The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ) has approved a non‑material change to the Norfolk Boreas Offshore Wind Farm Order 2021. The amending Order (SI 2025/1362) was made on 18 December 2025 and came into force on 19 December 2025. It revises definitions, substitutes specific project coordinates, updates monitoring for the Haisborough, Hammond and Winterton Special Area of Conservation (HHW SAC) and introduces a pathway to deliver strategic compensation via the Marine Recovery Fund under the Energy Act 2023.
The decision follows an application made under paragraph 2 of Schedule 6 to the Planning Act 2008 and the Infrastructure Planning (Changes to, and Revocation of, Development Consent Orders) Regulations 2011. After publicity and consultation under regulations 6 and 7, the Secretary of State concluded the changes were not materially different from those proposed by the applicant, allowing the non‑material procedure to be used.
Institutional references are clarified. Article 2 now defines “Defra” as the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and any successor body. The definition of “undertaker” is replaced so that, subject to article 6 on the benefit of the Order, the undertaker is Norfolk Boreas Limited (Company No. 03722058).
For the authorised development, Schedule 1 Part 1 substitutes several coordinates. Longitude at point 29 is amended to 002° 59’ 17.972” E; longitude at point 67 to 002° 59’ 02.0169” E; and at point 164 the latitude becomes 52° 50’ 36.142” N with longitude 002° 35’ 08.679” E. These substitutions apply within the list that sets the boundaries of the authorised project.
Schedule 19 Part 3, which secures compensation for cable installation and protection within the HHW SAC, is reset. Key terms are restated, including the benthic implementation and monitoring plan (BIMP), the benthic steering group (BSG), the HHW SAC compensation plan certified under article 37, the Marine Recovery Fund, and a Marine Recovery Fund Payment to be agreed with Defra or the fund operator.
A notable change is the removal of the explicit pre‑commencement threshold that required at least 8.3 hectares of marine debris to be cleared before any cable installation within the HHW SAC. In its place, the Order emphasises ongoing monitoring and adaptive management, requiring annual reporting to the Secretary of State, the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) and the relevant statutory nature conservation body, with remedial proposals where measures are found to be ineffective.
The reporting framework is strengthened by a clear endpoint. A completion report showing delivery of the BIMP must be submitted within 12 months of completing the activities, subject to provisions that apply where the Marine Recovery Fund route is used.
A new adaptive management pathway allows substitution where the required area of marine debris cannot be removed in whole or part. The undertaker may apply to make a Marine Recovery Fund Payment, with the application detailing the proportion of overall debris‑removal attributable to Norfolk Boreas where impacts are shared with the Norfolk Vanguard project through the common cable corridor, and the amount of material already removed, net of any Norfolk Vanguard contribution.
Before approval, the Secretary of State must be satisfied that the Marine Recovery Fund solution is acceptable in principle (including, if relevant, the precise proportion of compensation that can be substituted) and that Defra or the body operating the fund has confirmed the fund can be used and has quantified the sums due. If approved, no cable installation in the HHW SAC may proceed until an implementation and monitoring plan is approved and the undertaker is discharged from further obligations under Part 3 in line with paragraph 39.
Discharge can occur in three ways: approval of the completion report; payment in full of the agreed Marine Recovery Fund sum with written confirmation from the Secretary of State; or entry into a contract to pay by instalments with the first instalment made and written confirmation given. Where discharge is granted on an instalment basis, the undertaker remains obliged to keep to the payment schedule and any other contractual conditions with Defra or the fund operator.
For delivery teams, the instrument provides a practical contingency if on‑site debris clearance proves unachievable or disproportionate, while retaining firm governmental oversight through Secretary of State approval, MMO involvement and continued monitoring. The explicit cross‑reference to Norfolk Vanguard is designed to prevent double‑counting across the shared cable corridor and align compensation accounting.
The Order is signed on behalf of the Secretary of State by John Wheadon, Head of Energy Infrastructure Planning Delivery at DESNZ, dated 18 December 2025. The instrument is confined to the amendments described and proceeds as a non‑material change under the Planning Act 2008 process.