OECD Asia-Pacific power projects: timelines and challenges

Investments in new power capacity within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development Asia-Pacific are accelerating, particularly in Australia, Japan and South Korea, as these markets advance their energy transition, replace retiring plants and address the fast-growing demand from data centers. Yet moving a project from plan to reality is rarely quick or simple. Developers must navigate years of regulatory approvals, technical assessments, and grid challenges before reaching commissioning.

Understanding the project timelines, along with the risks and enablers involved, is crucial for making informed investment decisions. S&P Global Commodity Insights analyzed average developed timelines by technology and the structural bottlenecks shaping the pace of new capacity growth across OECD Asia-Pacific.

The project timeline data presented in this study are compiled from a range of sources, including documents on environmental impact assessment, or EIA, tender information and company announcements. Where public data is limited, Commodity Insights has incorporated in-house estimates based on market research and industry engagement.

Australia: accelerating renewable energy approvals

Australia's commitment to transitioning to a renewable-based power system, with ambitious decarbonization goals, has resulted in delays in the development timeline due to a backlog of solar, wind and battery storage projects.

The impending retirement of the nation's aging coal fleet has increased the urgency to accelerate the buildout of renewable capacity. This situation has led to early engagement between the market operator and developers to navigate the complex commissioning process. As a result, the federal government fast-tracks approval decisions and expands procedural support for short-listed priority projects.

"The federal government continues to work on streamlining processes and reducing bottlenecks, which is encouraging for developers aiming to advance their projects," according to the study.

Solar project development typically takes three to four years. Solar projects encounter revenue risk due to steep declines in capture prices thanks to strong uptake in price-insensitive rooftop solar. New solar projects all but require an offtake agreement and battery storage co-location to secure financing, but lengthy negotiations and the complexity of co-location can delay the project timelines.

Front-of-the-meter battery projects average a three-year development timeline. They benefit from expedited timelines by supporting intermittent generation, replacing coal and seizing on revenue opportunities in the energy and frequency control ancillary services markets.

Japan: navigating regulatory complexities amid resource and land constraints

Japan's renewable project development timelines are among the longest in Asia-Pacific. Developers navigate a complex mix of regulatory, technical, governance and market approvals.

Large-scale renewable projects can take three to five years to complete due to mandatory EIA. According to an analyst of Japan power market research at Commodity Insights, "in Japan, larger-scale solar projects that are subject to EIA can take as much as 7-8 years to complete. In comparison, smaller projects can move much faster in 3-4 years." Land acquisition could add further challenges, especially for projects located near protected land or forest areas requiring multilevel approval.

Local opposition is emerging as a key risk for land-based renewable projects. Many regions, once considered ideal for mega solar, are now restricting large-scale development, pushing developers to refocus on medium-scale projects that balance feasibility and approval risks.

Battery projects enjoy the shortest time to market of three years on average, benefiting from siting flexibility, simpler design and exemption from EIA. However, a growing number of projects is leading to grid connection delays, prompting "fast-track connection protocols" to accelerate battery buildout.

South Korea: overcoming grid and supply chain issues

In South Korea, the development of renewable projects remains a lengthy process. This is especially true for onshore and offshore wind projects. This is largely due to low community acceptance, lengthy environmental and military reviews, especially for offshore wind, concerning with sea lines of communication and radar operations and increasing grid constraints that limit the entry of greenfield renewable projects in certain renewable-heavy regions.

Combined cycle gas turbines and front-of-the-meter battery storage projects are centrally controlled by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and remain partially closed to new entries. This centralized control simplifies the planning, permitting and prebuild procedures, reducing development timelines to under eight years for CCGTs and just over two years for batteries.

Rising engineering, procurement and construction costs, along with global supply chain bottlenecks, impact the commercial feasibility for onshore and offshore wind projects, which typically take nine and 11 years to complete, respectively. This situation causes delays or cancellations. Additionally, the global supply bottlenecks for gas turbines pose a key risk factor, especially for CCGT projects planned for the late 2020s and early 2030s that have not yet secured turbine supply contracts.

Looking ahead: enhancing growth and mitigating challenges

Governments across the region are actively working to shorten development timelines and reduce project risks as renewable buildout accelerates.

In Australia, underwriting schemes are helping to address revenue risks and unlock financing, while the market operator's earlier engagement and system simulation tools are supporting smoother grid integration.

In Japan, a centralized offshore wind framework is streamlining the planning and permitting process, complemented by new grid connection protocols. This initiative enables faster commissioning for renewables and battery projects.

In South Korea, revenue-sharing mechanisms between developers and local communities are emerging as a practical way to ease opposition and improve project acceptance.

However, as policy support deepens, new challenges are emerging. Rising EPC costs, tightening global supply chains and ongoing revenue uncertainty are testing project viability and may shape the pace of future capacity growth. The ability of governments and developers to effectively navigate this next phase while balancing speed, cost and community alignment will be critical in determining how quickly the region's energy transition can evolve from ambition to reality.

Further reading: OECD Asia power project timeline: Challenges and typical duration for various development phases.