Potential Practical Problems With Transferring Environmental Permits In Case Of Acquisitions And Restructurings

When acquiring or restructuring a running business, one issue that must be considered is the transferability of environmental permits. Addressing this issue in advance will help to avoid ending up with a business that cannot be operated upon completion of the purchase or restructuring.

Although transferability of environmental permits is usually considered an issue in asset deals, it can also be a problem in share deals. This might be the case if the target owns a plant and the plant is operated by a third party that belongs to the target group and that holds the environmental permit. If the third party stops operating the plant after completion of the acquisition, transfer of the permit should be considered.