https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog Analysis of New Zealand's Fast-track Approvals Act 2024. en-NZ Sun, 17 May 2026 23:43:04 GMT https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/epa-minister-panel-three-decision-makers https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/epa-minister-panel-three-decision-makers Sun, 17 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Applicants routinely conflate the three bodies that run a Fast-track application. They are separate. They apply different tests. Here is who decides what — and when. Act overview https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/government-policy-statements-fast-track https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/government-policy-statements-fast-track Fri, 15 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT The 2025 Amendment Act gave the Minister of Infrastructure a new tool: Government Policy Statements that expert panels must consider. The first one is already shifting how renewables are weighted. Act overview https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/2025-amendment-act-changes https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/2025-amendment-act-changes Thu, 14 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Late 2025, the Fast-track Approvals Amendment Bill passed its third reading. Five changes worth knowing — including faster timeframes, the GPS mechanism, and the grocery competition limb. Act overview https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/staging-fast-track-applications https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/staging-fast-track-applications Wed, 13 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT You can lodge separate substantive applications for different phases of the same masterplan. Most applicants do not realise this. Done right, it dramatically de-risks large projects. Strategy https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/fast-track-appeals-high-court-points-of-law https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/fast-track-appeals-high-court-points-of-law Mon, 11 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Compared to Environment Court appeals available under standard RMA, Fast-track appeal rights are narrow. Here is what they cover, who can use them, and why the regime is built this way. Act overview https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/significant-regional-or-national-benefits-explained https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/significant-regional-or-national-benefits-explained Tue, 12 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT The single statutory test that decides whether a project gets into the Fast-track regime at all. Nine benefit limbs, what each one actually means, and the threshold the Minister applies. Act overview https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/the-three-phases-of-a-fast-track-application https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/the-three-phases-of-a-fast-track-application Sun, 10 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Every Fast-track application moves through three procedural phases. Most applicants underestimate the first one. Here is what happens in each. Project management https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-sunfield-3854-homes-papakura https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-sunfield-3854-homes-papakura Thu, 12 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT Winton Land's Sunfield masterplanned community cleared the Fast-track panel on 11 March 2026, delivering one of the largest single residential consents under the regime. Approvals https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-waihi-north-mining https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-waihi-north-mining Fri, 19 Dec 2025 00:00:00 GMT The first major mining approval under Fast-track. $5.2 billion in exports, 800 jobs, $422 million in Crown revenue. A test case for the resources limb. Approvals https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-southland-wind-farm-380mw https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-southland-wind-farm-380mw Fri, 03 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Contact Energy's Southland Wind Farm cleared Fast-track on 2 April 2026. 55 turbines, 380 MW, enough to power 150,000 homes. Approvals https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-takitimu-north-link-stage-2 https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/approved-takitimu-north-link-stage-2 Fri, 20 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT NZTA's first Fast-track roading approval. A Road of National Significance through Te Puna and Ōmokoroa. Set the template for future RoNS lodgements. Approvals https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/pre-lodgement-engagement-a-16-week-playbook https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/pre-lodgement-engagement-a-16-week-playbook Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT Pre-lodgement is where Fast-track applications are won or lost. The substantive package only reflects what the issues log already knew. Here is how to run those 16 weeks. Project management https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/cultural-impact-assessment-do-this-in-month-one https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/cultural-impact-assessment-do-this-in-month-one Wed, 29 Apr 2026 00:00:00 GMT CIAs commissioned in month nine are the most expensive mistake in Fast-track applications. The fix is simple, and it starts with how you scope the first conversation. Cultural impact https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/reading-schedule-2-what-the-categories-actually-mean https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/reading-schedule-2-what-the-categories-actually-mean Fri, 08 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Schedule 2 looks like a list. It is actually a strategic taxonomy that signals which sectors the government will defend politically and which will face the longest panel scrutiny. Strategy https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/fast-track-approvals-act-2024-explained https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/fast-track-approvals-act-2024-explained Wed, 04 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT A plain-English walk through the new consenting pathway: what changed, who it is for, and what it actually costs to run an application end-to-end. Act overview https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/schedule-2-or-referral-which-path-to-take https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/schedule-2-or-referral-which-path-to-take Wed, 18 Feb 2026 00:00:00 GMT The strategic decision behind every Fast-track application: am I on the list, do I push for referral, or do I sit out and wait for the RMA replacement? Strategy https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/the-five-coordination-failures-that-blow-out-fast-track-budgets https://fasttrackpartners.co.nz/blog/the-five-coordination-failures-that-blow-out-fast-track-budgets Wed, 11 Mar 2026 00:00:00 GMT Most Fast-track cost overruns are not technical. They are coordination failures. Here are the five we see most often — and how to design them out from week one. Project management