NSW reveals updated framework to guide renewables planning and assessment process

The New South Wales (NSW) government has released a suite of new guidelines designed to accelerate the planning and assessment process for renewable energy development and infrastructure, and provide investment certainty for industry and host communities.

NSW Planning Minister Paul Scully said the updated guidelines will allow for faster and more consistent decisions, include greater emphasis on the need for local benefits, and provide industry with greater investment certainty.

Scully said they will also serve as an important step toward reaching the state government’s legislated Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap which targets the delivery of at least 12 GW of new renewable energy generation and 2 GW of long-duration storage by 2030.

“It’s vital the planning system actively supports the energy transition and delivers timely approvals on development applications,” he said.

“Greater certainty and transparency over renewable energy assessment processes means more renewables faster, cheaper electricity bills and more jobs. It also means communities and industry know what to expect of the planning system.”

Scully earlier this year acknowledged that the state has been too slow in approving renewables projects but said the new Renewable Energy Planning Framework will support the industry by providing more investment certainty

The new framework includes five updated guidelines, including advice on how the planning process will consider applications for solar and wind projects, as well as proposed new transmission lines; how benefit-sharing schemes to pay local communities for hosting developments will be considered; and how developers and private landholders can arrive at private agreements.

“It is critical that we continue to work collaboratively with communities and industry to minimise impacts, develop effective solutions where challenges exist and provide support where it’s needed,” Scully said.

The solar guidelines provide advice on site selection and project design, requirements to assess impacts on agricultural capability, guidance on community engagement, and a detailed methodology for assessing the visual impacts of proposals. They also include a calculator to estimate the potential cost of decommissioning to ensure host landowners are well informed about the likely costs.

The section on the transmission addresses route selection, community consultation expectations and visual impact assessment.

The benefit sharing guidelines establishes the government’s expectations for how benefits from renewable energy projects will flow directly to regions and deliver lasting benefits to regional communities and sets out principles to make sure it occurs as part of the planning system.

The guideline prescribes rates for different types of development including $850 (USD 558) per annum per GW of solar generation, $1,050 per GW for wind generation, and $150 per MWh for stand-alone battery energy storage systems.

The NSW government estimates renewable energy projects will deliver more than $414 million in benefits with communities and councils over 25 years.

Clean Energy Council energy generation and storage policy director Nicholas Aberle welcomed the guidelines, saying they strike a “reasonable balance that should ensure well-designed projects will have a smooth assessment process while providing a clear framework for how impacts need to be managed.”

“NSW needs to build almost 2 GW of wind and solar projects each year to be on track to meet its state targets and just over 3 GW per year to meet federal targets,” he said.

“Getting enough projects built depends on getting enough projects approved, so it is critical that planning processes are well-designed and well-implemented.”

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