Regulatory & Compliance 20. března 2020

Romania: COVID-19 – Energy and Competition / State aid: Review of the main measures provided by the state of emergency decree

20. března 2020
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Ștefan Botezatu
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act legal Romania

The state of emergency was instituted in Romania for a period of 30 days as of 16 March 2020 (i.e. the date when Decree No. 195/2020 establishing the state of emergency in Romania was published in the Official Gazette).

We have included below a short review of the main measures provided by the state of emergency decree from an energy and competition / state aid perspective:

  1. The Government may adopt measures to support the economic operators in the areas affected by COVID-19;
  2. Beneficiaries of European funds affected by the emergency measures provided in the state of emergency decree may decide, together with the managing authorities / intermediary bodies, to suspend the financing agreements;
  3. The Ministry of Economy, Energy and Business Environment may issue, upon request, to the economic operators whose activity is affected in the context of COVID-19, certificates attesting the emergency situation, based on supporting documents;
  4. Measures will be provided to ensure continuity in supply, respectively extraction, production, processing, transport, distribution, supply, maintenance and repair, of resources and raw and / or semi-processed materials necessary for the proper functioning of the national energy system, as well as ensuring the continuity of operation of the energy system and all public utility services;
  5. The validity of documents issued by the public authorities that were to expire during the state of emergency is maintained;
  6. During the state of emergency, prices for medicines and medical equipment, for foods of strict necessity and for public utility services (electricity and heat, gas, water supply, sanitation, fuels, etc.) can be capped, within the limit of the average price of the last 3 months before declaring the state of emergency;
  7. During the state of emergency, it is forbidden to declare, commence or carry out collective labour conflicts within the units of the national energy system, operating units from nuclear sectors, continuous fire units, health and social assistance units, telecommunications, radio and public television, rail transportation, units ensuring public transport and sanitation of towns, as well as supplying the population with gas, electricity, heat and water.
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Ștefan Botezatu
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act legal - Botezatu Estrade Partners
O autorech

Ștefan Botezatu

Managing Partner

Managing Partner and co-founder of act Botezatu Estrade Partners. He has strong expertise in energy regulatory matters covering electricity and gas trading, gas and electricity supply and distribution and production, as well as ancillary services including e-mobility and development of infrastructure for electric vehicles. Throughout his legal career of over 21 years, he has advised an impressive number of high-profile clients active in various business sectors in CEE/SEE and Asia. He is an excellent closer and forward thinker. Stefan is a 'sharp, knowledgeable, pragmatic and efficient lawyer', recognised for his work in competition cases concerning the energy sector. He has extensive experience in Energy, Dispute Resolution, Corporate M&A, Competition and Infrastructure Transactions. Expert in disputes and regulatory matters covering electricity and gas trading, supply and distribution and ancillary services. He has represented important companies in energy arbitration files against State owned entities, as well as in sector-specific disputes against the National Regulatory Authority for Energy and companies from the energy and retail sector in antitrust proceedings against the Competition Council. He is coordinating the White-Collar crimes practice and has been exposed to several cross-border fraud investigation matters initiated based on the FCPA and UK bribery act. Stefan`s expertise also covers handling high profile criminal cases and providing crime prevention legal advice, as well as acting in complex business crime litigation. He has an excellent record of successful outcomes for the firm’s clients and establishing favourable precedents in a variety of areas, with a special focus on criminal law matters in the energy sector.

Laura Estrade

Partner

Expert in energy regulatory and M&A with special focus on and impressive track record in energy sector business transfers, joint ventures, sophisticated M&A transactions, mergers and spin-offs and unbundling matters. Assistance in energy related litigation files against minority shareholders, the National Energy Regulatory Authority and management in companies active in the energy sector.

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