Magenta: Société d'avocats

Global warming, security of supply, depletion of fossil energy sources: the management of energetic resources is a major strategic, economic and environmental concern for States and their citizens.

To face these challenges, public authorities have to come up with new policies such as creating a quota mechanism for carbon emission or encouraging the development of renewable energies (wind and water energy, biomass, photovoltaic …).

Furthermore, despite the liberalisation of the gas and electricity markets after 1 July 2007, many questions remain unanswered because of the increasing number of rules (national or supranational) and the fact that new actors have come into play (regulation authority, energy exchange, alternative suppliers) :

Coexistence between market prices and regulated tariffs (controlled prices, TarTam);
Ownership of networks and conditions of access to them
Financing and development of new production facilities and network infrastructures
Regulating and monitoring the operation of the markets
Renewal of certain licences, etc.

Having acted for many years for major operators (suppliers, producers, traders and large consumers in particular), Magenta's lawyers have developed a first-class expertise in energy law to help their clients face these issues:

Drafting and negotiation of gas purchase or electricity supply agreements, as well as partnership agreements (swaps, coproduction, etc.)
Legal assistance in relation to the conclusion of access to network agreements
Regulatory due diligence relating to the acquisition of wind farms or solar parks
Advice pursuant to partnership operations (buy-outs, joint subsidiaries, buying groups …)
Pre-action and litigation assistance before CRE (administrative body in charge of regulating the French electricity and gas markets) and before the civil and administrative courts (access to network issues, contractual disputes, challenge of regulatory dispositions, etc.)

In the past few months, Magenta’s lawyers have had the opportunity to act on the following deals :

Legal due diligence relating to the acquisition by a foreign operator of a French wind farm
Assistance of a large consumer in negotiations relating to the setting-up of an electricity joint-purchase structure based on long-term contracts. Taking part in the negotiation of purchase agreements with electricity suppliers, and the drafting of reseller contracts between the buying syndicate and its members. Analysis of the compliance of such a scheme with competition law
Review of draft contracts to be entered into by an electricity producer with the manager of a transport network for the access to network and the operation of a wave farm

Energy

In the past few months, Magenta’s lawyers have had the opportunity to act on the following deals :