Streamlining Planning and Permitting to Accelerate Wind and Solar Deployment

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This Insights Briefing focuses on one of the most pressing execution challenges to the rapid scale-up of clean electrification – slow planning, permitting, and land acquisition. While this set of challenges affects multiple clean energy technologies, the focus in this report will be on utility-scale solar photovoltaics (PV) (e.g., ~1 MW or above in size) and onshore and offshore wind, as the critical “backbone” zero-carbon generation technologies. After providing context on renewables deployment trends and current challenges, this Insights Briefing will develop an in-depth assessment of major planning and permitting barriers across project stages. It will then provide an overview of solutions, analysing the potential to shorten wind and solar development timelines at different stages whilst maintaining strong environmental and social safeguards.