Introduction
The Offshore Renewable Energy Act 2026 ("ORE Act") came into effect on 10 July 2026, setting out the offshore renewable energy regime, and providing for permit application rounds for offshore wind (and other forms of offshore renewable energy). See our previous articles on the regime here, here, here and here.
Upcoming feasibility permit application round
On 9 October 2026, the Minister for Energy ("Minister") announced that New Zealand's first feasibility permit application round under the Offshore Renewable Energy Act 2026 ("ORE Act") will open on 19 October 2026, for permit areas in Offshore Taranaki and Offshore Waikato / South Auckland. The application round will close on 19 April 2027.
This means that developers will be able to apply for a feasibility permit in accordance with the ORE Act and Offshore Renewable Energy Regulations 2026 ("ORE Regulations"), as well as in accordance with the terms of the application round (to be released by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment ("MBIE") on 19 October 2026).
If successful, the Minister will grant a developer a seven-year feasibility permit for the permit areas. That permit would exclusively entitle a developer to undertake its feasibility analysis and apply for a corresponding commercial permit – which must be applied for before the expiry of the feasibility permit. Accordingly, subject to compliance with its feasibility permit, a developer would have a clear path to a commercial permit.
Timely development
Obtaining a feasibility permit places a developer in a strong position to meet some of New Zealand's future demand for electricity – MBIE predicted electricity demand to increase by between 35.3% and 82.0% by 20501, and an offshore wind development could be a significant contributor to meeting that demand.
In addition, given that both major political parties support offshore wind2, along with the strong local support in Taranaki, we do not expect the upcoming election to adversely affect the application process. For example, the parties variously committed to providing enabling rules for renewable generation, including wind3, and supporting and accelerating clean, home-grown, renewable energy, including wind4.
Application process
At a high level, the application process involves the following (subject to the further process terms to be released by MBIE):
Pre-application – consultation required with relevant iwi groups and results reflected in the application;
Application – must be for a reasonably sized permit area in the context of the proposed generation infrastructure, and include the consultation results, development plan and statement of intended feasibility activities;
Ministerial consideration – whether the proposed development is likely to deliver benefits for New Zealand, whether the development plan is consistent with the purpose of the permit, the purpose of the ORE Act and good industry practice, whether the applicant has appropriate technical and financial capability, and whether the applicant is highly likely to comply with the ORE Act and ORE Regulations on an ongoing basis; and5
Ministerial decision – granted in whole or in part, or rejected.
Under the ORE Act, where applications compete, the Minister may:
if they relate to the same permit areas, invite applicants to revise their applications to resolve the overlap;
grant one or more permits to the applications with the most merit and the most suitable applicants; and/or
reject one or more applications.
However, the specific process is likely to be set out in the round terms to be released by MBIE, so applicants should review those terms closely6. We will provide an update on that in due course.
Conclusion
Overall, this is an exciting time for the offshore renewal energy industry in general, and the offshore wind industry in particular, and we look forward to seeing how the application process plays out.