Design notifications
Decisions critical to the management of safety, infrastructure integrity and environmental risks are often made early in the lifecycle of large-scale infrastructure projects.
The design notification process under the OEI Act framework enables licence holders to engage early and constructively with the Offshore Infrastructure Regulator (OIR) on design and concept-selection for an offshore renewables project.
A design notification will set out the licence holder’s design concept, layout and engineering selection for offshore renewable energy and offshore electricity transmission infrastructure. This includes the processes used to determine the suitable type of infrastructure with consideration for safety, infrastructure integrity, environmental management and on water interactions within the licence area.
What should be included in a design notification?
Results from feasibility studies and stakeholder consultation should be used to guide the development of a design notification.
A design notification should include:
- the intended location of the project and a layout of the infrastructure
- a description of the seabed, meteorological and oceanographic conditions at the intended project location and any associated hazards or risks
- how to infrastructure will be constructed, operated, maintained, decommissioned, and removed, and any associated hazards or risks
- the operation and maintenance strategy for the planned infrastructure
- how the infrastructure will be decommissioned and removed
- project design philosophy and standards used to guide the design process
- any other considerations that influenced the decision making, including why this design was selected.