Dentons has advised the national grid operator Polskie Sieci Elektroenergetyczne (PSE) in proceedings conducted to grant the first certificate of independence ever issued in Poland.
The first certificate in Poland to confirm the fulfillment of the criteria of independence provided for in Art. 9d Sec. 1a of the Energy Law was issued to PSE on June 4, 2014 by the President of the Energy Regulatory Office. According to Dentons, this was the culmination of several months of work in which PSE was supported by Dentons lawyers Arkadiusz Krasnodebski, Wojciech Boguslawski, Michal Motylewski, and Zbigniew Stasiak.
The certificate confirms PSE’s independence in terms of its legal form, organization, and decision making from other business activities unrelated to transmission. The certificate is a pre-condition for applying for the status of a transmission system operator -- important for PSE as its status as a transmission system operator expires on July 1, 2014. The provisions imposing the obligation to apply for and obtain a certificate of independence were introduced to Polish law by Directive 2009/72/EC of July 13, 2009, concerning common rules for the internal market in electricity and repealing Directive 2003/54/EC. The purpose of these provisions is, among other things, to ensure the security of supply of electricity, where the independence of operators is a pivotal issue.
Administrative proceedings to certify independence are conducted by the Energy Regulatory Office. They are initiated at the request of the owner of a transmission grid or an electricity undertaking licensed to conduct business activities involving the transmission of electricity, which fulfills the duties of an operator pursuant to an agreement signed with the transmission network owner. In the course of the proceedings the Office checks whether the applicant for the certificate of independence fulfills the statutory criteria for independence. The draft decision is subject to the European Commission’s opinion -- which, in this case, was issued in April.
According to Arkadiusz Krasnodebski, Dentons Managing Partner, "the issuance of the certificate of independence by PSE is an unquestionable success and opens the way for PSE to reapply for the status of transmission system operator."
