act, and all authority, right, and power of the company under any Act of the Legislature or under any municipal by-law, terminate on December 31, 2008; and, subject as aforesaid, all authority, right, or power, of the company to operate a distribution system in any part of Greater Winnipeg under this Act or any other Act of the Legislature, or under any franchise, ceases on that date.
If the company wishes to renew the franchises for a further period, it shall, before January 1, 2007, give written notice to that effect to the minister.
Appointment of negotiating committee
On receipt by the minister of a notice under section 7, the Lieutenant Governor in Council shall constitute and establish a negotiating committee under the name: "Greater Winnipeg Gas Distribution Negotiating Committee", which shall consist of five members.
Two members of the committee shall be appointed by the Lieutenant Governor in Council from among a number of persons, not less than four, who
(a) have signified their willingness to accept the appointment; and
(b) are nominated by the municipalities, other than The City of Winnipeg; and one other member, who shall be the chairperson of the committee, shall be appointed by order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council, and two members shall be appointed by the council of The City of Winnipeg.
The committee has the authority, powers, rights, and duties herein granted to or charged upon it; and the members thereof shall be paid such fees or other remuneration as is fixed by order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council; and they shall be repaid such amount in respect of their out-of-pocket expenses necessarily incurred in the discharge of their duties as is approved by the treasurer of The City of Winnipeg.
Payment of remuneration and expenses
The amounts payable under subsection (3) shall be paid, in the first instance, by The City of Winnipeg; but one half thereof is recoverable by it from the other municipalities, from each an amount that is, as nearly as is practicable, the same proportion of the total amount so recoverable as the population of the municipality is of the total population of all those other municipalities; and the amount so recoverable from each of those municipalities is a debt due and payable.
Where a vacancy in the committee occurs from any cause it shall be filled, in the manner hereinbefore provided, by the authority that appointed the vacating member.
Appointment of pro tempore member
Where a member of the committee dies, is ill, is absent from the province, or, from any other cause, is unable to act,
(a) in the case of a member appointed by the council of The City of Winnipeg, the council may appoint a person to act, pro tempore, in his stead; and
(b) in the case of any other member, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may appoint a person to act, pro tempore, in his stead, subject to the conditions as to appointment of members set out in clauses (2)(a) and (2)(b).
The Lieutenant Governor in Council may appoint one of the members of the committee as deputy chairperson to act in event of the death, illness, or absence, of the chairperson.
The Lieutenant Governor in Council may, for any reasonable cause, remove from office any member of the committee.
Forthwith on its appointment the committee shall give written notice to each municipality that, after a date stated in the notice, which shall not be earlier than 30 days after the receipt of the notice by all the municipalities, it proposes to enter into negotiations with the company for renewal of the franchises; and, after hearing the objections or representations with respect to the matter made by any municipality, the committee shall forthwith after the date stated in the notice
(a) enter into negotiations with the company for the purpose aforesaid and consider the proposals thereof; or
(b) notify the company that the franchises will not be renewed.
If, upon the completion of any such negotiations, the committee is satisfied that the franchises should be renewed, the committee shall, subject to subsections (3), (4), and (5), pass a resolution to that effect and deliver to the company and to each municipality a copy thereof.
Unless the committee and the company otherwise agree, the franchises shall be renewed subject to, and in accordance with, the terms and conditions set out in the Schedule.
Alterations in and additions to franchise
The committee may agree that the franchises shall be renewed subject to certain provisions set out in its resolution making alterations in, or additions to, the Schedule, or both such alterations and additions; but no such alteration or addition has any validity or effect unless it is
(a) approved by order of the board;
(b) confirmed by order of the Lieutenant Governor in Council; and
(c) published in one issue of The Manitoba Gazette.
Time for completion of renewal agreement
A resolution of the committee passed under subsection (2) and, where required, the approval, confirmation, and publication thereof under subsection (4), shall be passed, given, and completed before January 1, 2008; and, before that date, the committee shall deliver to the company and to each municipality a copy of the resolution and of any orders of approval or confirmation made under subsection (4).
Upon a resolution of the committee being passed and, where required, approved and published, the renewals of the franchises shall take effect, according to the terms of the resolution, on January 1, 2009; and, on and after that date, the committee shall be deemed to be discharged.
On the expiration of the period of renewal, after a like notice to the minister and to the municipalities, the franchises may again be renewed, in like manner, for a further period; and thereafter, on the expiration of each subsequent period of renewal, the franchises may again be renewed, in like manner, for a further period.
Each renewal of the franchises shall be for a period stated in the resolution of the committee, and shall be for not less than 10 or more than 25 years; and
(a) the notice required to be given by the company to the minister in respect of any further renewal after the first shall be given at least two years before the end of the renewal period; and
(b) the committee shall pass any resolution effecting a subsequent renewal and deliver copies thereof as provided in subsection (2) not less than one year before the end of the then current renewal period.
On receipt of a notice from the company prior to the expiration of any renewal period, the Lieutenant Governor in Council shall reconstitute and re-establish the committee and the members thereof shall be appointed as provided in section 8.
Committee as agent for municipalities
The committee is the agent of the municipalities, and of each of them, in respect of all renewals of franchises negotiated, or other agreements negotiated or made, with the company under this Act including agreements respecting the use of the highways of the municipalities for the purposes of the distribution system or the breaking or digging up, alteration, or repair of those highways for those purposes, and the standards and practices to be observed with respect to those matters.
Notice of non-renewal of franchises
Where, after entering into negotiations as required under subsection 9(1), either after receipt of a notice in respect of the franchises expiring on December 31, 2008, or in respect of any period of renewal thereof, the committee decides that the franchises should not be renewed, the committee shall, not later than December 1, 2007, or not less than 12 months before the expiration of any subsequent period of renewal, notify the company that, subject to objections by the municipalities, the franchises will not be renewed.
Forthwith after giving notice as provided in subsection (1) or under clause 9(1)(b), the committee shall report in writing to the minister with its recommendations as to the corporation or other agency or authority that, in the opinion of the committee, should be authorized
(a) to acquire the distribution system, including the used and useful real and personal property and other assets of the company that that corporation, agency, or other authority may deem to be necessary or convenient for the efficient and economical operation by it of the distribution system so acquired; and
(b) upon acquisition thereof, to operate the distribution system; and the committee shall send a copy of its report to each of the municipalities and to the company.
Failure of company to give notice
Where the company fails to give notice under subsection 7(2) before January 1, 2007, or before the first day of January of the year next preceding the year in which a renewal of the franchises expire, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may constitute and establish a committee similar in all respects to a negotiating committee appointed under section 8; and that section applies, with such modifications as the circumstances require, to a committee appointed under this subsection.
The committee appointed under subsection (3), after making such inquiries, and hearing such evidence, as it deems necessary, shall report in writing to the minister as to the corporation or other agency or authority that, in the opinion of the committee, should be authorized
(a) to acquire and operate the distribution system as mentioned in subsection (2); or
(b) to construct, install, and operate a new distribution system in Greater Winnipeg in place of the distribution system operated by the company; and the committee shall send a copy of its report to each of the municipalities and to the company.
Recommendation as to operating authority
A committee appointed under section 8 or under subsection (3) may recommend that the corporation, agency, or other authority to which reference is made in subsection (2) or (3), be a corporation, agency, or other authority that is then in existence or that it be forthwith incorporated or constituted.
Subject to subsections (7) and (8), the minister may accept the recommendation of the committee respecting the corporation, agency, or other authority to be authorized to acquire the distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets of the company as provided in subsection (2) or to proceed as provided in clause (4)(a) or (4)(b) or he may designate such other corporation, organization, or authority as he may deem suitable for the purpose.
Any municipality may, within one month of the receipt of the copy of a report under subsection (2) or (4), notify the minister in writing that it objects to the acquisition of the distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets of the company, by a corporation, agency, or other authority, or to the corporation, agency, or other authority being authorized to proceed as provided in clause (4)(b) and as recommended in a report made under subsection (2) or (4).
After receipt of such a written notice and, if requested, hearing what is alleged by or on behalf of the municipality, the committee and the company, or any of them,
(a) if the committee was appointed under section 8, the minister may direct the committee to resume negotiations with the company, for renewal of the franchises as here provided, and to make a further report; or
(b) if the committee was appointed under subsection (3) the minister may
(i) direct the committee to begin negotiations with the company as provided in section 9, which shall thereafter apply to the case; or
(ii) take such measures as he may deem necessary to secure or provide for the incorporation or constitution of an authority to proceed under either clause (4)(a) or (b) as he may direct; and if the authority is directed to proceed under clause (4)(a) sections 12 to 16 apply to the case.
Limitation on sale of distribution system
If at anytime the company decides to sell or otherwise dispose of the distribution system, including the used and useful real and personal property and its other assets, before doing so it shall give written notice to that effect to the minister, and it shall not proceed with the sale or disposal unless authorized in writing by the minister so to do.
Action by minister on receipt of notice
On receipt of a notice under subsection (1) the Lieutenant Governor in Council may constitute and establish a committee similar in all respects to a negotiating committee appointed under section 8; and that section applies, with such modifications as the circumstances require, to a committee appointed under this subsection.
A committee appointed under subsection (2), after making such inquiries, and hearing such evidence, as it deems necessary shall report in writing to the minister with its recommendations as to whether the distribution system, property, and other assets aforesaid should be acquired and operated on behalf of the municipalities and, if so, with its proposal as to what corporation or other agency or authority should so acquire and operate the distribution system, property, and other assets; and the committee shall send a copy of its report to each of the municipalities and to the company.
Subsection 10(5) applies to a committee appointed under subsection (2).
The minister may accept the proposal of the committee respecting the corporation, agency, or other authority to be authorized to acquire the distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets of the company as provided in subsection 10(2), or he may designate such other corporation, organization, or authority as he may deem suitable for the purpose.
Notice of objection by municipalities
Any municipality may, within one month of receipt of a copy of a report under subsection (3) notify the minister in writing that it objects to the acquisition of the distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets of the company as proposed by the committee; and, after receipt of such a written notice, the minister shall hear what is alleged by on behalf of the municipality, the committee, and the company, or any of them, and may then
(a) take such measures as he may deem necessary to secure or provide for the incorporation, constitution, or designation of an authority to acquire and operate the distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets of the company; or
(b) authorize the company to sell or otherwise dispose of the distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets, as it sees fit.
Where an authority is incorporated, constituted, or designated for the purpose mentioned in clause (6)(a) it shall enter into negotiations with the company as provided in section 12; and that section and sections 13 to 16 apply, with such modifications as the circumstances require, to the case.
In any case to which section 10 or 11 applies, upon being incorporated, constituted, or designated, unless it is directed to proceed under clause 10(4)(b), the authority and the company shall enter into negotiations
(a) for the acquisition by the authority of the distribution system and the real and personal property and other assets to which reference is made in clause 10(2)(a); and
(b) to fix the price to be paid therefor and the terms of payment thereof which shall not be less favourable to the authority than the price at which and terms on which the company is, at that time, willing to sell to any other purchaser; but nothing shall be claimed by, or paid to, the company for any franchise granted under this Act.
Where the authority and the company agree upon the terms upon which the distribution system and the real and personal property and other assets of the company to which reference is made in subsection (1) may be acquired, the authority shall forthwith notify each municipality in writing of the proposed terms.
Action on objections by municipalities
If, within one month after receipt by all the municipalities of a notice under subsection (2), not less than half the municipalities, including The City of Winnipeg, notify the authority in writing that they object to the proposed terms of acquisition, the authority shall forthwith notify the company of the objections and the authority and the company shall renew negotiations for revision of the terms agreed upon.
If, within one month after receipt by all the municipalities of a notice under subsection (2), any municipality notifies the authority in writing that it objects to the proposed terms of acquisition, the authority shall forthwith notify the board of the objection; and the board shall forthwith consider the objection and hear the representations of the authority, the municipality, and any other person desiring to be heard thereon, and, if it finds that there are reasonable grounds for sustaining the objection, it may disallow the proposed terms and direct authority and the company to renew the negotiations.
Authority as agent for municipalities
Subject to subsections (3) and (4), the authority is the agent of the municipalities, and each of them, in respect of all negotiations for which provision is made in subsection (1); and the municipalities are bound by the actions of the authority.
Limitation on agency of authority
If the authority acquires and operates the distribution system of the company or constructs, installs, and operates a new distribution system, nothing herein makes the authority the agent of the municipalities in respect of the ownership, operation, construction, or installation thereof.
Report of failure of negotiations
If, within three months after beginning negotiations under subsection 12(1), or after renewing negotiations under subsection 12(3), or within such longer period as may be mutually satisfactory, the authority and the company are unable to agree upon the terms upon which the distribution system and the real and personal property and other assets of the company to which reference is made in clause 10(2)(a) shall be acquired by the authority, the authority shall so report in writing to the minister.
On receipt by the minister of a report under subsection (1), the Lieutenant Governor in Council shall, subject to subsection (3), by order in council submit to arbitration under The Arbitration Act the matter of the price to be paid to the company for the acquisition of its distribution system, real and personal property, and other assets to which reference is made in clause 10(2)(a); and the order shall be deemed to be a submission to which The Arbitration Act applies.
Determination of terms of submission
After the minister has consulted the company and the authority with respect to the arbitrator or arbitrators to whom the matter shall be submitted and the terms of the submission, and has received the recommendations of the company and the authority with respect thereto, the Lieutenant Governor in Council shall make the order as provided in subsection (2), and shall therein determine the matters with respect to which the minister has consulted the company and the authority as in this subsection provided.
The order shall provide that the award of the arbitrator or arbitrators is subject to appeal as provided in The Arbitration Act.
Extension of franchises where delay occurs
Notwithstanding section 9, if it appears that negotiations under that section or arbitration proceedings under section 13 will not be concluded before the date on which the franchises expire, the minister, by his written order, may extend the period of the franchises for such further period as he deems to be necessary.
Forthwith after the making of an award in an arbitration to which section 13 applies, and after the conclusion of all appeals therefrom, if any, or the expiration of the time for making an appeal, the company shall comply with the terms of the award and, upon payment of the price fixed as provided in the award, shall convey to the authority the distribution system, the real and personal property, and other assets to which the award relates.
If the company fails within a reasonable time to comply with the terms of an award made by the arbitrator or arbitrators to whom the matter is submitted as provided in section 13, the authority may, as provided in The Expropriation Act, enter on, take, use, and expropriate, the distribution system, the used and useful real and personal property, and other assets of the company that the authority may deem to be necessary or convenient for the efficient and economical operation by it of the distribution system so expropriated.
Where expropriation proceedings are taken as provided in subsection (1), the judge shall determine the compensation to be paid at the amount fixed by the award to which reference is made in that subsection; but, subject as provided in this subsection, The Expropriation Act applies except in so far as any provision thereof is inconsistent with this Act.
Subject to subsection (2), this Act and each franchise has effect notwithstanding any provision of any public Act or private Act and where any provision of any such Act is inconsistent with any provision of this Act, the provision of this Act prevails.
The Public Utilities Board Act and, subject as herein otherwise provided,
(a) each of the following Acts and parts of Acts, that is to say,
(i) The Municipal Act;
(ii) The City of Winnipeg Act;
(iii) The Gas Pipe Line Act;
(iv) The Gas and Oil Burner Act;
(v) The Arbitration Act;
(vi) The Expropriation Act;
(vii) Subsection 90(1) of The Highway Traffic Act; and
(b) each relevant order, regulation, or by-law, duly and lawfully made or enacted under any of those Acts;
applies, in accordance with the terms of the Act, order, regulation, or by-law, to the company and to its distribution system and to the municipalities and the committee and the authority, and to the franchises.
On complaint of any municipality that the company is not complying with this Act, or on its own motion, the board may at any time, as provided in The Public Utilities Board Act, investigate the operations and affairs of the company and report thereon to the minister, setting out its findings and its recommendations, if any.
Before beginning an investigation under subsection (3) the board shall notify the company in writing of its intention to do so and of the details of the complaint made, if any; and the board shall give the company an opportunity to be heard with respect to the matters being investigated and to answer the complaint, if any.
The report of the board shall be deemed to be a final order or decision that is subject to appeal as provided in The Public Utilities Board Act.
Laying of report before assembly
On the disposal of any appeal or after the time for appealing has expired without an appeal being made, the minister shall lay the report of the board and, if an appeal has been made, the decision of the Court of Appeal thereon before the Legislative Assembly if it is then in session and, if not, within 15 days of the beginning of the next following session thereof.
SCHEDULE
Provisions of Franchise granted to Greater Winnipeg Gas Company (the Company) under The Greater Winnipeg Gas Distribution Act (the Act) for the Construction, Operation and Maintenance of a Distribution System for Natural Gas in each of the Municipalities (the Municipality) as defined in the Act or included in Greater Winnipeg pursuant to the Act.
Subject to the terms and conditions contained in this franchise and in the Act, the Company and its successors and assigns have the full right, power, and liberty to erect and maintain a natural gas distribution system and any necessary or convenient mains, pipes services, and other works thereunto appertaining, in, upon, over, across, under, and along the public streets, roads, squares, lanes, alleys, bridges, and other public highways or places, or any of them, in each Municipality for a period ending on December 31, 2008, and during any extension thereof as provided in the Act, and for that purpose, and in order to transmit, distribute, and sell natural gas through the Municipality for distribution and sale elsewhere, to use, break up, dig, trench, and excavate in the public streets and other places above set forth, and otherwise to do such work as may from time to time be required to locate, construct, lay, operate, maintain, repair, renew, extend, relay and remove the pipe lines and other works of the Company, or to do any of those things.
During the terms of this franchise the Company shall, subject as in this franchise set out, provide and maintain in the Municipality an adequate natural gas distribution system and operate it so as to meet the requirements for gas of the inhabitants and industries of the Municipality.
For the purpose of implementing distribution system expansion for the attachment of new customers pursuant to clause 2(1), the Company shall, whenever a request is made for gas service by any inhabitant or industry of the Municipality in a location not served by the existing system of the Company, comply with that request provided the request meets criteria filed with and approved by the Public Utilities Board of Manitoba (the Board) for expansion of the distribution system and does not unduly affect customers on the existing system. Such criteria may include but not be limited to estimates of customers, sales volumes, revenues, costs, return on investment, the effect upon existing customers and any customer contribution in aid of construction. The criteria shall be reviewed by the Board from time to time as the Board deems necessary or as may be requested by the Company.
Gas shall be supplied at a total heat content of not less than 950 b.t.u. per cubic foot (35.99 mega joules per cubic meter) at delivery conditions at meter, with pressure of one quarter pound per square inch (1.724 kilopascals) above the atmospheric pressure and delivery temperature of gas.
The Company shall submit excavation and backfill specifications and a plan showing the exact location and depth and size of all gas pipe lines within the Municipality for the approval of the municipal engineer or other person designated by the council for the Municipality.
Construction of the distribution system or of any extension thereof shall not begin until the specifications and the plan have been approved by the municipal engineer or other person designated by the council of the Municipality; but if during construction it is found that changes in the approved plan are desirable, the construction shall not be proceeded with until such changes have been approved.
Plans of the distribution system or any extension thereof as finally constructed shall be filed with the Municipality.
The pipe, materials and other equipment to be used in the distribution system shall be of kinds and qualities satisfactory to the Board, and shall be in compliance with The Gas Pipe Lines Act and the regulations thereunder.
The Company shall give notice to the Clerk of the Municipality, or to such other officer or employee of the Municipality as may be designated in writing by the Clerk, of its intention to open or break up any of the public streets, roads, squares, lanes, alleys and other public highways or places in the Municipality, not less than seven days before the beginning of the work, except in cases of emergency arising from defects or breaking of the pipe or other works, when immediate notice shall suffice; and, subject to the same exception and as otherwise provided in this franchise, the Company shall not begin any such work unless it has obtained approval therefor in writing from the engineer of the Municipality or such other person as may be designated by the council of the Municipality.
The Company
(a) in the execution of the powers granted hereby and under the Act, shall do as little damage as possible, and shall keep the passage of the streets, highways, lanes, and other places hereinbefore described, as far as may be practicable, free and uninterrupted;
(b) shall not interfere with any existing pipes or lines of other utilities;
(c) shall, within a reasonable time and from time to time, restore the streets, highways, lanes, and other places hereinbefore described within the limits of the Municipality to a state of repair as nearly as possible equal to their former state and to the satisfaction of the engineer of the Municipality or such other person as may be designated by the council of the Municipality, where such restoration is required by reason of the Company having installed gas pipe lines; and
(d) in the execution of the power granted hereby and under the Act, shall construct and locate its gas pipe lines in such a manner as will not endanger the public health or safety.
The Company shall protect and indemnify the Municipality against any damages or expenses in connection with the execution of the powers granted hereby and under the Act, and from and against all claims, demands, and actions by third persons in respect of damages sustained by reason of any operations of the Company and in relation to its distribution system.
The Company shall satisfy the Board that it has in place at all times liability insurance coverage sufficient to satisfy any potential claim, demand or action against the Company or the Municipality for such damages.
Before the Municipality makes any repairs of, or alterations to, any of its public services which will involve excavations or which may in any way affect any of the Company's lines, plant or equipment, the Municipality shall give notice as set forth in the regulations in effect at that time and the regulations in effect at that time and made pursuant to The Gas Pipe Line Act.
Where practicable, the Municipality, shall have regard to the reasonable directions of the Company concerning any such repairs and alterations, but, in any event, the Municipality is free of all liability in connection with any damage done by reason of any such repairs or alterations.
Subject to clauses 2 and 3 of this franchise agreement and to any applicable Canadian or provincial legislation the Company shall, during the term of this franchise, supply as much natural gas as may be required by the Municipality or the consumers within the limits of the Municipality, or both the Municipality and the consumers, when the places or buildings to be supplied therewith are situated on land lying along the line of any distribution line of the Company.
The Company shall install a meter, regulator and other equipment and appliances, when required, suitably located on the premises of the customers, and the meter, regulator and other equipment and appliance shall be and remain the property of the Company, and the meter and regulator shall be supplied without charge by the Company, and shall be installed at a location to be determined by the Company.
The Company shall install the necessary service lines from the distribution line to the meter, and the cost thereof shall be bora
(a) by the Company; or
(b) by the Company and the customer in such proportions as may be approved by the Board.
All installations of service lines by the Company are subject to any statutory requirements and regulations now or hereafter enacted or made.
The customer shall pay the Company for natural gas supplied at the rates established by the Board from time to time for the class of service supplied to the customer.
This franchise does not prevent the sale or delivery within the Municipality by any other corporation or person of liquefied petroleum gas sold or delivered in tanks or containers and not transmitted by pipe line within the Municipality.
Subject to any applicable legislation now or hereafter enacted in that regard the Company shall pay to the Municipality any tax or taxes that may be legally and properly levied by the Municipality against the Company.
All the provisions of this franchise are subject as provided in section 17 of the Act.
Unless the context otherwise requires, words and expressions used in this franchise have the meanings given to them in the Act.