Renewable energy deep dive biannual recommendations update 3 - Consenting and licensing

Recommendation    

We will undertake a review of consenting and supporting evidence and advice, to ensure a timely and proportionate process including:

a.    An end-to-end review of the marine licensing, consenting and supporting advisory processes to remove barriers, drawing on the work of existing groups
b.    A review of resource needs and options for consenting and advisory processes to keep pace with the growth in renewables, including an urgent review of resource needs and options for NRW’s Offshore Renewable Energy Programme
c.    Identifying priority marine and terrestrial evidence gaps and mechanisms to fill them, to expedite the application process
d.    Reviewing and mapping the process for land based renewables installations to obtain an environmental permit, with a focus on emerging technologies
e.    Identifying options for releasing capacity and redirecting resource to agreed priority areas
We will report our findings during summer 2022, except for point b. which we will report on in spring 2022.

Key highlights / milestones    

• Following the independent review of Marine Licensing the Minister for Climate Change agreed additional resource for NRW. The additional funding has enabled NRW to recruit 16 new staff to increase capacity in its regulatory and advisory functions and enables NRW to deliver improvements to the marine licensing process for all users, putting marine licensing on a stronger footing to support Welsh Ministers ambitions for the sustainable use of the Welsh marine area.
• NRWs most up to date set of priority marine and coastal evidence gaps is published on their website (Natural Resources Wales / Marine and coastal evidence priorities). A high proportion of these relate to offshore renewable energy. Work continues on the resource solutions to progress high priority work.
• NRW continues to work with external partners on strategic offshore evidence initiatives, as reported in period 1.  We are also investigating options for collaborative projects with Universities but these are dependent on the Universities being able to secure research funding.
• We have completed an exercise to identify terrestrial evidence gaps by technology type

Next steps towards completion

• Officials continue to work with NRW to support delivery of the process improvements, this includes NRW routinely reporting progress against actions to marine licensing policy officials.
• The work NRW has undertaken recently to streamline the consenting processes is crucial to help de-risk the decision making process. This is demonstrated by the consenting of significant projects such as Morlais, Awel-y-Mor and Erebus, the first floating offshore wind project there in Wales, signalling an enabling consenting process.

Recommendation    

We will, with NRW and key stakeholders, identify marine ‘strategic resource areas’ by 2023 and provide guidance to signpost appropriate and inappropriate areas for development of different renewable energy technologies. Our marine planning, licensing and marine conservation policies will work together to provide a pathway for marine renewable developments.

Key highlights / milestones    

Technical mapping work to inform considerations on identification of potential strategic resource areas was completed during this period.

Key highlights over this period include:

• Holding a final stakeholder event to discuss the technical mapping work.
• Publication of mapping outputs on the Wales Marine Planning Portal.
• Holding a series of stakeholder mapping showcase sessions.
• Continuing discussions with regulators on guidance requirements to support implementation of strategic resource areas.

Next steps towards completion

• Publication of updated resource mapping on the Wales Marine Planning Portal.
• Publication of updated NRW environmental mapping on the Wales Marine Planning Portal
• Scope approach to proposals for potential strategic resource areas
• Continue to work with regulators on guidance requirements to support implementation of strategic resource areas.

Recommendation  

While we pursue the devolution of the Crown Estate we will streamline the process for developing the Celtic Sea renewable energy projects including delegating offshore advisory powers from the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) to NRW.

Key highlights / milestones

• NRW and JNCC carried out targeted consultation on the options regarding the review of advisory responsibility in the Welsh offshore region in May 2023. This review will be considered alongside the resource requirements for NRW in the transfer of these functions.

Next steps towards completion

Devolution of the Crown Estate

• We welcome the recommendation from the Independent Commission on the Constitutional Future of Wales that the Crown Estate should be devolved to Wales in line with the position in Wales. We continue to make the case to the UK Government to devolve the Crown Estate to Wales.