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Greece and Romania are running a dual-track energy strategy: aggressive renewables and storage build-out alongside a measured re-entry into hydrocarbons, all reshaped by post-Ukraine energy security. Both jurisdictions are tightening permitting, demanding financial guarantees to stop speculative projects blocking grid capacity, and extending ESG disclosure into offshore drilling, while courts test whether environmental rules like compulsory tree-planting around solar plants meet the proportionality principle. This conversation maps how two EU member states balance foreign investment, grid congestion, marine protection and decommissioning costs as resource extraction and the energy transition collide.
Chapters:
0:00 Introductions: energy and infrastructure practice in Greece and Romania
2:28 One-stop-shop energy departments and market connections
5:52 Cross-border interest: Greek and Romanian markets, PV and storage
8:16 Battery projects and grid connection opportunities
9:23 Romania: cutting bureaucracy, grid auctions, guarantees of origin
12:17 Greece: the pivot back to hydrocarbons and offshore gas
16:52 Black Sea gas and Romania’s natural gas history
19:14 ESG disclosure extended to offshore drilling in Greece
23:32 Financial guarantees and speculative projects in Romania
25:50 Permitting bureaucracy and multi-layered authorities
27:36 Local opposition, land acquisition and grid congestion
31:36 Foreign investment, land-use limits and decommissioning duties
33:26 Mandatory tree-planting around solar plants and proportionality
38:36 Oil-spill risk, tourism and the strategic case for strict rules
40:23 Recycling fees and who pays for decommissioning
43:16 Closing reflections
Panel:
Evangelos N. Courakis, Koutalidis, Greece
Nicoleta Almaj-Murariu, Almaj, Romania
Hosted by Jenny, Global Law Experts.
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