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1 November 2026

EPBC approval for renewable energy projects: a step-by-step guide for 2026

How the EPBC Act referral, assessment and approval process works for wind, solar, battery and transmission projects as at October 2026, including what the 2025 reforms and the new National EPA have changed.

By Leigh Heaney, Watson Advisory

Most large wind, solar, battery and transmission projects in Australia have to deal with the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) at some point. This guide explains how the federal referral, assessment and approval process works as at October 2026, what the 2025 environment law reforms have already changed, and what changes are still coming before the end of the year.

Who this guide is for

  • Developers of onshore wind, solar, battery, pumped hydro, hydrogen and transmission projects who need to decide whether to refer a project.
  • Project teams with a referral already lodged who want to understand how the reforms affect them.
  • Investors, boards and lenders who need a realistic view of approval risk and timing.

What the EPBC Act does, and what has changed

The EPBC Act is Australia’s main national environmental law. It protects nine “matters of national environmental significance”, including listed threatened species and ecological communities, listed migratory species, World Heritage and National Heritage places, Ramsar wetlands and Commonwealth marine areas. If a project is likely to have a significant impact on any of these, it must be referred and cannot proceed without a decision. Taking the action before a decision is a serious offence.

The Environment Protection Reform Bills passed Parliament on 28 November 2025, and the reforms are being rolled out in stages. According to the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water (DCCEEW), the position at 22 October 2026 is:

  • 1 December 2025: foundational and transitional provisions commenced on Royal Assent.
  • 20 February 2026: “more flexible, transparent processes” commenced, including the ability to surrender an approval, changes to national interest exemptions and the first changes to reconsiderations and strategic assessments.
  • 1 July 2026: the National Environmental Protection Agency (National EPA) was established as an independent regulator. It handles compliance and enforcement and assesses projects under delegation from the Environment Minister. EPBC guidance is moving from dcceew.gov.au to nationalepa.gov.au.
  • 19 August 2026: four National Environmental Standards were made: Matters of National Environmental Significance, Environmental Offsets, Community Engagement, and Data and Information.
  • 24 August 2026: further provisions commenced, including ministerial rulings, approval for minor or preparatory works during assessment, and changes to accreditation and bilateral agreements.
  • On or before 1 December 2026: the new approval tests, a new fast-track assessment option and the application of the National Environmental Standards to individual project decisions are due to commence.

In practice, this means the day-to-day referral and assessment process still looks familiar today, but the tests a project must meet are about to change. The fast-track pathway will only be available to projects that meet the new standards and provide the right information upfront. Fossil fuel projects are excluded from it, so renewable projects are well placed to use it. The existing preliminary documentation and environmental impact statement pathways will remain, with improvements. Under the Environment Protection Reform Act 2025, provisions not proclaimed earlier start automatically on 1 December 2026. We found no earlier date as at 1 November 2026.

When it applies

You need to refer a project if it will have, or is likely to have, a significant impact on a protected matter. For renewable projects the most common issues are habitat for listed threatened species, listed ecological communities affected by clearing for turbines, panels, access tracks or transmission corridors, and listed migratory species such as birds that may interact with turbines. Offshore wind projects in Commonwealth waters are also assessed under the EPBC Act, alongside licensing under the Offshore Electricity Infrastructure Act 2021.

Whether an impact is “significant” is a judgement you make first, using the Significant Impact Guidelines 1.1. If you are confident there will be no significant impact you may choose not to refer, but you must keep your self-assessment in case the regulator asks for it. A referral is the only way to get legal certainty.

Transitional rule: DCCEEW says projects already referred when the new laws take effect will still be assessed under the current Act, while new projects that have not yet been referred will need to comply with the new laws, including the National Environmental Standards. That makes the timing of your referral a strategic decision this year. Item 690 of Schedule 1 of the Reform Act applies the main new approval considerations only where the referral was made on or after the commencement day, so a referral lodged before the new tests commence should stay on the current approval tests. Not every amendment follows that rule, and a notifiable instrument can set a different application day, so get legal advice before relying on it.

Step-by-step: from site selection to approval

  1. Screen the site early. Run a Protected Matters Search Tool report and check species profiles before you lock in a layout. DCCEEW’s renewable energy guidance is blunt: projects that avoid sensitive environmental areas have the fastest and smoothest regulatory pathway.
  2. Do a self-assessment. Test likely impacts against the Significant Impact Guidelines 1.1 and any species-specific guidance. Plan surveys for the right seasons. DCCEEW suggests allowing up to 18 months if you need to collect information, and survey data should be less than five years old.
  3. Book a pre-referral meeting. These meetings are free and optional. Officers will not tell you whether you will be approved, but they will flag information gaps and how the assessment is likely to run. (Watson Advisory can help you prepare for your pre-referral meeting: admin@watsonadvisory.com.au)
  4. Prepare and lodge the referral. Referrals go through the EPBC Act Business Portal. You will need a dated project map, recent surveys, details of consultation with First Nations people and the wider community, other studies such as cultural heritage reports, and your avoidance and mitigation measures. The referral fee is $6,577 unless you are exempt or receive a waiver.
  5. Public comment and referral decision. Every referral has a mandatory public comment period. The Minister (or a delegate) then decides within 20 business days, plus any “stop the clock” time if more information is requested. The outcomes are: clearly unacceptable; controlled action; not a controlled action if taken in a particular manner; or not a controlled action. The Minister can also refuse to accept a referral under section 74A if it appears to be part of a larger action (a “split referral”), so refer the whole project, including transmission and access works.
  6. Assessment. If the project is a controlled action, the regulator chooses an assessment method: on referral information, on preliminary documentation, by public environment report, by environmental impact statement, by public inquiry, or through an accredited state process under a bilateral agreement. You will receive a schedule of fees. Base assessment fees range from $8,010 for preliminary documentation to $25,583 for a public environment report or EIS, and can be higher for complex projects.
  7. Publish draft documents and respond to comments. All assessments include a public comment period of at least 10 business days. You must show how you have responded to comments before the formal assessment starts.
  8. Proposed decision and final decision. You receive a proposed decision with draft conditions and have 10 business days to respond. DCCEEW’s guide indicates a final decision 30 to 40 business days from the start of the formal assessment, depending on the method.
  9. Comply with conditions. Approvals often require management plans and, where impacts cannot be avoided, offsets. Notify the regulator when you start, implement plans exactly as approved, and re-refer if the project changes materially. The National EPA now holds the enforcement powers.

Shared assessments and priority projects

The Commonwealth has assessment bilateral agreements with all states and territories, which let a state process assess the EPBC impacts while the Commonwealth makes the approval decision. The 24 August 2026 changes made these agreements easier to update. The Commonwealth signed memoranda of understanding with Western Australia and New South Wales in 2026 to progress new agreements under the reformed law, and a draft NSW assessment bilateral agreement is open for comment until 5 pm AEDT on 19 November 2026. (We can help you prepare a comment on the draft agreement: admin@watsonadvisory.com.au)

The National Renewable Energy Priority List, set up with the states and territories, gives selected projects extra engagement to help them move through approvals faster. You cannot apply to be on it: projects are chosen against criteria agreed through the Energy and Climate Change Ministerial Council. Priority status is not a guarantee of approval, and every project is still fully assessed. As at its July 2026 update, 23 listed projects had received a “green light” (a not-controlled-action decision or an approval).

Timelines

Statutory clocks are only part of the story. A realistic plan for a mid-sized wind or solar project looks like this:

  • Surveys and referral preparation: up to 18 months, driven by seasonal survey windows.
  • Referral decision: 20 business days after a valid referral, plus any stop-the-clock periods. A fee waiver request can add 20 business days.
  • Assessment: highly variable. The National EPA notes that some assessments run for many months and, in complex cases, years, mostly because of time spent gathering information.
  • Final decision: 30 to 40 business days from the start of formal assessment under the current guide. DCCEEW says the new pathways are meant to deliver faster decisions, but its reform pages do not publish new timeframes, and the National EPA says it is developing guidance on the updated assessment processes. Check before relying on these figures after the new pathways commence.

Common mistakes

  • Treating EPBC as the last approval. Layout decisions made for planning, grid or landholder reasons can lock in impacts that are expensive to fix later. Bring ecology into site selection.
  • Thin or old survey data. Incomplete information is the most common reason for stop-the-clock requests, which add both time and a $1,701 fee for each request. (Watson Advisory can help you respond clearly to the regulator’s information requests: admin@watsonadvisory.com.au)
  • Leading with offsets. Offsets are a last resort. The new MNES Standard formalises a hierarchy of avoidance, mitigation and repair before offsets are considered.
  • Underestimating consultation. Referrals ask for details of First Nations and community consultation, and the new Community Engagement Standard will set expectations for how proponents engage throughout the process.
  • Ignoring the transition date. Referring just before or just after the new tests start can mean assessment under different rules. Make that a deliberate decision.
  • Splitting the project. Referring a wind farm separately from its grid connection or access roads risks a section 74A refusal and delays. Describe the whole action.
  • Changing the project after approval. You cannot change an approved action. Material changes can require a new referral.

Frequently asked questions

Is the National EPA now making EPBC approval decisions?

The National EPA started on 1 July 2026. DCCEEW describes its functions as compliance, enforcement and assessing projects under delegation from the Environment Minister. The National EPA’s own guidance describes referral and approval decisions as made by the Environment Minister or their delegate. It does not say who decides an individual renewable energy project, so ask your assessment contact.

Will renewable projects get a faster pathway?

Potentially. The new fast-track option will be open to projects that meet the National Environmental Standards and provide the right information upfront, and fossil fuel projects are excluded from it. Bioregional plans may also create development zones where suitable projects can proceed without a separate approval. Neither is a shortcut for poorly sited projects.

Can we start any works while the assessment is under way?

Since 24 August 2026, after a controlled action decision you can apply to carry out minor or preparatory works during assessment. The works must be unlikely to impact protected matters, and the EPBC Regulations set out the process. (Watson Advisory can help you plan your preparatory works application: admin@watsonadvisory.com.au)

Do “not controlled action” decisions last forever?

Not under the reforms. Later in 2026, not-controlled-action decisions for projects that have not started within five years will lapse, with an optional five-year extension available.

Does being on the Priority List mean approval is likely?

No. Priority projects get earlier and closer engagement, but they are fully assessed and are not guaranteed approval. You cannot nominate your own project.

How Watson Advisory can help

Watson Advisory helps renewable energy developers plan their approvals strategy, prepare for engagement with the National EPA, DCCEEW and state agencies, and track the reform timetable so projects are not caught out by the transition. We work alongside your environmental consultants and lawyers to keep government engagement clear and consistent. Contact us at admin@watsonadvisory.com.au.

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About the author: Leigh Heaney is a Partner at Watson Advisory, specialising in government relations and public affairs. Leigh spent more than a decade as chief of staff to a senior federal frontbencher in both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Before joining Watson Advisory, Leigh was Government Relations director at Australia’s renewable energy peak body, working on the Capacity Investment Scheme and the production tax credits in the Future Made in Australia package.

This guide is general information only, current as at 22 October 2026. It is not legal, financial or tax advice. Program guidelines, eligibility and funding rounds change often, so check the official guidelines before applying, or contact Watson Advisory for advice on your circumstances.

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