“A decade is far too long:” Major investors slam planning delays in NSW

Renewable energy investors have slammed the planning approvals process in New South Wales, saying it takes to three times longer than other states for a renewable energy project to be approved, and the single wind farm approved in the last five years took nearly a decade to get over the line.

Apart from the single wind farm that took almost 10 years to get approval, on average it took nearly two years for solar and more than a year for batteries to be approved. It also takes an average 492 days for critical state significant infrastructure (CSSI) clean energy and transmission projects to work through the approval process.

“NSW’s current planning approvals process for generation, storage, and transmission are not fit-for-purpose to enable the scale and speed of the energy transition required,” Corbell said.

NSW is aiming to get at least 12 GW of new capacity by the end of the decade to help fill the gap that will be created by the closure of most, if not all, its remaining coal fired power generators.

It is also racing to fill the capacity gap created by the planned closure of the country’s biggest coal generator, the 2.88GW Eraring facility on the central coast of NSW, and to ensure the closure in August, 2025 – if it still happens on that date – does not lead to uncontrollable price spikes.

“It’s a given that projects need to be in the right locations, in consultation with communities, and any environmental impacts are minimised,” Corbell says, but adds that there are solutions to the impasse.

The report provides 14 key recommendations billed as “quick wins” that are capable of accelerating the planning approval processes in NSW.

“By adopting simple fixes identified in our review, NSW can speed up the approvals process while maintaining the thoroughness demanded by the current planning system,” said Peter Briggs, a Herbert Smith Freehills partner for environment, planning, and communities.