The Legal 500 > Europe, Middle East & Africa > Netherlands > Energy: regulatory

De Brauw Blackstone Westbroek's practice is headed by Nicolien  van den Biggelaar whose expertise spans public and European environmental law and litigation. Anja Mutsaers and counsel Arjan Kleinhout, whose public law practice focuses on market regulations, are other core team members. The department is advising GasTerra in an arbitration which follows a previous €2bn gas price review arbitration with Eni.

Loyens & Loeff offers impressive multi-disciplinary expertise to clients in the oil and gas, utilities, and renewables sectors, as well as advising some of the largest distribution network operators in the Netherlands. Max Oosterhuis and counsel Roland de Vlam provide a wealth of experience in domestic and EU regulatory regimes; the team successfully represented Stedin in two Supreme Court proceedings against Chemours on the ownership of transformers. It is also advising a client in civil and regulatory proceedings regarding the re-routing of a key drinking water pipeline. Jan-Willem van Rooij is also a notable practitioner on both transactional and regulatory matters.

Pels Rijcken & Droogleever Fortuijn NV's clients range from central and local government clients to corporates including ExxonMobil,  Lundin Petroleum, and Royal Dutch Shell. It has a leading regulatory litigation offering in addition to areas such as transactions and environmental law. Iman Brinkman, senior associate Ewoud de Vries, and competition expert Erik Pijnacker Hordijk are the key members of a group that represented the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy in a claim against utilities company Eneco in relation to the allegedly erroneous allocation of capacity on cross border interconnectors. It is also assisting energy infrastructure company Rendant in a dispute with DSO Stedin over the forced transfer by Rendant to Stedin of its electricity and gas infrastructure (which stems from legislation).

Stek's energy practice is considered 'top-notch' throughout – 'this is a firm where you can happily leave a matter in the hands of the associates'. Jan Erik Janssen is 'the best energy regulatory lawyer in the Netherlands' and the team 'knows what is happening in the energy sector and has a good mix of energy, competition, and state-aid expertise'. Counsel Stephanie Dielemans 'has good industry knowledge and is a good choice for procurement law as well'. Martha Brinkman, formerly a counsel with the firm, left for a position with the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy.

Kirsten Berger, who heads the Houthoff team, offers a blend of transactional and regulatory expertise including in the renewables and waste to energy sectors. The team's latest work includes advising clients on the regulatory regimes and subsidy issues around solar and wind farm projects and a price review arbitration. The practice advised Huntsman on a complaint made by Ducor to the Dutch energy regulator regarding the method used by Huntsman for the calculation of the tariffs it charged. Marielle Koppenol-Laforce and senior associate Marc van Beuge are other key contacts.

Norton Rose Fulbright combines regulatory expertise with its corporate and finance capabilities. Wouter Hertzberger heads the team and of counsel Matthijs van Leeuwen is a key advisor to an impressive range of clients in the various energy sectors. In recent work, the team advised on the regulatory and permitting issues as part of its work on an acquisition of a solar park. It has also advised on the various regulatory hurdles connected with the development of a chemicals plant.

Stibbe had of energy Martin In de Braekt is advising Eurus Energy in respect of the acquisition of onshore wind parks in the Netherlands including all regulatory issues. His team is also assisting a client on a range of contractual relationships which includes advice on various regulatory matters relating to the unbundling of energy companies. The department is especially adept in connection with wind farm projects. Clients include Chevron, E.ON, and Northland Power.

Jacques Sluysmans, a founding member of specialist firm Van der Feltz Advocaten, assists clients on public and private law where energy regulations are concerned, especially in exploration matters; he advised NAM on the issues related to the exploitation of its onshore gas fields. The team has been notably boosted with the October 2018 arrival of 'skilled and effective' Michelle de Rijke from Bird & Bird LLP; 'she is one of very few in the inner circle of regulatory energy lawyers who meet on high-profile energy matters'. Willem Bosma is a noted practitioner, particularly on renewables. The team counts Shell, Neptune Energy and  Gasunie as clients.

AKD is recommended for its 'deep regulatory knowledge that the team manages to capture in concise and pragmatic legal advice' and for being 'well aware of recent developments of the sector'. The team is headed by Marjolein Dieperink who joined from Houthoff in May 2018. The group draws on experts in energy, transport, environment, and construction; Jan Kromhout, Jos van der Velden, and Gerrit van der Veen are some of the key advisors. The group advised Uniper Benelux on all aspects of its transition from producing electricity in two older power plants to a new plant; it represented the company in several court cases and assisted in drafting various contracts on burning biomass instead of coal.

John Paans, Juliana Dantas, and Koen Bos are the key lawyers in Baker McKenzie's energy and natural resources group which offers expertise in a broad range of transactions and related regulatory compliance. Active across renewable energies, the team advised RoundShield Partners on the financing of several biomass projects including the regulatory issues.

At Biesheuvel Jansen advocaten, Inge Timmerman 'is hands-on and committed to getting the deal done' while Rutger Jansen 'has great knowledge of the business and his advice is always practical'. The team advises on the regulatory aspects of transactions and projects predominantly in onshore and offshore renewables. In recent work, the practice advised ENGIE on regulatory matters in connection with its acquisition of Sungevity International from Solar Spectrum.

Corporate and projects partner Sophie Dingenen heads up the team at Bird & Bird LLP providing expertise especially in the renewables space; she is counsel to URENCO ChemPlants where she advises on all project-related matters. Dingenen is assisted by associate Tialda Beetstra who has a focus on regulatory matters. The practice has counted Air Products, ENGIE Group, and Rendant among its clients. Michelle de Rijke joined Van der Feltz Advocaten in October 2018.

Cecilia van der Weijden is a corporate finance expert who heads the CMS   energy practice. She advises on a broad range of projects especially in the renewables sectors together with regulatory regimes. Partner Martika Jonk  has a focus on the upstream oil and gas industry advising on corporate matters and related regulatory issues. Clients include British Wind Energy, BioMCN, and ENERCON.

The Eversheds Sutherland (Netherlands) B.V. team, headed by Miriam van Ee, and Michel Chatelin, specialises in structuring energy projects which includes advising on the regulatory side of M&A and finance transactions especially in the wind, solar, and biomass areas. It acted for Eneco before the Enterprise Agency of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate regarding the rejection of a subsidy request for a 14MW solar park in the municipality of Dongen.