Development
Solar Project Decision Gates
Define evidence-based gates for progressing, holding, redesigning or stopping a solar development opportunity.
Why this workflow matters
Decision gates protect capital by defining what must be true before the next expenditure. They work best when criteria are measurable, accountable and linked to current evidence rather than optimistic progress narratives.
Questions to answer
- What decision is being made at this gate?
- Which minimum evidence is mandatory?
- Which risks can be accepted conditionally?
- Who has authority to approve exceptions?
Recommended workflow
- 1Define the gate purpose and possible outcomes.
- 2Set discipline-specific evidence and acceptance criteria.
- 3Prepare an exceptions and conditions register.
- 4Record the decision, rationale, owner and next review trigger.
Evidence to collect
- ✓ Development strategy and governance
- ✓ Current technical and commercial evidence
- ✓ Risk and information-gap registers
- ✓ Approval authority and conditions
Decision-ready outputs
- → Gate criteria matrix
- → Decision paper
- → Conditions and follow-up register