Legal due diligence checklist for Romanian renewable energy projects, covering SPV, land, permitting, ATR, grid connection, ANRE, contracts, financing and bankability.
Romanian renewable energy due diligence in 2026 should test whether a project is legally buildable, grid-real, financeable, operable and monetisable, not merely whether it has a promising document list.
Executive answer
Romanian renewable energy due diligence in 2026 should test whether a project is legally buildable, grid-real, financeable, operable and monetisable, not merely whether it has a promising document list.
Legal Due Diligence for Renewable Energy Projects in Romania Practical 2026 Romanian analysis
Investor reading map
| First question | Is the project a real legal energy asset or only a development story? |
| Second question | Which risks affect buildability, financing or transferability? |
| Third question | What must be reflected in price, conditions precedent, warranties or indemnities? |
1. Why legal DD in Romania has changed
Until recently, many renewable energy deals in Romania were sold on a simple story: “we have land, CU, ATR, maybe building permit; therefore the project is RTB.” In 2026, that is no longer enough.
Romania has a very large renewable pipeline on paper. According to data reported from ANRE as of 1 March 2026, there were 1,431 renewable projects with valid ATRs / grid connection approvals, totalling 81,322 MW, but only a much smaller part was in an advanced stage: 871 projects with signed grid connection agreements, 595 projects with grid connection agreements and building permits, and 193 projects with building permits and ANRE establishment authorisations. For 2026 specifically, ANRE indicated 107 advanced projects totalling 3,843 MW expected to reach COD.
That is the background. Romania does not have a lack of “projects”. It has a shortage of bankable, buildable, grid-real projects. This is why a Romanian renewable DD in 2026 must answer one central question:
Is this project legally capable of being built, connected, energised, operated and monetised — within the claimed timeline and budget?
The key legal framework includes the Electricity and Gas Law no. 123/2012, ANRE Order 59/2013 on grid connection, ANRE Order 53/2024 and Order 79/2025 on capacity allocation, ANRE Order 105/2022 on grid connection contracts, ANRE Order 12/2015 on licences and establishment authorisations, Law 50/1991 on construction authorisation, environmental legislation, OUG 163/2022 as amended by OUG 59/2025, and EU law, especially Regulation 2019/943 and RED II / RED III.
2. The real object of DD: not the project, but the “legal energy asset”
In Romania, a renewable energy project is not one asset. It is a legal package made of several layers:
| Layer | What DD must verify | Why it matters |
| Corporate layer | SPV ownership, share capital, debts, pledges, litigation, related-party contracts | Determines whether shares can be acquired cleanly |
| Land layer | Ownership / superficies / lease / easements / agricultural status / cadastre | Without secured land, the project is not buildable |
| Permitting layer | CU, environmental acts, avize, building permit, validity, amendments | Determines RTB status |
| Grid layer | ATR, solution study, connection contract, reinforcement works, guarantees, N/N-1, firm/non-firm capacity | Usually the most valuable and riskiest layer |
| Licensing layer | ANRE establishment authorisation, licence, certification, CfR | Determines ability to build and operate |
| Technical-regulatory layer | RfG compliance, grid code, telemetry, SCADA, protection, storage integration | Determines energisation and grid acceptance |
| Commercial layer | PPA, CfD, balancing, PRE/BRP, aggregation, GO, route-to-market | Determines revenue bankability |
| Financing layer | State aid, PNRR, Modernisation Fund, securities, change of control consents | Determines whether acquisition triggers repayment or consent |
| Litigation/public law layer | Challenges to permits, local opposition, administrative claims, environmental disputes | Determines timing and cancellation risk |
A seller may say “the project is RTB”. In Romania, the DD answer should be more granular:
Permitting RTB — building permit exists. Grid RTB — ATR and grid connection agreement are valid, enforceable and financeable. Land RTB — all land and cable route rights are secured and opposable. ANRE RTB — establishment authorisation exists or is realistically obtainable. Commercial RTB — the project can reach COD and sell energy without a post-COD regulatory gap.
4. Core legal DD modules
A. Corporate and transaction DD
The first layer is classical M&A DD, but with energy-specific consequences.
You verify:
Real Romanian case: Many project SPVs are clean on paper but carry developer-side obligations in side agreements: success fees, land aggregation fees, local consultant success fees, grid-consultant arrangements, or obligations to reimburse development costs. A buyer should not only ask for the SPA and corporate documents; it should ask for all contracts entered into since incorporation, including “minor” service agreements.
DD conclusion: The issue is rarely whether the SPV exists. The issue is whether the SPV is clean enough to be acquired without inheriting hidden development economics.
B. Land DD
For PV and BESS, land DD is often the second most important workstream after grid.
You verify:
5. Project-stage DD: what matters at each stage
6. Red flag matrix
| Red flag | Severity | Why |
| ATR expired or close to expiry | Critical | Project may lose grid value |
| ATR not matching actual project capacity/layout | Critical | Re-approval may be required |
| GCA not signed | High | Grid right not fully contractualised |
| Reinforcements required with uncertain date | High | COD and financing affected |
| Land secured only for PV plot, not cable route | Critical | Project may be unbuildable |
| Agricultural extravilan over 50 ha without clear legal route | Critical | Building permit risk |
| Building permit excludes BESS / station / line | High | Not fully RTB |
| Environmental act does not cover current design | High | Revision / EIA risk |
| ANRE establishment authorisation missing | High | 2026 guarantee and timing risk |
| No clear route-to-market | Medium/High | Revenue not bankable |
| PPA with weak offtaker | Medium/High | Financing risk |
| State aid without change-of-control analysis | Critical | Clawback risk |
| FDI clearance not assessed | High | Closing illegality / fines risk |
| Seller refuses to disclose solution study | Critical | Grid economics unknown |
| “Zero reinforcement” not in ATR/GCA | High | Marketing risk |
| BESS shown in teaser only | High | Valuation overstatement |
7. What a proper Romanian renewable DD report should conclude
A good DD should not simply say “documents reviewed, no major issues.” It should classify the project as one of these:
| Classification | Meaning |
| Bankable RTB | Land, permits, grid, ANRE path and route-to-market are aligned |
| Legal RTB but not bankable | Building permit exists, but grid/revenue/financing risk remains |
| Grid-secured but not permit-ready | ATR/GCA good, but permits not mature |
| Permit-ready but grid-weak | Building permit exists, but ATR/GCA weak or constrained |
| Development asset | Material missing permits or grid rights |
| Speculative asset | Main value depends on future allocation / new ATR / uncertain capacity |
This classification is more useful than the generic “RTB / non-RTB” label.
8. SPA protections buyers should request
For Romanian renewable acquisitions, the SPA should include:
Conditions precedent
10. Practical conclusion
In Romania, legal due diligence for renewable energy projects in 2026 is no longer a document-counting exercise. It is a bankability audit.
The strongest projects are not simply those with an ATR or even a building permit. The strongest projects are those where the following five layers are aligned:
The biggest Romanian DD mistake is to overvalue “paper MW”. The real value is in MW that can survive legal scrutiny, connect to the grid, reach COD and produce bankable revenue.
Related reading and services
This article is part of the Romanian energy law content cluster. For the commercial route into a mandate, start with Energy Law in Romania and the Renewable Energy Legal Services page.
How Grigorescu Partners can help
Grigorescu Partners assists investors, developers, lenders and project owners with Romanian renewable energy projects, including legal due diligence, grid connection review, ANRE licensing, PPAs, BESS structuring, EPC and O&M contracts, project acquisitions and transaction execution.
If you are assessing a Romanian renewable energy project, the useful question is not only whether the project has documents. The useful question is whether those documents work together as a buildable, financeable and monetisable energy asset.