ReneSola buys 6 MW solar park in Romania

Chinese ReneSola, the global manufacturer of solar panels, entered the Romanian market after the member company ReneSola New Energy fully acquired the share capital of the Romanian company Lucas Est.

ReneSola bought a 6MW solar park in Romania and will invest around EUR 15 million to finalize it. The law firm Wolf Theiss advised the Chinese firm on the acquisition of Lucas Est, which served as special purpose vehicle for the project.

Wolf Theiss has assisted ReneSola in the due diligence process and in preparing the share purchase agreement and other transaction documents.

“The green certificate support scheme played an important role in the decision to invest in Romania. However, this wasn’t the only one. The climate conditions, among the best in Europe on the level of solar radiation, were another decisive factor,” said the law firm.

Romania grants six green certificates for every MW that is produced and delivered to final consumers. One green certificate is currently traded at the maximum level of EUR 55.

The Romanian solar market is still in the early stages, as the total installed capacity that receives green certificates was slightly above 2 MW by August.

The renewable team of Wolf Theiss, lead by the partner Ciprian Glodeanu, is working on deals involving photo-voltaic and wind projects with installed capacities of 150MW and 600MW.

ReneSola, which is listed on the New York Stock Exchange, is planning to expand in Romania and projects are being analyzed by the law firm.

Investors planning to develop solar projects and receive six green certificates should act fast because the number of certificates may be slashed starting 2014. This source is overcompensated, meaning that the investment is recovered faster, due to falling prices of solar panels.