If we’re serious about scaling marine renewable energy in Wales, and we are, then we must be equally committed to modernising the systems that underpin it. One of the greatest barriers facing developers today isn’t just technology or finance. It’s time. Specifically, the time it takes to navigate a consenting regime that was designed for a different era.
At this year’s Marine Energy Wales Conference, our session on Modernising Consents will confront this challenge directly. Because in a sector defined by rapid innovation, our regulatory frameworks must evolve at the same pace. We can’t expect 21st-century solutions to emerge from 20th-century processes.
Encouragingly, momentum is building. We’re seeing rapid advances in environmental monitoring, from autonomous data collection and remote sensing to AI-powered analytics, generating rich, real-time data at unprecedented scale. But data alone isn’t the breakthrough. The real opportunity lies in using it to design faster, smarter, and more collaborative consenting pathways: reducing duplication, enhancing clarity, and ultimately delivering better outcomes for both industry and the environment.
This session will spotlight those already rewriting the rules, not by lowering the bar, but by raising our game. Together, we’ll explore what it takes to make data-driven consenting the new norm: accelerating deployment timelines, de-risking investment, and unlocking Wales’s clean energy potential without compromising ecological integrity.
Securing a marine licence or planning consent will always be a critical step, but it shouldn’t be a stumbling block. If we embed modern tools and transparent, evidence-based decision-making into the system, we can remove friction, reduce uncertainty, and make robust, future-proof decisions at pace.
This is not just about process. It’s about ambition. If we’re to meet our net-zero targets and position Wales at the forefront of marine innovation, we need to reimagine what good looks like. That starts by making consents fit not only for today, but for the energy systems of tomorrow.
Want an exclusive preview of what’s to come? Listen to the latest Green Economy Wales podcast ‘Inside Marine Energy Wales 2025' for insight into the key themes and sessions shaping this year’s Conference, HERE.
Book tickets to the conference HERE
