Alina Oprea • 21 July, 2023 at 2:00 PM
The process of obtaining all the authorizations necessary to put new energy production capacities from renewable sources into operation is difficult and takes a long time, according to a study carried out by the Competition Council. Although some steps have been taken to simplify the procedures, potential investors are discouraged. The first aspect that contributes to the difficulty of the authorization process refers to the non-unitary interpretation of the legal provisions at the level of the Territorial Administrative Units (UAT). This leads to the application of a differentiated treatment from the point of view of the conditions that companies must meet in order to obtain the building permit, depending on the locality within the radius of which the land on which the renewable energy production capacity is to be built is located," says the competition authority.
In this context, the Competition Council recommends to the Ministry of Development, Public Works and Administration (MLDPA) the adoption, within the secondary legislation, of the provisions of Annex no. 6 - Approvals required for the authorization of new constructions to the Draft Code (initial version), in order to ensure a unified interpretation at the level of UATs, from the perspective of the requirements regarding the documents necessary for each company in order to obtain the construction authorization.
"In order to be able to build renewable energy production capacities, investors must remove the land from the agricultural circuit, a procedure that involves the interaction with several public authorities/institutions subordinated to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, which leads to a complex, long-lasting procedure that contributes to the difficulty of market access. At the same time, the Land Fund Law (no. 18/1991) allows the construction of renewable energy production capacities balls in the outskirts within the limit of 50 ha for agricultural lands of the III, IV, and V quality classes, which prevents the development of large projects", the study reveals.
Thus, the competition authority recommends to the Ministry of Agriculture identify solutions that facilitate the procedure of removing the extra-urban land from the agricultural circuit, so that the applicant interacts only with the County Agricultural Directorate, by submitting a single piece of documentation, and, at the same time, to initiate the necessary steps to allow the construction of photovoltaic and wind parks on the agricultural lands, located in the extra-urban, having class III, IV and V of quality (land less fertile), regardless of the surface.
Also, the authority recommends the Ministry of Agriculture to initiate the necessary steps in order to allow the construction of wind farms on agricultural lands located outside the village, having the I and II quality class (the most fertile), ensuring the goal pursued from the perspective of agricultural production through the dual system use of these lands.
"During the course of the study, the relevant legislation underwent some changes that lead to a simplification and streamlining of the authorization process for economic operators that invest in energy production capacities from renewable sources (both the obligation to enter the land in the urban area and the obligation to amend the Zonal Urban Plan have been eliminated). Also, the process will be simplified with the entry into force of the Spatial Planning, Urban Planning, and Construction Code and the implementation of the Ordinance the Emergency decree regarding the single industrial license, promoted by the Competition Council and the Ministry of Entrepreneurship and Tourism and whose objective is to debureaucratize the business environment. Thus, economic operators who invest in renewable energy production capacities will be able to apply to obtain a single industrial license, so that all licenses, authorizations, agreements, notices, or permits necessary to carry out the activity will be obtained in a single procedure, carried out by electronic means, through the Single Contact Point for electronic the industrial license (the construction authorization will be included in the single industrial license starting from January 1, 2025)", informs the Competition Council.
The Competition Council collaborated with the representatives of the Ministry of Development and Agriculture in order to identify some solutions to make the process of authorization of construction works more efficient, during the course of the study.
In the next period, the competition authority will complete another study aimed at the possible restriction of the market access of energy producers from renewable sources in the process of obtaining the technical approval for connection (ATR) from the electricity transmission/distribution operator.