Noerr advises Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy on contract negotiations regarding compensation for power company LEAG

A team from Noerr led by Holger Schmitz, Tibor Fedke and Carsten Bringmann has advised the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy on negotiations to amend a public-law contract with power plant operator Lausitz Energie Kraftwerke AG (LEAG). The contract, which was signed today, together with the German Coal-fired Power Generation Termination Act (Kohleverstromungsbeendigungsgesetz) are conditions for the European Commission’s recent approval of the compensation scheme for LEAG’s exit from the lignite (brown coal) business.

Now that approval has been obtained from the Commission, the road is clear for payment of up to €1.75 billion in State aid. The Bundestag, Germany’s lower house of parliament, had previously adopted changes to the Coal-fired Power Generation Termination Act required for the authorisation and approved amendments to the public-law contract with LEAG.

Advisors to the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy: Noerr

Holger Schmitz (Partner, Regulatory), Tibor Fedke (Partner, Corporate, both Berlin), Carsten Bringmann (Associated Partner, Regulatory, Düsseldorf)

Corporate: Vanessa Hoffmann Linhard (Associated Partner, Hamburg), Elmar Trautmann (Associate, Berlin)

Regulatory: Theda Hustede (Senior Associate, Berlin)

Energy: Christof Federwisch (Partner, Frankfurt), Patrick Jäger (Senior Associate, Berlin)