Permitting and Licensing Regimes for Renewable Energy Projects

Permitting, licensing, and other
authorization procedures are an integral part of investing
in renewable energy. For private companies, the quality of
these procedures can drastically affect transaction costs
and project risk. Optimal regimes are tailored to country
specifics and depend on the way in which private investors
access the market in the first place—from auctions to
site-specific tenders to standardized contracts on a
first-come, first-served basis. Although there is no single
best practice when it comes to authorizing renewable energy
projects, common principles exist that signal an
investor-friendly and socially and environmentally
responsible regime.