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this regulation. Depending on the connection point and physical state of
the facility, the Energy Market Regulatory Board (“Board”) may consider
units subject to more than one project under a single preliminary license
or license. In this scope, it will be obligatory to obtain a compatible
license for production, transmission, distribution, wholesale, retailing,
importation, exportation and operating activities of electric energy at the
electricity market.
In addition, pursuant to Article 8 of the Regulation, generation,
organized industrial zone generation, transmission, market-operating,
distribution license, organized industrial zone distribution and supply
licenses can be obtained from the Energy Market Regulatory Authority
(“EMRA” or “the Authority”) according to the activity type.
The Preliminary License and Its Application
The concept of a preliminary license, which is one of the most
important innovations brought by the Electricity Market Law and the
Regulation, brings essential changes and innovations to the electricity
market in practice. The concept of a preliminary license was first regulated
in Article 6 of the Electricity Market Law, which entered into force on
30 March 2013. However, secondary legislation was needed in order to
make this concept actionable. The question of how preliminary licenses
will be applied is set forth by the Regulation, which entered into force on
2 November 2013.
Pursuant to Article 5 Paragraph 2, a legal person engaging in
electricity generation activities has to obtain separate preliminary licenses
for each facility if it will carry out generation activities in more than one
facility. However, renewable energy based generation facilities consisting
of several structures and auxiliary buildings can be placed under a single
preliminary license or generation license on the condition that they all
connect to the system at the same point.
In Article 4/ (ff) of the Regulation, a preliminary license is defined
as follows: “A time specific permit issued to legal entities intending
to conduct generation activities, for the purpose of obtaining required
approvals, permissions, warrants, etc., in order to commence investments
in generation facilities.”