UK Offshore

The Four Pillars of Successful Offshore Wind Development Consent Orders

The Development Consent Order (DCO) process, introduced with the 2008 Planning Act, created a step change in the consent process for major infrastructure in England and Wales. The goal? To speed up the planning approval process—and therefore the delivery—of nationally significant infrastructure projects. DCOs achieve this by combining two previously separate processes: planning approval and compulsory land acquisition.

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The energy sector is one of the largest beneficiaries of DCOs. Over the last decade, the process has unlocked billions of pounds of investment in offshore wind projects.

One of the greatest risks to cost overrun in an offshore wind implementation is a late-project surprise. An environmental consideration or a reworked design can lead to cost-prohibitive construction delays. If you want to reduce those risks to asset delivery, a thorough development consent order process can identify, document, and plan for those challenges early. Supporting the DCO process early makes your project more likely to hit that on-time delivery. Short description. Max 20 words. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Praesent rhoncus viverra ex ac cursus. Morbi.

Deliver on time

You need a robust approach and a defensible position with respect to any technical, planning, and environmental work—and that means leaning heavily on the technical team that you’ve developed. The ironclad decisions required in the later stages of a project inevitably evolve from an early-stage, solid foundation of technical expertise and a culture of inclusion. When you empower your technical specialists to lead on your behalf, throughout the process and especially when interfacing with regulators, their comprehensive project knowledge will support clear and strong agreements. Those clear and strong agreements reduce risks and keep your project running smoothly.

Utilise your people

From a high-level view, offshore wind seems relatively simple. You put a turbine in the water and run a cable to the shore. Obviously, it’s not that easy. The technical steps are often accomplished sequentially—but with a DCO, those steps don’t have to happen one after the other. By developing a holistic view of end goals and project needs, permitting requirements can be accomplished simultaneously—maximising opportunities at each stage of the process. To take the greatest advantage of these opportunities, the final outcomes need to be identified and brought forward into the early design strategies. Then those desired final outcomes can inform decisions that help you, for example, centralise your data infrastructure or secure your supply chain early. Those differences turn a complicated regulatory process into an expert strategy. For example, Stantec’s work on Gunfleet Sands Offshore Wind Farm included obtaining simultaneous consent from three different stakeholders on three different crossings: a brook, a rail line, and a site of specific scientific interest.

Simplify your process

Collaboration is key. The parallel nature of DCO processes means that, more than ever, the team needs to focus on the critical interaction between deliverables. The DCO planning process, the project’s evolving design, the assessment process, and the associated land rights—these components impact and inform each other. Succeeding at DCO means working as part of a close-knit team, where responsibility is shared, each voice is heard, and everyone understands the implications of their work for other parts of the consent process. This work asks a lot of your people, so they need to be prepared. When delivering offshore wind projects, this includes understanding both onshore and offshore consenting. This was critically important during Stantec’s work on Galloper Wind Farm.

Get the right team

If you're in the business of reducing carbon emissions, providing clean energy, and contributing to climate repair—without breaking the bottom line—here are four actions you should take when pursuing a DCO for offshore wind development.

Pursuing a DCO

For more about how Stantec is supporting clients with offshore wind projects and the UK Development Consent Order process, visit our Offshore Renewables page.

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Collaboration is key. The parallel nature of DCO processes means that, more than ever, the team needs to focus on the critical interaction between deliverables. The DCO planning process, the project’s evolving design, the assessment process, and the associated land rights—these components impact and inform each other. Succeeding at DCO means working as part of a close-knit team, where responsibility is shared, each voice is heard, and everyone understands the implications of their work for other parts of the consent process. This model asks a lot of your people, so they need to be prepared. When delivering offshore wind projects, this includes understanding both onshore and offshore consenting.

Get the right team

If you’re in the business of reducing carbon emissions, providing clean energy, and contributing to climate repair—without breaking the bottom line—here are four actions you should take when pursuing a DCO for offshore wind development.

Offshore project delivery

Make your process simultaneous

While the concept of placing turbines in the sea and running cables to shore may seem simple, the execution is obviously far from it. Technical detail development is often accomplished sequentially—but with a DCO, many technical details can be estimated before their finalisation, allowing project sections to move forward simultaneously. By developing a holistic view of risks, end goals, and project flexibility, the requirements for information in the permitting process can be accomplished early—maximising opportunities at each stage of the process. To take the greatest advantage of these opportunities, the final outcomes need to be identified and brought forward into the early design strategies. Then those desired final outcomes can inform decisions that help you, as one example, secure your supply chain early. Those differences turn a complicated regulatory process into an expert strategy.

Utilise your people

Prioritise the timing

With the colossal scale of offshore wind projects and the financial commitments you’re required to make, delivering to plan in the DCO process is essential. Use timely delivery and a strong audit trail in the DCO pre-application process to get the fastest consentable application possible. Focus on outstanding project management and preparing your team for the inevitable challenges of an intense examination timeline controlled by Government. Supporting the DCO process early makes your project more likely to hit that on-time delivery.

Sea change investment

In the last decade, the UK’s leadership in offshore renewables has stimulated a global cost reduction throughout the entire supply chain.

Maturing channels

Obtaining consents which balance the desirable and the necessary is critical to a successful DCO. Too often, costly concessions are offered early (or unnecessarily) in the run-up to receiving consent.

Strategic concessions

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