Key Highlights:
- Emphasizing the need to reduce regulatory barriers and provide financial incentives for renewable energy adoption.
- Highlighting the critical role of reputable developers and tailored solutions in driving the renewable energy transition.
- Underscoring the significance of advocacy from external law firms and influence from in-house counsels in speeding up the Energy Transition and climate change mitigation.
Please introduce yourself and your current role.
Tania Jarjur, General Counsel at Yellow Door Energy. As the head of the legal department, I am responsible for, and oversee, multiple legal verticals. This includes projects (contracts related to customers, EPC, procurement), M&A, entering new markets, project finance, litigation and dispute management as well as reporting to the Board and Shareholders. I also ensure the company complies with all the relevant regulations, such as anti-bribery and anti-money laundering, whistle blowing, and deep-dive ‘know your customer’ due diligence work to ensure that the counterparties we work with don’t violate our policies.
1. Yellow Door Energy operates in vastly different markets. Could you please give a brief overview of the countries’ different regulations regarding renewable energy adoption.
While each country has their own take on adopting renewable energy in the private sector, there is some overlap of principles of net metering, net billing and/or wheeling. Net-metering allows customers to get credit for power they inject into the grid at the retail rate, while net billing allows customers to get credit at the wholesale rate. Wheeling allows us to supply customers power from a plant outside the boundaries of their property by “wheeling” them power via the grid.
UAE has the ambitious target of achieving Net Zero by 2050. There is net metering permitted in Dubai, although with a cap. Other emirates allow net metering on a case-by-case basis, as well as self-consumption. This means the power we supply them does not go through the utility grid but rather directly to their factory/property. We’re waiting to hear more about a federal law to unify all the Emirates’ regulations.
Jordan allows for both net-metering and solar wheeling, but with strict caps on both. South Africa permits net metering and solar wheeling, without a cap on either option.
KSA allows for net billing and self-consumption, with caps on both as well.
2. What advice would you give to government officials, those directly in charge of the countries’ renewable energy policies, in order to help their countries accelerate renewable energy adoption?
The key to accelerating renewable energy adoption is to reduce regulatory barriers as much as possible, allow open and transparent access to their power networks and enable the private sector to negotiate amongst themselves freely. Lastly, providing financial incentives for renewable energy production will be instrumental in making it affordable for developers and consumers alike. Incentives include sponsored grants for investing in renewable projects, tax incentives or elimination of customs duties.
3. The private sector plays a critical role in advancing the Energy Transition. What are the main opportunities for the private sector?
As consumers, there’s no better time than the present to start the renewable energy transition. Immediate savings can be realized, and both short-term and long-term value can be created.
It is important to always partner with a reputable developer, not just the cheapest option you can find, as these projects should be designed to last for 20 years or more. A reliable developer will also tailor the solution to help reduce overall consumption as well as providing clean, sustainable power.
Through a solar lease / power purchase agreement (PPA), Yellow Door Energy supports 90 different customers, spread across 130 different project sites in 6 countries. They range from multinational corporations to regional family-owned businesses. What unites them is their shared goal of decarbonizing their operations and simultaneously lowering their electricity costs. The time to start is now!
4. Lastly, as General Counsel of Yellow Door Energy, what are some ways both in-house counsel and external law firms can do to speed up the Energy Transition and contribute to climate change adaptation and mitigation?
The typical focus is on external law firms in this transition, as they bring broad industry knowledge and legislation expertise to the table. Law firms lead advocacy and regulatory changes with governments, structure green deals and hold companies and governments accountable through litigation. However, in-house counsels can use their deep knowledge of their business, industry and internal teams to push for change and implement action. Being able to have real influence within their organizations gives in-house counsels a great platform to assess risks and opportunities for a Net Zero transition.
