Parallel and risk-based permitting restructures infrastructure approval processes so that authorizations can be assessed concurrently rather than moving through a series of sequential steps. Instead of applying the same process to every project or activity, permits can be classified according to their purpose and level of risk. For lower-risk activities, a conventional permit can be replaced by a notification or formal declaration of compliance, allowing work to proceed without waiting for an individual administrative decision, while higher-risk projects remain subject to fuller review. 

The approach can combine parallel processing with binding maximum decision periods, clear rules governing when timelines may be suspended and accountability mechanisms where authorities fail to act within prescribed periods. A common digital interface can further coordinate applications across multiple public bodies, improving visibility over progress and reducing duplication. For power systems, where transmission, generation and other infrastructure can require approvals from numerous authorities, this model can reduce administrative lead times and provide greater predictability over project schedules without necessarily lowering regulatory or environmental standards. 

Its value lies in changing the architecture of permitting itself: matching the intensity of review to risk, enabling processes to advance simultaneously where dependencies do not require sequencing and creating clearer accountability for timely decisions.

Main Outcomes of the Solution

• Institutional Efficiency & Transparency: Clearer and more predictable permitting through defined timelines, parallel reviews and risk-based requirements, reducing administrative uncertainty and strengthening accountability across authorities. 
• Business Value: Greater certainty over approval requirements and timelines can reduce development risk, supporting investment decisions and more effective capital and project planning. 
• Sustainability: Faster and more coordinated permitting can accelerate renewable generation, transmission and other enabling infrastructure needed for power-system decarbonization.

Key implementation and scaling factors

1. Ensure permitting authorities have sufficient staff, technical expertise and institutional capacity to meet defined timelines without compromising the quality of review.
2. Establish strong coordination and information exchange across authorities that would otherwise conduct reviews sequentially.
3. Define clear and transparent risk-classification criteria to determine which activities qualify for simplified notification or declaration pathways and which require fuller review.
4. Align legislation and administrative procedures so that unnecessary sequencing requirements do not prevent permits from being processed in parallel.
5. Integrate digital platforms to provide a common channel for applications, information exchange and progress tracking across permitting authorities.
6. Phase implementation where necessary to allow regulations, administrative procedures, digital systems and staff capabilities to adapt to the new permitting model.

Case study

Ministry of Economy, Development and Tourism (2025), Chile

Chile's Framework Law on Sectoral Authorizations (Law No. 21,770), published on 29 September 2025, introduced a new framework for streamlining sectoral permitting for investment projects, including energy infrastructure. The law establishes parallel processing as a general principle, allowing multiple authorizations to advance simultaneously unless legislation requires otherwise. It also establishes common procedural requirements and mandatory maximum decision periods, with administrative silence providing a mechanism for concluding procedures where authorities do not respond within prescribed timelines. The effect of administrative silence varies according to the type of authorization. 

For lower-risk activities, conventional permits can be replaced by notices or sworn declarations, backed by ex-post oversight and sanctions for noncompliance. The reform also establishes SUPER, a unified digital platform intended to provide a single, traceable channel for sectoral authorizations, and creates the Office of Sectoral Authorizations and Investment within the Ministry to coordinate, monitor and support implementation. 

The Chilean government estimates that the reform could reduce sectoral permitting times by 30-70%, depending on the type of project, while the framework for strategic investment projects targets a 50% reduction in permitting time. These are expected impacts of the reform rather than realized results. The government states that the changes are intended to streamline procedures without lowering existing environmental, social or technical regulatory standards.

Reference:

1. Reforma al sistema de permisos sectoriales a punto de convertirse en Ley de la República - Ministerio de Economía, Fomento y Turismo