Large onshore wind farms applications to go through NSIP regime

The House of Commons has backed changes to bring large onshore wind farm developments into the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) regime.

A Commons vote held on Wednesday (2 April) saw MPs back The Infrastructure Planning (Onshore Wind and Solar Generating Stations) Order 2025 by 308 votes for and 100 votes against.

Under the changes, any proposed onshore wind farm development with a generating capacity of over 100 megawatts will no longer be considered by local authorities and will instead be examined by the Planning Inspectorate before being determined by the Government.

Explaining its reasoning in an Impact Assessment, the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero said the reform would ensure "a streamlined planning process for very large-scale onshore wind projects, putting it on a level playing field with other low-carbon generation technologies such as offshore wind and accounts for technological developments".

It added that the move would contribute to meeting the Government's legally binding net zero and carbon budget targets.

The order also involves doubling the threshold at which solar projects are determined as an NSIP from 50 megawatts to 100 megawatts.

This change will account for technological developments since the introduction of the NSIP regime and the original threshold in 2008 and reduce planning costs for mid-sized projects, according to the Government's Impact Assessment.

The order will formally come into effect at the end of 2025, in order to give industry and other stakeholders sufficient time to prepare, the Government said.

Adam Carey