Competition Citation and commencement and extent 1 1 This Order may be cited as the Competition Act 1998 (Carbon Dioxide) (Public Policy Exclusion) Order 2021 and comes into force on 15th November 2021. 2 This Order extends to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Interpretation 2 In this Order— “CF” means CF Fertilisers UK Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 03455690), and any company which is a group undertaking in relation to CF Fertilisers UK Limited; “the Chapter I exclusion period” means the period beginning with 30th September 2021 and ending with whichever is the earlier of— the revocation of this Order; or the expiry of this Order in accordance with article 7 ; “CO 2 ” means carbon dioxide produced at— the plant at Billingham, Cleveland operated by CF; or the plant at Wilton, Teesside operated by Ensus UK Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 05816694); “the CO 2 negotiation period” means the period beginning with 30th September 2021 and ending with 12th October 2021; “consumer” means a person who is, or seeks to be, supplied with CO 2 by a distributor; “distributor” means any of the following— Air Liquide UK Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 00232592); BOC Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 00337663); Nippon Gases UK Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 09938383); any company which is a group undertaking in relation to any of the companies referred to in paragraphs (a) to (c); “essential user” means a consumer who requires CO 2 for the purpose of maintaining the supply of essential goods or services, such as goods or services relating to animal welfare, energy, food, water or health; “group undertaking” has the meaning given by section 1161(5) of the Companies Act 2006 ; “qualifying activities” has the meaning given by article 3 . Qualifying activities 3 1 For the purposes of this Order a qualifying activity is any activity specified in paragraph (2) insofar as it— a is for the purpose referred to in article 4(4)(a) ; and b in the case of a qualifying activity specified in paragraph (2)(b) or (c) , does not involve the sharing between distributors of any information regarding costs or pricing. 2 The activities specified in this paragraph are— a sharing information during the CO 2 negotiation period in relation to— i the price payable by a distributor for the purchase of CO 2 ; ii the quantity of CO 2 purchased or to be purchased by a distributor; iii the term of any contract relating to the purchase by a distributor of CO 2 ; and iv the names of consumers; b sharing information and coordination as regards the allocation, movement and distribution of CO 2 to consumers and, in particular, essential users during the Chapter I exclusion period; and c sharing information on the day to day stock position and shortages of CO 2 within any part of the United Kingdom during the Chapter I exclusion period. Exclusion from the Chapter I prohibition 4 1 The Chapter I prohibition does not apply to agreements between two or more distributors which— a relate to a qualifying activity specified in article 3(2)(b) or (c) ; b are notified to the Secretary of State in accordance with article 5(1) ; and c meet the conditions set out in paragraph (4) . 2 The Chapter I prohibition is to be deemed never to have applied in relation to an agreement referred to in paragraph (1) which was entered into in the period beginning with 30th September 2021 and ending with the day before the day on which this Order comes into force. 3 The Chapter I prohibition is to be deemed never to have applied in relation to agreements entered into during the CO 2 negotiation period which— a are between CF and any distributor or between two or more distributors; b relate to a qualifying activity specified in article 3(2)(a) ; c are notified to the Secretary of State in accordance with article 5(1) ; and d meet the conditions set out in paragraph (4) . 4 The conditions referred to in paragraphs (1)(c) and (3)(d) are that— a the purpose of the agreement is to prevent or mitigate disruption to the supply of CO 2 to distributors, consumers and, in particular, essential users in any part of the United Kingdom during the Chapter I exclusion period; b the agreement does not have as its object or effect the prevention, restriction or distortion of competition within the United Kingdom, except in relation to qualifying activities specified in article 3 in a market for the provision of CO 2 to distributors, consumers and, in particular, essential users in any part of the United Kingdom; and c in the case of an agreement relating to a qualifying activity referred to in article 3(2)(a) , the term of any contract for the purchase by a distributor of CO 2 that arises out of or in connection with the qualifying activity expires no later than the end of 31st January 2022. Notification to the Secretary of State 5 1 An agreement is notified to the Secretary of State in accordance with this paragraph if the following details of the agreement are given to the Secretary of State in writing within 14 days of the relevant date— a the names of the undertakings which are parties to the agreement; b a description of the nature of the agreement; and c the date the agreement was entered into. 2 In this article the “relevant date”, in relation to an agreement, means— a in the case of an agreement entered into before the coming into force of this Order, the date this Order comes into force; b in any other case, the date on which the agreement is entered into. Register of agreements 6 1 The Secretary of State must compile and maintain a register of agreements notified under this Order. 2 The register must be kept in such form as the Secretary of State considers appropriate. 3 The Secretary of State must publish the register when it is first compiled and each time it is revised. Expiry 7 This Order expires at the end of 31st January 2022. Paul Scully Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy 20th October 2021