Advice for developers on Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs)
If you are planning a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP) in Wales, or your project is likely to affect land in Wales, you must consult Natural Resources Wales (NRW) before you apply for a Development Consent Order (DCO).
Contact us about a planning enquiry
Pre-application advice
We offer a free preliminary opinion on your development.
If you need more detailed advice before you apply, you can use our Discretionary Advice Service (there is a charge for this service and our capacity to provide this advice is limited).
Read more about our preliminary opinion and discretionary advice service
Charges
We may charge a fee for any relevant service we provide for NSIPs. Relevant services include advice, information, or assistance relating to:
- applications or proposed applications for a DCO
- changes to or revocations of a DCO
- any other prescribed matters relating to NSIPs
We recover our costs at all relevant stages of the NSIP process, including:
- pre-application
- acceptance
- pre-examination
- examination
- decision
- post-decision/implementation
Our current fee for charged advice is £125 per hour (this covers the full cost of providing the service).
We may also recover other reasonable costs, such as:
- site visits
- professional fees for technical or legal services
- attendance at hearings (including legal representation if necessary)
VAT may be charged on some services, especially where they are discretionary and not underpinned by statute.
Examples of chargeable services
Services that may be subject to cost recovery include, but are not limited to:
- advice to the Secretary of State or Planning Inspectorate for screening or scoping decisions
- engagement with pre-application services offered by the Planning Inspectorate
- responses to statutory pre-application consultations
- advice on environmental assessments (such as Environmental Impact Assessments, Habitats Regulations Assessments, or Water Framework Directive Assessments)
- preparing and providing advice at pre-examination and examination stages, including meeting and hearing attendance
- responses to requests for ‘deemed consents’ or disapplication of consents
- responses to information requests after a decision
- advice to the discharging authority on implementing decisions
Invoicing
After we complete a service, we will send you an invoice. The invoice will include:
- a description of the service(s) provided
- the number of hours spent on each service
- any VAT charged
You must pay the invoice within 28 days. If payment is late, we will send a reminder. If payment is still not received, we may send a second reminder and warn you about further action to recover costs.
Notify our Transactional Finance Services at online@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk if you require a Purchase Order number before making a payment.
Disputes
If you do not pay by the due date, we may recover the debt as a civil matter. We may also inform the Planning Inspectorate and/ or Examining Authority and pause our involvement in your application until the issue is resolved.
If you wish to dispute an invoice, contact us in writing at online@cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk
This email address is also on our invoices.
Other licences or consents
Some projects may need additional licences or consents from us, such as marine licences. These may have separate charges.
Find out more about consents we determine and the charges that may apply.