Off the Shelf Patent Protection- the interplay between patent rights and offshore operations

摘要

In Part 1 of this article (Oil&Gas Gazette, December 2012/January 2013) we concluded that the exercise of patent rights in Australia is relevant for offshore petroleum operations and related activities which are increasingly located in remote waters above the Australian continental shelf (extended or otherwise). The only area where uncertainty resides in respect to the enforceability of Australian patent law is the Joint Petroleum Development Area in the Timor Sea where the borders between Australia and Timor-Leste are unlikely to be confirmed until 2057 at the earliest.