Renewable Energy · UK Planning & Consenting

Annabel MacGregor

Project development and consenting specialist with nearly a decade of experience taking renewable energy assets from greenfield to ready-to-build.

LinkedIn 📍 London, UK

I'm a UK project development and consenting specialist with nearly ten years of experience across the full lifecycle of renewable energy projects — from site identification through planning consent to ready-to-build. My work spans solar PV, battery energy storage, co-located solar and BESS, and novel Power-to-Gas infrastructure.

I've spent most of my career in early-stage companies where there was no existing playbook: building land and planning functions from scratch, managing parallel portfolios of 20+ sites, and delivering development milestones as investment-critical outcomes under VC scrutiny. I hold specialist expertise across both the English and Scottish consenting regimes, including Section 36 and the ECU route.

~10
Years in renewable energy development
20+
Sites managed concurrently across UK & Europe
700+
Hectares secured under option in Spain
3
Technologies: Solar · BESS · P2G

What I bring to a project

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UK Planning & Consenting

Deep specialism across English and Scottish planning regimes — TCPA, Section 36, ECU route, EIA management, environmental permitting and planning application delivery.

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Land Origination

End-to-end site origination: landowner engagement, HOT negotiation, option to lease, QGIS-based constraints mapping and feasibility assessment across multi-site portfolios.

Grid & Technical

Grid constraint screening, DNO and GDN pre-application engagement, connection strategy, and co-ordination of technical consultants across solar, BESS and gas infrastructure projects.

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BESS Development

End-to-end battery storage project development including NFCC fire safety guidance, community consultation, and familiarity with commercial pathways: capacity market, CFDs, arbitrage and frequency response.

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Renewable Gas & P2G

Development of novel Power-to-Gas infrastructure: solar-powered e-methane, alkaline electrolysis, direct air capture of CO₂, methanation and gas grid injection strategy.

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Function-Building

Track record of building development functions from a standing start — establishing origination workflows, consultant frameworks, DEVEX budgets and delivery processes in VC-backed environments.

Where I've worked

Head of Land & Planning (UK & Europe)
Rivan Industries
Jul 2024 – Present
VC-backed (Plural) climate-tech startup developing solar-powered e-methane. Joined as second employee; built the UK land and planning function from scratch.
Solar & Battery Developer UK
Renewco Power
Jun 2023 – Jul 2024
Independent renewable energy developer across UK, Spain and Italy. Led planning and consenting for solar and BESS projects including Milton Farm (49.9MW).
Development Project Manager
Amberside Energy
Sep 2022 – Jun 2023
Solar and battery storage developer. Led land origination and GIS-based site assessment across a multi-site UK portfolio.
Project Developer
Renewable Connections
Jun 2021 – Sep 2022
Managed a portfolio of six projects across Scotland and England, leading the full development lifecycle from site origination to planning application.
Design & Planning Project Manager
L&Q
Feb 2019 – Jun 2021
Led planning application for a 215-home residential development in Brentford; represented at planning committee and secured consent.
Town Planner
Barton Willmore (now Stantec)
Oct 2017 – Jan 2019
Graduate Planner
bptw partnership
Aug 2016 – Sep 2017
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MA (Hons) Town & Regional Planning — First Class Honours
University of Dundee · 2016 · Includes Transatlantic Exchange Programme in Environmental Planning, University of Northern British Columbia
APM Project Fundamentals Qualification — Association for Project Management
Licentiate Member, Royal Town Planning Institute (LRTPI) · Working toward full Chartered membership (MRTPI)