What does 2026 offer for the delivery of energy projects?

On 18 December 2025 the Planning and Infrastructure Act (the Act) finally received Royal Assent. Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025. Not since the Planning Act 2008 has there been such a widespread shake up of the infrastructure planning system.

Royal Assent was swiftly followed by the first set of transitional regulations which start to bring into effect certain reforms (The Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (Commencement No. 9) and Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025 (Commencement No. 1 and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2025 (Transition Regulations)). Further transitional regulations are awaited to bring into force many of the central provisions in the Act.

We previously wrote about the key reforms proposed by the Government. Energising Infrastructure: Key Infrastructure Reforms in the Latest Planning & Infrastructure Bill. We summarise in this article how those proposals have changed as the Bill navigated the legislative system and highlight key issues for energy developments.  

National Policy Statements (NPS) review discipline

As predicted, the Act provides that the Secretary of State (SoS) must carry out full reviews leading to amendments of each NPS within a defined “initial period” and subsequently at least every five years, with parliamentary statements made when reviews begin and timing exceptions allowed only in exceptional, justified circumstances. Given the primary importance of NPSs to the determination of energy Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs), this creates a firmer basis for policy refresh and, provided there is compliance, should help avoid arguments as to the interpretation and relevance of outdated policies as schemes are being examined.

Ability to disapply the requirement for a Development Consent Order (DCO)

Under section 35 of the Planning Act 2008 (PA 2008), the SoS can already direct that projects below the NSIP specified threshold are brought within the NSIP regime. As amended by the Act and once in force, the SoS will be able to direct the reverse i.e. that specified NSIPs that otherwise require development consent may by direction of the SoS be consented by an alternative consenting regime such as under the Town and Country Planning Act, where more appropriate. A qualifying written request must identify the alternative regime and evidence engagement with the intended consenting authority. This will create a bespoke off‑ramp from the DCO process for certain energy works, potentially accelerating delivery.

Consultation changes with streamlined pre‑application and acceptance stages

Statutory duties to consult prescribed persons, local authorities, and the local community before a DCO application is made are to be completely repealed once the relevant provisions in the Act are in force. Instead, applicants must have regard to SoS guidance (and secondary legislation) on best practice pre‑application steps. While it is not yet known what the guidance and secondary legislation will contain, the Government has consulted on its terms - see Consultation on streamlining infrastructure planning - GOV.UK

Repealing the statutory duties will also remove pre-application consultation requirements to consult those persons whose land is not required, but who may be affected by the project (“Category 3 persons”). Often those people are ultimately unaffected by the final application, yet an inordinate amount of time is expended in identifying potential Category 3 persons at earlier stages of scheme development.  Category 3 persons as well as those parties with a property interest to be acquired, will still be notified after an application has been accepted for examination.

The acceptance stage for DCO projects will be tightened with criteria laid down in statute and if the SoS refuses to accept a project, a statement of reasons must be given to the applicant and published. EIA regulations for NSIPs are to be updated to reflect the new approach (for example, aligning consultation body definitions and removing the consultation statement requirement).

The Bill’s original plan to extend the 28-day period for acceptance, together with proposals for the Planning Inspectorate to request further information, clarifications, corrections and other limited changes to the application, was abandoned and does not feature in the Act.

Examination management and Local Impact Reports

Once the changes are in force, examination powers will be expressly linked to the Initial Assessments of Principal Issues (IAPI) which the Examination Authority (ExA) is required to publish within 21 days of the deadline for relevant representations. The Act requires that procedural decisions are to be made ‘in light of’ the IAPI.

Local planning authorities are currently invited to provide a Local Impact Report (LIR) by a set deadline in the early stage of an examination. LIRs are an important part of the evidence base for examination and decision making under section 104 PA 2008. The Act will require that regard must be had to SoS guidance when preparing LIRs and statutory bodies will also have regard to guidance when making representations.

These changes should support more consistent authority input and procedural discipline during energy NSIP examinations, improving overall speed of an examination.

Judicial Review

As proposed in the Bill, the Act provides that applications for judicial review of NSIPs will at permission stage go straight to an oral hearing, rather than first going through the paper permission stage. Also, appeals to the Court of Appeal will be restricted where an application for judicial review is refused and certified as “totally without merit” whether at the permission stage or at the substantive hearing. This is intended to reduce abusive litigation while preserving robust, timely oral permission scrutiny.

DCO change mechanisms and improved survey/access powers

In a world of rapid design and technical improvements, DCOs often require change prior to delivery and the associated NSIP procedures are time consuming.  The Act will remove the non‑material change procedure so all changes will proceed under the main change/revocation route with clarified continuity and effect provisions orchestrated by the SoS. Whilst the current non-material procedure is simpler and quicker than the procedure for material changes, potential disagreement by the SoS or risk of litigation has meant that time is often lost in debating the appropriate procedural route for a proposed change. The reform provides a clearly defined and predicable procedure, with the SoS deciding on the appropriate procedural steps depending on the significance of the proposed changes.

The right to enter and survey land under the PA 2008 will be expanded and clarified, easing pre‑application environmental and technical surveys for energy corridors and sites.

Electricity generation, transmission, connections, storage and onshore wind projects

A further striking part of the Act is the sea change that it will usher in for electricity generation, transmission, connections and storage as well as onshore wind projects including:

• The proposal to provide consumer benefits near transmission projects is retained in the Act with a regulation‑making power to establish supplier‑funded benefits for households near new/upgraded transmission infrastructure. This Bill Discount Scheme is in addition to updated Community Benefit guidance currently in force for voluntary contributions applicable to transmission projects. Overall, community benefits schemes are intended to mitigate local hostility to transmission projects but are not material to DCO determination.(See R (on the application of Wright) (Respondent) v Resilient Energy Severndale Ltd and Forest of Dean District Council (Appellants) - UK Supreme Court
• Electricity connection provisions are included in the Act to supplement the drive by the National Energy Systems Operator (NESO) to reform the connections process.  Should the existing connections reform processes face significant delays or fail to deliver intended benefits, powers are included in the Act to allow for the Secretary of State to intervene directly in the connections queuing process. The Act also provides for strategic energy plans to be published by NESO, and connections to align with the plan.
• Long‑duration electricity storage (LDES) provisions are included in the Act to require Ofgem to establish a scheme encouraging LDES (≥50 MW and ≥8 hours discharge), with power for the SoS to adjust the capacity/duration thresholds by regulation.
• The commissioning window for offshore wind farms under the Electricity Act 1989 prior to transfer to a selected Offshore Transmission Owner (“OFTO”)  is extended from 18 to 27 months. This should help better align with the Ofgem tender process and prevent compliance issues for generators.
• The Act provides express powers to use English forestry land for renewable electricity generation, storage, transmission and supply, and for activities linked to environmental DCO requirements. This provision is significant because it turns forestry land from a frequent planning barrier into a strategic asset for renewable energy delivery.
• Windfarms and seismic arrays provisions in the Act provide regulation‑making powers to create exclusion/restricted zones in seismic sensitive areas and require seismic‑impact information and SoS consultation/objection handling across multiple consenting routes (including DCO applications).

Compulsory Acquisition

The Act modernises compulsory acquisition procedures including those relating to electronic service, content of newspaper notices, powers to appoint an inspector and vesting procedures as well as tweaks to loss payments and temporary possession provisions. Whilst applicable to compulsory purchase generally, these improvements will enhance and speed up the compulsory acquisition processes for the making of DCOs. 

Commencement and transitional timing: what is in force and when?

Certain provisions of the Act relating to electricity connections reform to supplement NESO’s reforms (sections 14–18) came into force from the day the Act received Royal Assent (18 December 2025).

Provisions brought into force by the Transition Regulations on 18 February 2026 include:

• NPS review mechanisms (sections 1–2), tightening the five‑year review/amendment cycle and parliamentary steps.
• Judicial review reforms (section 13).
• Many of the compulsory acquisition reforms.

Most of the provisions are not yet in force, including the principal tranche of DCO process changes, including the new disapplication power, the removal of statutory pre‑application consultation and allied adjustments, the revised acceptance stage detail, local impacts/representations guidance, examination management changes and survey powers/change procedures.

Conclusion

So, what does 2026 offer for the delivery of energy projects? At its core, the Act provides a springboard for the sector to do things differently. Take for instance the wholesale changes to  the consultation requirements. Once in force, gone will be the box ticking procedures with  repeated consultation events which often lead to consultation fatigue. The indication in draft guidance is towards real and meaningful strategic engagement throughout the life of a project.

From top to bottom the new DCO provisions are anticipated to lighten the load on developers, and should be welcomed and embraced for new projects. The urgency in 2026 is for the Government to act swiftly and publish the necessary guidance and complete the transitionary arrangements so that energy NSIPs are decided at pace and projects can be delivered to meet the Government’s Clean Power 2030 target.