Streamlining renewable energy approvals in NSW through greater ministerial oversight

In early May 2026, the New South Wales Government tabled the Energy Legislation Amendment (Prioritising Renewable Energy) Bill 2026 (the Energy Legislation Bill). The legislative amendments proposed by the Energy Legislation Bill seek to provide a framework to expedite planning assessments for high priority renewable energy projects in NSW by amending the Electricity Supply Act 1995 (ES Act) and the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act).

Key changes

If passed in its current form, the Energy Legislation Bill will:

• give the Energy Minister the power by written order to declare an energy project or a class of energy projects to be a "priority energy project" (PEP);

• enable a PEP (or class of PEPs) to be declared "State significant development" (SSD) or allow the Energy Minister to recommend to the Planning Minister that the PEP be declared "State significant infrastructure" (SSI) under the EP&A Act;

• clarify the Planning Minister's powers to direct the Independent Planning Commission (IPC); and

• provide the Planning Minister the power to determine the amount of land to be dedicated free of cost, the maximum or minimum monetary contributions, or other material public benefits to be provided by a developer under a planning agreement (or the method for doing so).

Declaration of PEPs

The Energy Legislation Bill proposes a new provision in the ES Act to allow the Energy Minister to declare an energy project to be a PEP, or a class of energy projects, to be PEPs. (A person appointed by the Minister could also declare individual project to be a PEP, in accordance with criteria set by the Minister.)

A project can only be declared a PEP if it is for:

• transmission and distribution infrastructure;

• renewable energy generation; and

• energy storage or firming infrastructure, including battery storage, gas-fired firming generation, and pumped hydro, but  excluding coal-fired and nuclear energy generation.

These declarations would not have any specific effect under the ES Act. Their purpose is to facilitate planning assessment and approval, and the delivery of contributions for approved projects, under the EP&A Act.

Expanding "State significant development" and "State significant infrastructure" declarations to PEPs

Currently the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces is required to obtain and make publicly available, advice from the Independent Planning Commission (IPC) prior to declaring an energy project SSD. Under the proposed changes, the Planning Minister may subsequently declare a PEP to be SSD without the need to obtain advice from the IPC.

Currently a recommendation that a project be declared SSI may only be made by the IPC or Infrastructure NSW. The Energy Legislation Bill proposes to also allow the Energy Minister to make a recommendation to the Planning Minister that certain development be declared SSI.

The proposed changes provide a two-step process for State significant declarations, involving both the Energy Minister and the Planning Minister. This will need careful co-ordination to be delivered efficiently.

Clarification of Ministerial powers to direct the IPC

An express power would be added to the EP&A Act, to allow the Planning Minister to direct the IPC to exercise its functions in relation to projects which are SSD, SSI or CSSI (whether or not the project is a PEP).

Another new provision would allow the Planning Minister to request the IPC undertake public hearings for developments declared as PEPs. The importance of this power is that, when a development is heard by a public hearing and the IPC acts as the consent authority, the merits appeal rights of both objectors and the proponent are extinguished. This power is aimed at providing proponents greater certainty in relation to the potential for objector appeals.

Greater Ministerial oversight of planning agreements and more flexibility for contributions

The proposed amendments would give the Planning Minister greater oversight of proposed contributions under a planning agreement made pursuant to Part 7 of the EP&A Act. Under a new provision, the Minister may direct another planning authority (ie. the local council) in relation to contributions by setting a minimum or maximum land contribution, monetary contribution, or other material public benefit to be provided. This could facilitate negotiations on planning agreements by setting negotiation parameters on the scope of contributions.

The proposed amendments would also expand the scope of planning agreements for renewable energy projects. They would allow the regulations to specify purposes other than a public purpose for which contributions under a planning agreement could be made. The Planning Minister has indicated that this is intended to support the application of NSW Government's Benefit Sharing Guideline and to facilitate the use of planning agreements to provide community benefits.

Ministerial control of the Development Co-ordination Authority

The proposed amendments would make the Development Co-ordination Authority (DCA) subject to the direction and control of the Planning Minister. The DCA was established recently to exercise the concurrence and various related approval functions of other NSW Government agencies in the planning approval process, with a view to reducing the fragmentation of the planning approval process and accelerating decisions. This amendment would give the Planning Minister more direct control of critical parts of the planning approval process to deliver more efficient outcomes.

Key takeaways

If passed in its current form, the Energy Legislation Bill will provide a clearer and more secure planning assessment pathway for a variety of projects which are intended to support the energy transition in NSW. This includes the potential use of the SSI and CSSI pathways which are usually reserved for major government projects such as road, rail or transmission infrastructure.

The new powers for the Planning Minister to set maximum public benefit contributions could also help to reduce the time spent negotiating voluntary planning agreements with Councils.

Greater Ministerial oversight of the DCA could reduce uncertainty and accelerate outcomes in the planning process.

And, importantly, several of the proposed amendments would apply to all projects, not just PEPs.

The proposed amendments signal the NSW Government's desire to accelerate the pace of delivery of energy transition projects. They also raise the question of whether other avenues of energy transition project facilitation might be expanded. For example, the Investment Delivery Authority (IDA) has been established to facilitate the delivery of very large scale projects beyond the planning approval process. So far, 13 out of the 16 IDA priority projects are renewable energy projects. Perhaps the thresholds for IDA projects could be revisited to enable more renewable energy projects to benefit from the IDA's support.