The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has published the summary of responses to its consultation on changes to energy infrastructure planning application fees. The headline: DESNZ intends to move to full cost recovery for its planning delivery services, with a fixed fee model targeted for implementation from 1 August 2026 and annual review cycles after that.
The consultation drew 26 responses, predominantly from energy industry bodies, electricity transmission and distribution operators, renewable developers and storage operators — so the views captured reflect the people who will actually be writing the cheques.
What's being proposed
DESNZ plans to recover the cost of its planning delivery services in line with HM Treasury's Managing Public Money guidance. Of the 23 respondents to the principle question, 18 supported full cost recovery, 3 opposed it and 2 were unsure — broad support, but conditional on fees being transparent, proportionate and evidenced.
The starting position is a fixed fee per application type, derived from estimated typical processing times and expected application volumes for the 2026/27 financial year. DESNZ has acknowledged that this model has limitations at the extremes — very simple or very complex cases — and signalled an intention to refine it over time as data improves.
Where applicants pushed back
On whether all fees should be a flat fixed charge, 15 of 19 respondents said no. Concerns clustered around proportionality (a 100MW solar project being charged the same as a much larger scheme), cross-subsidisation between simple and complex cases, and the risk of pricing smaller developers and low-carbon technologies out of the process.
There was strong support for future segmentation (15 in favour, 2 against) and for tiered fees that reflect resource intensity (17 in favour, 3 against). Suggested tiering metrics included installed capacity (MW) for Development Consent Orders, and — for Necessary Wayleaves — apparatus type, voltage and whether infrastructure is new or existing.
Hourly top-up fees for applications that exceed typical processing times were less popular: 11 of 18 respondents opposed them, citing the loss of cost certainty and the difficulty of budgeting against an open-ended charge.
Necessary Wayleaves and Section 35 in the spotlight
Two areas came up repeatedly. The first is Necessary Wayleaves: respondents argued for either an exemption, a lower fee, or a staged charging model where fees only become payable once an application reaches a hearing or decision stage — reflecting the reality that many wayleave applications are paused while voluntary negotiations continue.
The second is Section 35 (Planning Act 2008) applications for renewable gas facilities, where respondents argued for an exemption on the basis that developers are required to use this route and that charging would add cost from the outset. Non-material changes and Tree Lopping Orders were also flagged as candidates for lower or zero fees.
Several respondents also raised the risk of duplicate fees between DESNZ and the Planning Inspectorate on DCOs and material changes, and called for clearer alignment across planning regimes.
What this means for developers and landowners
If you have a DCO, Section 36, Section 37, Necessary Wayleave or related application planned for the 2026/27 window, build the new fee assumption into your project budget now. The exact fee schedule will follow the government response, but the direction of travel — full cost recovery from 1 August 2026 — is clear.
For portfolio developers across solar, onshore wind, BESS, hydrogen and grid reinforcement, watch the next consultation round carefully. The strong support for tiering means the fee schedule beyond year one is likely to look different from the opening fixed-fee position, and project economics may shift accordingly.
Landowners and operators reliant on Necessary Wayleaves should also factor in the potential for higher upfront costs and the knock-on effect on land rights negotiations — an issue respondents flagged as having consumer pass-through implications.
What happens next
DESNZ will now publish its government response and confirm the final fee schedule ahead of the 1 August 2026 implementation date. We'll update clients as soon as the final fees are confirmed, with a particular focus on tiering signals for DCOs and the treatment of Necessary Wayleaves and Section 35 applications.
If you're scoping consenting strategy for a project that lands in or after the 2026/27 window, talk to us early — front-loading site appraisal and pre-application work is the cleanest way to keep the new fees in proportion to your overall programme.