Public exhibition of the HTP preliminary corridor

The Hunter Transmission Project (HTP) is one of the State’s most critical energy projects

Community engagement

Engaging early with the community has enabled the project team to collect invaluable local knowledge that is helping to shape the HTP.

We invited the community to be part of the vital first steps for the HTP by placing a preliminary corridor on public exhibition between 20 November 2023 and 18 December 2023.

Our objectives were to:

involve the Hunter community early in the project planning phase
explain why the HTP is urgently needed
explain how the HTP preliminary corridor was chosen as the most suitable option
seek community feedback that would help us refine the project design (primarily the transmission line route) in a way that minimises impacts and maximises benefits.

Read Shaping the HTP (May 2024)

View the interactive map

Download a revised corridor map

Read the HTP scoping report

HTP preliminary corridor: Spotlight on community feedback

More than 250 submissions were received as part of our early engagement on the HTP in late 2023. This gave us significant feedback on the HTP preliminary corridor. This community consultation was just the start of our engagement on the HTP.

The infographic below provides an overview of the feedback we received through the consultation process.

Approval process

From an environmental approvals perspective:

the NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces has decided the HTP is essential to the State for economic, social and environmental reasons and has declared it critical State significant infrastructure under the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act 1979 (EP&A Act)
the Australian Government Minister for the Environment and Water is likely to declare the HTP a controlled action under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act) because it may have a significant impact on matters of national environment significance.

This means the HTP needs the approval of both ministers before it can go ahead. Under the existing bilateral agreement, the NSW Government will co-ordinate a detailed assessment of the impacts of the HTP under both the EP&A Act and EPBC Act in a single, integrated approvals process that includes extensive community consultation before both ministers make a final decision.