SMALL MIRACLES IN GREAT VOLUME

The Beginning…

Back in 2019 one of our major Clients, traditionally involved in shipping and maritime business, sought opportunities to expand in new areas of activity in Greece. In the first weeks of 2020 some days before the first COVID era of Quarantines begun, our Client was introduced to a project in the RES industry.

A few months later in June 2020 our Client decided to proceed with the development of the project, a 250 MW photovoltaic park with storage located in Domokos. The project was extremely challenging and our Law firm with a team of lawyers led by our Partner Mr. Nikolas Sagias, undertook warmly the task.

The Challenges…

The project introduced breakthrough technologies and innovative concepts for the Greek market and RES industry. The challenge of this endeavor was only coupled by the fact that the Greek legislative framework at the time was not sufficiently developed to accommodate the intricate licensing procedures required for a project of this nature. Notably, the legal concepts surrounding behind-the-meter combined technology, integrating a photovoltaic park with a storage system, were virtually unrecognized in the existing legal context.[1]

Our Law firm had also to deal with the vast land requirements of the project, navigating an immature and frequently changing legislative landscape, and guiding a client who was new to this field, all while contending with the disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Licensing Path…

Following three canceled licensing procedures due to the COVID restrictions and after vast work on the licensing preparations and securitization of land for months, the submission for licenses was enabled on December 1^st 2020. For the first time in Greece, this process was facilitated through an online platform, available for a ten-day period, as stipulated by the newly issued licensing regulation, which was published just one day before the platform went live.

Despite the recognized importance of storage systems within the RES industry, the new licensing legislation, to the everybody’s surprise, did not include any reference to the storage systems, let alone of combined technologies with storage systems, as part of the RES licensing procedure.

Facing the potential cancellation of the project, a swift and innovative solution was required. Our law firm proposed to the client the concept of treating, from a licensing point of view, the combined technology of p/v park and storage system, in behind-the-meter projects, as a simple P/V park with the technological advantage of storing power to provide it independently of the sunshine hours. We introduced the definition of a PV park with a non-autonomous internal storage system in our proposal, which was subsequently endorsed by the authorities. As a result, our client obtained the first license in Greece for a project utilizing combined renewable energy technology!

It was not until the June of 2022 that the Greek legal framework included such projects as a distinctive licensing category which afforded our client a significant competitive advantage for a year and a half!

 The Land of the Project…

The first task undertaken by our Law Firm involved the comprehensive investigation of available land within the designated area and the securitization of the Land through long-term lease agreements. These agreements were meticulously structured to comply with legal requirements while also facilitating smooth collaboration between our client and the landowners.

The required Land exceeded 3.200 stremmas[2] in an area characterized by fragmented ownership, with individual plots ranging between 15 and 18 stremmas per owner. Our Law Firm was tasked with identifying, locating, and verifying approximately 200 individual owners and their respective ownerships in the area.

Given the competitive interest in the Domokos area from multiple investors and developers, our Law Firm recommended that the client offer final notarial lease agreements to the owners, contradicting the usual policy of preliminary contracts with down-payments that had complex terms, usually leaving the local population feeling that investors were taking advantage of their limited access to the overall data or to legal counseling.

As our Client endorsed the idea, a vast endeavor led by our Law Firm was initiated, at the end of June 2020, which led to the securitization of 3.200 stremmas in the area through notarial lease agreements within six months by January 2021, three months before the issuance of the Producer’s license.

This achievement was facilitated by proactively disclosing the draft lease agreements to the local community well in advance of the signing process, offering standardized financial terms to all landowners, and, most importantly, through numerous visits by our law firm’s representatives to establish personal connections with each landowner. These visits allowed us to address any inquiries or requests, fostering trust and transparency between the local community and our client.

The personal engagement with the local community, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, combined with the beneficial terms that were suggested by our Law Firm, was welcomed by the community. This approach not only secured the necessary land but also established a strong, ongoing relationship with the Domokos population, which has been a significant advantage at every stage of the project.

Our Law Firm was present in the signing in every single one of the notarial agreements and in cooperation with more than six different Notaries simultaneously to cope with the amount of work.

As a result, within just six months, our client, a relatively unknown investor in the RES sector, emerged as a major stakeholder in one of the most  sought-after areas for such projects, securing all necessary land, ahead of competition.

The Expansion of Our Work…

In April 2021, our client decided to join forces and align efforts, with an investor that had been developing a twin P/V park, in the same area directly adjacent to our client’s southern borders.

Over the following months, the two investors gradually developed a shared strategy, leading to the establishment of a Consortium in July 2021. This consortium assumed responsibility for a significant number of critical aspects related to both projects. Our Law Firm was entrusted with the legal support of the Consortium representing the joint interests of the two investors in several key areas, including the connection to the Grid, the establishment and construction of a shared private high voltage sub-station, the pursuit of the classification of the projects as a strategic investment by the Greek state and above all the award of an individual state aid support for the project.

In parallel, following our successful securitization of the Land for our client in the area, our Law Firm was also entrusted with the same task by the second investor, whose efforts on the matters were not progressing well by that time, having secured less than 400 stremmas out of more than 3.000 required. Utilizing the same methodology and work ethic, we successfully secured an additional 2,100 stremmas within just five months. By the end of 2021, the second investor had confidently secured the necessary land.

The Prioritization Process…

Even though the developing aspects of the projects were progressing, the endeavor, would lack visibility, if it was not to secure a connection to the Grid. Following the publication of the new licensing procedure Law in June 2022, by which time the Greek state adopted the definition of behind-the -meter combined technology of p/v park and storage system, a ministerial decision was issued in August 2022, providing benefits of acceleration in the Grid connection for some technologies. The benefits of acquiring the Producer’s license already from April 2021, were revealed in the most significant way. By the time of the issuance of the ministerial decision, only two projects had established such a maturity stage in the category of behind-the meter combined technology of p/v park and storage system, enabling in fact for our Clients their connection to the Grid. Our Law Firm fully supported both investors in this effort and contacted the Authorities to ensure that every requirement of the legislation would be met.++

The state aid process…

Following the establishment of the Consortium between the two investors a most ambitious aspect of the project initiated: the effort of the investors to convince the Greek state to suggest the projects for individual state aid support. The Greek state satisfied the request by addressing a petition to the competent Authorities of the European Committee.

Our Law Firm played a pivotal role by preparing the initial draft of the scheme ensuring it contained all necessary information to comply with European legislation, upon which the official request of the Greek State was based.

Consequently, our Law Firm supported the Consortium in their capacity as promoters of the projects, answering any legal question to the Ministry and the Greek State. With our legal support, the proposed scheme has been approved by the European Committee and the projects enjoy the financial support of the Greek state through individual[3] state aid. This achievement marks only the second time in the past decade that a Greek renewable energy project has received such support.

The Installation license…

The projects reached the stage of maturity required to submit applications for installation licenses. Our Law Firm undertook the project to gather all the supporting documents for the applications and to draft the report for the legal justification proving the securitization of the Land.

The task included the dual registration of over 200 notarial lease agreements in the Lamia cadastral and registry office within a period of less than two months. Each of the 380 plots of the project had to be proven as lawfully secured by the investors, which required the process of more than one thousand documents. This milestone marks the end of the preparatory work of the licensing procedure, thereby providing the two investors and Clients with an optimal environment to proceed with the materialization of the project.

The Conclusion

Our Law firm is more than proud to have supported the two investors over the past four years in their effort to establish a pioneering renewable energy project in Greece, particularly during the initial stage of the licensing preparatory work. Beyond the great volume of the work we undertook, much of the scientific legal work was original. There was no precedent in the development of a similar project in Greece and also an ever-evolving legal framework during this period, to which we had to adapt in real time, walking many paths for the first time before anyone else. Having this unique experience, we are now ready more than ever to face the new challenges of the project.

It is no exaggerated to assert that our contributions have been, so far, the key factor in the accomplishment of the most successful RES project in Greece, having involved in all legal work of the first stage of the preparatory work and in particular to:

1. 1. Secure 7.500 stremmas for the land of the Project in more than 380 land lease and purchase agreements.
   2. Prioritize the Grid Connection application of the Investors
   3. Nomination of strategic investment for the project
   4. Granting of state aid financial support scheme
   5. Establishment of local community trust
   6. Support to the SPV’s and Consortium company function and structure
   7. Drafting of agreements with third parties – engineers, consultants etc.

SUMMARY OF MILESTONES

Footnotes

[1] Behind-the-meter has the meaning of the projects whose batteries only charge by the source of production in the same project, meaning in the RES project that it is 100% green energy stored.

[2] Stremma = 1.000 sqm

[3] Differentiating to the state-aid cases as a result of tender procedures.