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There is no summary of this meeting yet. Summaries are written once the council publishes the minutes, which are its official record of what a meeting decided. They usually appear a few weeks after the meeting.
1.1 Apologies were received by Councillor Karl Gauden.
2.1 Councillor Janet Jones declared a personal interest in agenda item 4 as a Member of Blaenavon World Heritage Steering Committee and the Council’s World Heritage Champion.
3.1 The minutes of the meeting held on 8th April 2026 were confirmed as a true and accurate record.
4.1 4.1 The Team Leader (Planning Applications) presented the report and made the following comments: · The report was seeking authorisation from Members to give Officers authorisation to agree and sign a Section 106 agreement in relation to a Development of National Significance, which would be determined by the Planning Inspectorate. · Granting the authorisation did not require members to express support or opposition to the development itself, as the decision rests with the Inspector. · The Section 106 agreement would provide a safeguard to ensure appropriate decommissioning of the wind turbines at the end of the permission. This would include a financial bond, to be reviewed periodically and more frequently towards the end of the 40-year permission, to reflect costs at the time. · The detailed decommissioning proposals would be submitted 12 months before the end of the scheme, allowing clarity on requirements at that stage. The agreement would allow the Local Authority to step in, if necessary, to ensure decommissioning was carried out within the agreed timeframe. 4.2 4.2 In response to questions asked by Members of the Planning Committee, the Team Leader (Planning Applications) gave the following responses: · Blaenau Gwent Council were fully engaged and in agreement with the terms of the Section 106 agreement. Legal services had been acting on behalf of both authorities to ensure a coordinated approach and he gave thanks to legal colleagues for their hard work in helping to draft the agreement. The agreement would apply jointly across both administrative areas and cover the entire development within the red line boundary areas outlined in the report. The bond arrangements and mechanisms for access would also be set out within the agreement on a joint basis. · The Section 106 agreement and associated bond apply solely to the development within the defined red line boundary and could not be used for any other purpose. If approved, planning conditions would require detailed decommissioning proposals from the developer. · The Section 106 agreement acts as an insurance mechanism, enabling both authorities to undertake decommissioning should the developer fail to do so. The inclusion of step-in rights within the Section 106 was critical, allowing the authorities to carry out the required works without recourse to the courts. · A two-stage approach had been adopted due to timing constraints arising during the hearing process. The initial agreement secures the bond, while a further requirement ensures all landowners enter into agreements before any development commences, enabling the step-in rights to be exercised if necessary. · There was no indication that the developer would not fulfil their obligations however, the bond was intended to safeguard long-term outcomes and protect public funds, in line with the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act. · The bond would reflect the regulatory and cost framework in place at the time of decommissioning, noting that this was expected to occur in approximately 40 years and may be influenced by future changes in legislation, taxation, and recycling technologies. The bond would be reviewed periodically to ensure it aligned with the agreed decommissioning requirements at that time. · The detailed decommissioning proposals were not yet finalised and would be secured through a planning condition requiring approval 12 months prior to decommissioning. Current indicative proposals suggested partial removal of the foundations to a depth of one metre, with the remainder left in situ however, this would be subject to further consideration and approval at the relevant time. 4.3 Members agreed with 8 voting in favour and 1 voting against to authorise Officers to negotiate and complete a Section 106 Agreement covering matters referred to in the report.
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