NPS EN-1 - Overarching National Policy Statement for Energy

Page type: primary-anchored Related canonical: sources/desnz/nps-en-1.md

What an NPS Is

A National Policy Statement (NPS) is a statutory planning document designated under s.5 of the Planning Act 2008. NPSs are made by the Secretary of State (in practice the relevant Secretary of State for the infrastructure type), laid before Parliament, and subject to consultation and parliamentary scrutiny before designation.

Once designated, an NPS is the primary framework for decisions on Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) in its sector. Under s.104 of the Planning Act 2008, when deciding a DCO application, the Secretary of State must have regard to any relevant NPS and must decide in accordance with it unless:

• the adverse impacts of the proposed development would outweigh its benefits
• the proposed development would lead to a breach of a domestic or international legal obligation
• the Secretary of State is satisfied that the development is not in the national interest

This means an NPS creates a strong presumption in favour of the types of infrastructure it covers, framed as national policy. It is not directly binding on private applicants or local planning authorities but is binding on the Secretary of State as the decision-maker for NSIPs.

EN-1 as the Overarching Framework

EN-1 is the overarching NPS covering all energy NSIPs. It applies to every NSIP in the energy sector. It sits above the technology-specific NPSs (EN-2 to EN-6), which apply alongside EN-1 for their respective technologies.

EN-1 does three things for the planning system:

1. Establishes the need case for energy infrastructure across all technology types. The Secretary of State takes this need as given when deciding individual DCO applications and does not re-examine it project by project.

2. Sets overarching assessment principles covering how to handle the planning balance, environmental impacts, design, CHP, CCR, climate adaptation, and pollution control.

3. Sets generic impact policies covering each category of environmental and social effect.

Where no technology-specific NPS applies (unconventional hydrocarbon extraction, hydrogen pipelines and storage, CCS pipeline infrastructure), EN-1 applies alone.

Designation History and Transitional Provisions

Three cohorts of applications operate under different versions:

• Applications accepted before 17 January 2024: governed by the 2011 EN-1
• Applications accepted 17 January 2024 to 5 January 2026: governed by the 2024 EN-1
• Applications accepted from 6 January 2026: governed by the 2025 EN-1

The transitional provisions matter in practice because large energy projects (offshore wind, electricity networks, CCS) can be in examination for several years. An application accepted in 2024 proceeds under the 2024 version even after the 2025 version came into force.

Need Case and Critical National Priority

Need case

EN-1 Part 3 establishes the urgent need for new energy infrastructure across electricity generation (all technologies), electricity networks, gas infrastructure, carbon capture and storage, and oil infrastructure. The need statement is not a finding about any individual project - it is a standing policy position that the Secretary of State must apply to all DCO decisions without re-examining the underlying need.

The practical effect is at s.3.2.7: substantial weight must be given to the need when considering consent applications. The presumption runs strongly in favour of consenting.

Critical National Priority

The 2024 version introduced the Critical National Priority (CNP) policy for low carbon infrastructure (s.4.2). CNP infrastructure covers:

• All electricity generation not involving fossil fuel combustion (renewable, nuclear)
• Natural gas generation that is carbon capture ready
• All electricity grid infrastructure in scope of EN-5
• Hydrogen distribution, pipelines, and storage
• Carbon dioxide distribution
• Interconnectors, Multi-Purpose Interconnectors, bootstraps routed offshore
• Lifetime extensions and repowering of existing low carbon NSIPs

CNP infrastructure is treated differently from other NSIPs in the planning balance. After the mitigation hierarchy has been applied:

• Residual non-HRA/non-MCZ impacts are unlikely to outweigh the urgent need (consent is unlikely to be refused on those grounds)
• Tests requiring exceptionality, very special circumstances, or clear outweighing of harm - Green Belt, SSSI, designated landscapes, heritage assets - are treated as met by the CNP status as a starting point

For HRA and MCZ derogation decisions, energy security and net zero are treated as capable of constituting Imperative Reasons of Overriding Public Interest (IROPI). Alternative locations are unlikely to be treated as alternative solutions, because EN-1 requires multiple deliverable locations and imposes no cap on consented projects.

Presumption in Favour of Consent

S.4.1.3 states the general presumption:

"Given the level and urgency of need for infrastructure of the types covered by the energy NPSs set out in Part 3 of this NPS, the Secretary of State will start with a presumption in favour of granting consent to applications for energy NSIPs. That presumption applies unless any more specific and relevant policies set out in the relevant NPSs clearly indicate that consent should be refused."

This is a lower threshold for refusal than the general planning system. The relevant NPS policies must "clearly indicate" refusal - an arguable balance in favour of refusal is not enough.

Relationship to Technology-Specific NPSs (EN-2 to EN-6)

For a project covered by one of EN-2 to EN-6, the relevant technology NPS applies alongside EN-1. In cases of conflict between a technology NPS and EN-1, the more specific NPS provision prevails, following general principles of statutory interpretation.

EN-6 is time-limited: it only has effect for nuclear deployable by end of 2025. For nuclear deployable after 2025, EN-1 alone applies until a new nuclear NPS is designated.

Weight in DCO Decisions

The weight EN-1 carries in a DCO decision depends on whether the project is CNP infrastructure:

• For non-CNP energy NSIPs: the presumption in favour of consent applies; the need case is established; residual impacts must be weighed against benefits in the normal planning balance
• For CNP energy NSIPs: in addition to the presumption, the CNP policy applies; exceptionality tests are met by default; HRA IROPI is available; the planning balance is heavily tilted towards consent

EN-1 also prevails over development plan documents and marine plans in the event of conflict (ss.4.1.15, 4.5.12). This means local authority objections grounded in local plan policy carry limited weight in DCO proceedings.

Key Policy Moves in the 2024 Version

Carbon emissions exclusion

Operational GHG emissions from energy infrastructure are explicitly removed from Secretary of State consideration at the individual project level. The Secretary of State is not required to assess whether a project's operational emissions are consistent with carbon budgets or net zero. This is left entirely to the UK ETS and other economy-wide instruments. The practical effect is that consent for gas-fired generation cannot be refused on carbon grounds, provided CCR requirements are met.

CNP

The CNP policy is the central innovation in the 2024 version. It addresses the problem that planning designations - Green Belt, SSSI, AONBs, heritage assets, HRA - were being used to delay or block low carbon infrastructure consents. CNP reframes those designations as starting-point presumptions rather than barriers, for nationally significant low carbon projects. This does not remove the need to assess and mitigate impacts; it changes what happens to residual impacts that cannot be fully mitigated.

Carbon Capture Readiness

All commercial scale combustion stations (>=300 MW, gas/coal/oil/biomass) must demonstrate CCR before receiving consent. If CCS retrofit is technically and economically infeasible within the station's lifetime, the station cannot receive consent. This is a hard condition - it cannot be waived by the Secretary of State.