Unauthorised drilling in the Eastern Mediterranean

Purpose of the Sanctions Regime

This sanctions regime put in place measures to discourage any hydrocarbon exploration, production or extraction activity which:

• has not been authorised by the Republic of Cyprus in its territorial sea, or are
• in its exclusive economic zone
• on its continental shelf

This includes, in cases where the exclusive economic zone or continental shelf has not been delimited in accordance with international law with a State having an opposite coast, activities which may jeopardise or hamper the reaching of a delimitation agreement.

Overview of sanctions measures

Current sanction measures implemented by Jersey in relation to unauthorised drilling activities in the Eastern Mediterranean include:

• asset freezes and restrictions on making funds and economic resources available to and for the benefit of designated persons
• travel ban
• director disqualification sanctions

Latest news

8 June 2022

The Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 2022 comes into force today. Further information can be found on the Jersey Gazette.

*All published Latest News notices relating to financial sanctions, including those extending beyond the last 30 days, may be obtained from the Jersey Gazette

Jersey regime

The Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Implementation of External Sanctions) (Jersey) Order 2021 (the Jersey Order)  implements the Unauthorised Drilling Activities in the Eastern Mediterranean (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (the UK Regulations)

Article 3 of the Jersey Order imposes the asset-freeze provisions in Part 3 of the Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Jersey) Law 2019 (the SAFL) on any person listed by or under the UK Regulations. The Part 3 provisions also include, but are not limited to, Articles 15-17 of the SAFL on exceptions, licences, and circumventing prohibitions etc.

Offences

The offences for this regime are set out in both the SAFL and the Jersey Order.

Reporting obligations

Reporting obligations are set out at Article 32 of the SAFL and apply to all regimes in force. These obligations include requirements for a relevant financial institution to inform the Minister if:

• it holds an account of a person, has entered into dealings or an agreement with a person or has been approached by or on behalf of a person, and
• it knows, or has reasonable cause to suspect, that the person:
  • is a designated person, or;
  • has committed, is committing or intends to commit an offence under this Law, and
• the information or other matter on which the knowledge or reasonable cause for suspicion is based came to it in the course of carrying on its business.

Licences and exceptions

A Jersey General Licence, granted by the Minister, allows multiply parties to conduct specified activities that would otherwise be restricted by sanctions measures. Supervised persons must ensure that their activities are within the scope of the General Licence's terms and that they adhere to all its conditions.

The Minister may also grant a specific licence under the SAFL and/or the Jersey Order.

To apply for a specific sanctions licence a supervised person must complete the relevant Sanctions form and return the completed form to sanctions@gov.je.

The FSIU provides guidance on sanctions licences and exceptions  on the Government of Jersey website Sanctions.

Legal Acts

Jersey

• Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Jersey) Law 2019
• Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Implementation of UK Sanctions) (Jersey) Order 2021

United Kingdom

• The Unauthorised Drilling Activities in the Eastern Mediterranean (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020

Further information

Useful information is provided on gov.uk regarding Financial sanctions, Unauthorised Drilling Activities in the Eastern Mediterranean