Energy, Mining and Environmental Law

The matters we handle within the framework of the Electricity Market Law No. 6446, the Mining Law No. 3213, the Environmental Law No. 2872 and the relevant legislation:

• Licence applications in the electricity, natural gas, petroleum and LPG markets
• Proceedings before the energy market regulator and actions for annulment of its decisions
• Solar, wind, hydroelectric, geothermal and biomass projects
• Renewable energy incentives and support mechanisms
• Electricity sale, connection and system use agreements
• Obligations concerning generation, transmission, distribution and supply activities
• Nuclear energy legislation and permits for power plant projects
• Energy efficiency obligations and carbon markets
• Financing of energy projects and investment agreements
• Expropriation and easement procedures concerning power transmission lines
• Mining exploration and operating licences, and licence transfer and revocation
• Royalty agreements and state right obligations
• Mining accidents and the legal liability of mining operators
• Geothermal resources and the operation of natural mineral waters
• Forest, pasture and treasury land permits
• Environmental impact assessment procedures and actions for annulment of such decisions
• Environmental permits and licences and waste management obligations
• Actions for annulment of administrative fines imposed for environmental pollution
• Criminal liability for pollution of the environment
• Water law and disputes arising from air, soil and noise pollution
• Protection of biological diversity and nature conservation areas
• Climate legislation, emissions trading and carbon border regulations

In our work in this field, the Electricity Market Law No. 6446, the Mining Law No. 3213, the Environmental Law No. 2872 and the relevant market, permit and environmental regulations are taken into account. We act for energy producers and suppliers, investors, mining licence holders, contractors, landowners, industrial enterprises and natural and legal persons affected by energy, mining or environmental decisions.

In energy markets, we provide support in licence and pre-licence applications, licence amendments and extensions, share transfers, mergers, demergers and project transfers requiring approval, changes to facility location or technical specifications, correspondence and defences before the Energy Market Regulatory Authority, and remedies against Board decisions. We also prepare and review project development, share and project transfer, joint venture, EPC, equipment supply, operation and maintenance, land lease and easement, and energy sale and supply agreements.

In mining, our work covers licence applications and transfers, operating permits, the monitoring of time limits and obligations, state right disputes, licence guarantees, licence revocation and suspension decisions, correspondence with the General Directorate of Mining and Petroleum Affairs, administrative fines and administrative court proceedings. Royalty, joint operation, contracting, ore processing, transport and product sale agreements are prepared or reviewed, and disputes arising from their performance and termination are pursued.

On the environmental side, we advise on environmental impact assessment procedures, environmental permits and licences, waste management obligations and the allocation of responsibility in waste and environmental service agreements. Climate-related obligations, including the monitoring, reporting and verification of emissions and the allocation of carbon costs in long-term energy and supply contracts, are also assessed.

Land acquisition, lease, easement, right of passage, expropriation and urgent expropriation procedures for energy facilities and transmission lines fall within our field of practice, as do administrative actions brought against environmental impact assessment decisions, licence and permit decisions, expropriation and other environmental acts. Legal work is carried out on the same timetable as the engineering, environmental, financial and project management studies.

Among the matters most frequently encountered is the assumption that obtaining the principal licence removes all legal obstacles to the investment. Land use rights, connection opinions, zoning and construction acts, environmental decisions, forest or pasture permits, non-agricultural use permits, water use rights and operating permits may each be required from different authorities at different times, and none of them substitutes for another.

Delays in renewable energy projects frequently give rise to disputes over which party bears responsibility. Incomplete connection works, disruptions in equipment delivery, lack of access to the site, failed acceptance tests or the late grant of an administrative permit may lead to different contractual consequences. Connection and system use disputes, energy sale and supply disputes, and allegations of illegal or irregular consumption, where the meter status, consumption history and calculation method must be examined, are also common.

In mining, disputes arise between the licence holder, the operator, the contractor and the landowner, particularly as regards royalty payments, production calculations, quality differences in ore, licence obligations and end-of-term settlements. The fact that production is carried out by another operator or contractor does not in itself relieve the licence holder of its public law obligations.

Environmental disputes frequently concern administrative fines, suspension of activities, clean-up obligations, private law compensation claims and criminal investigations arising from the same pollution incident. Whether an earlier environmental impact assessment decision remains sufficient after changes to capacity, site or technology, and whether the payment of a fine brings a suspension decision to an end, are also recurring questions.

The process begins with the examination of existing licences, permits and decisions, together with the company and contractual structure of the project and the land rights and title deed records. Missing permits and those whose validity is approaching expiry are identified, and the consistency between technical reports and legal declarations is assessed.

For investment-stage projects, a permit matrix is prepared, setting out which act is to be obtained from which authority, the order of priority between them, the application and completion periods, the technical and legal documents to be submitted, and the permits that may be affected by any change to the project. Critical acts and application periods are shown on a single timetable.

Administrative and contractual risks are classified separately. Where an administrative sanction has been imposed, the inspection report, service of notice, request for defence, technical reports, measurement and sampling records and the underlying legislation are reviewed together. Before an action is brought, the date of service, any special administrative application remedy, the period for bringing an action, the competent court and the need for a stay of execution are determined.

In the event of a pollution incident or other dispute, the preservation of evidence is addressed at an early stage, including site and facility records, photographs, the documentation of sampling, notifications to the competent authorities and the recording of clean-up works. Where several proceedings arise from the same incident, they are coordinated in light of their separate time limits and rules of proof.

Throughout the process, the legal consequences of engineering, environmental, financial and project management work are assessed together rather than on a separate track. The client is regularly informed about the stages of the process, the possible risks and the legal remedies that may be pursued.