Romania: Schoenherr advises Renovatio in benchmark green projects partnership with OMV Petrom

One arm of the deal refers to the sale of a 50 % stake in Electrocentrale Borzesti, which holds approx. 1 GW capacity of renewable projects (950 MW wind and 50 MW photovoltaic). These projects will be further developed, built and operated by RNV Infrastructure in partnership with OMV Petrom. The second arm of the transaction refers to the divestment of Renovatio Asset Management, the owner of Romania's largest network of electric vehicle ("EV") charging stations, with more than 400 EV charging points and plans to increase to approx. 650 by 2026.

Schoenherr worked together with Mihaela Aliman Law Office as co-counsels in advising Renovatio on the two sides of this complex legal matter, up to the signing of the transaction. Closing is expected to occur in the first half of 2024, after fulfilment of certain conditions.

"This mega-deal, which brings together two leading energy companies in Romania, is set to contribute to the development of the country's electric mobility infrastructure and renewable energy capacities," said local partner Monica Cojocaru, who led the Schoenherr team advising Renovatio. "We are delighted to have helped shape this complex legal project."

Through this newly formed partnership, OMV Petrom together with Renovatio plan to invest approx. EUR 1.3bln in renewables by 2027, including bank financing.

Renovatio is an infrastructure asset owner, manager and developer in the renewable energy sector. Operating for over 20 years across the entire value chain and lifecycle of renewable projects, the company has accumulated extensive expertise in the development, engineering, procurement and operational management of wind and PV assets and has a strong track record of successful project development (+3,000 MW of wind projects and +800 MW of photovoltaic projects) in Romania and other emerging markets. Renovatio pioneered the development and is the owner of Romania's largest network of EV charging stations.

OMV Petrom is the largest integrated energy company in Southeast Europe, with an annual group-wide production of crude oil and gas of approx. 43m BOE in 2022. The Group has a refining capacity of 4.5m tonnes per year and operates an 860 MW high-efficiency power plant. In the retail petroleum products distribution market, the group is present in Romania and neighbouring countries through some 780 petrol stations under two brands – OMV and Petrom.

The Schoenherr team advising Renovatio in this transaction was led by Monica Cojocaru (local partner), while competition and FDI screening matters were coordinated by Georgiana Bădescu (partner).