Attorney-at-law, partner, head of Energy / Renewables, with over twenty years of experience in advising Polish and foreign companies on, among others, crucial domestic investment projects regarding (conventional) energy sources and energy infrastructure.
He specialises in energy law with a focus on renewable energy. Michał advises clients on renewables development and acquisition projects, including in particular due diligence checks in M&A transactions and RES financing, primarily in the PV sector. He supports clients in regulatory issues, key aspects of energy agreements, including connection agreements, component supply agreements, construction contracts, O&M agreements, and long-term power purchase agreements between producers of energy and corporate recipients (PPA, cPPA).
Before joining JDP, he gained experience in global law firms, being in charge of the national energy practice in one of them. Michał has been regularly recognised in international legal rankings (Chambers & Partners, Who’s Who Legal, IFLR 1000, Legal 500). In 2020, he was granted the Lexology’s Client’s Choice award.
Selected projects
- legal advice to an institution financing an RES producer on the provisions and parties’ rights and obligations under a power purchase agreement (vPPA) regarding energy produced from a photovoltaic power plant portfolio with a total capacity of over 70 MW, negotiated and concluded for more than 14 years between an RES producer and an end user (retail chain);
- legal advice to an institution financing an RES producer on the provisions and parties’ rights and obligations under a power purchase agreement (vPPA) regarding energy produced from a photovoltaic power plant portfolio with a total capacity of 45 MW, negotiated and concluded for more than 12 years between an RES producer and an end user (food sector);
- legal advice to an institution financing an RES producer on the provisions and parties’ rights and obligations under a power purchase agreement (vPPA) regarding energy produced from a photovoltaic power plant portfolio, negotiated and concluded for more than 11 years between an RES producer and an end user (industrial sector);
- legal advice to an institution financing RES producers involving counselling and conducting a due diligence check regarding the financing of the construction of a photovoltaic power plant including over 250 photovoltaic installations with a total capacity of over 300 MW by more than 40 companies;
- legal advice to an RES developer involving drafting and negotiating “turnkey” agreements, including photovoltaic power plant construction and maintenance agreements, key component supply agreements, O&M agreements for purposes of constructing photovoltaic power plants, real estate security agreements, participation in the auction procedure and regulatory issues related to obtaining concessions for power production;
- legal advice to global high-tech companies, including the Fortune500 companies, on legal regulations regarding restrictions in power consumption and supply to data centres of these companies in Poland, including legal advice on securing an appropriate power supply level for data centres;
- legal and contract advice to a heat power company on claims regarding the connection to a power grid in relation to a new power generating unit;
- legal advice to an investor involving counselling and negotiation of claims regarding an agreement for design and construction of a 400/110 kV power station;
- legal advice to a foreign fund involving counselling and legal due diligence regarding an investment agreement to finance the construction of a portfolio of photovoltaic power plants with a total capacity of 66 MW;
- legal advice to a foreign investor involving counselling and legal due diligence regarding the acquisition of a portfolio of photovoltaic projects with a total capacity of around 80 MW;
- legal advice to an investor involving counselling and legal due diligence regarding the acquisition of a portfolio of wind energy projects with a total capacity of around 101 MW;
- legal due diligence for a foreign investor regarding the acquisition of a portfolio of photovoltaic projects with a total capacity of over 800 MW at various stages of the development, including RTB;
- legal advice to a Lithuanian operator of a transmission system regarding a cooperation agreement with a Polish operator of a transmission system in connection with the construction of an HVDC submarine cable Harmony Link with a nominal capacity of 700 MW (Żarnowiec – Darbenai connection) – over 300 km in a project crucial for synchronising the Lithuanian, Latvian and Estonian power systems with the European system;
- legal advice to a leading Polish energy company on preparing and selecting a foreign partner for a project involving offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea;
- contract advice regarding a main agreement and an LTSA and bidding in the utilities-sector competitive dialogue and technical dialogue regarding the supply and 10-year maintenance of a set (10) of compressor units for three gas compressor stations (Goleniów, Gustorzyn and Odolanów) within the Baltic Pipe program (project value: around PLN 550 million);
- legal advice to an investor on negotiations regarding amending a contract for the construction of power units no. 5 and 6 at the Opole Power Plant. The amendment concerned force majeure events that occurred during over four years of the construction and additional performances on the general contractor’s part, where the amount of the general contractor’s remuneration was confirmed on the condition of meeting the deadline for the delivery of units no. 5 and 6 as agreed in the amendment (value of the entire project: around PLN 11.5 billion);
- legal advice to a contractor from a consortium on negotiating an amendment to a contract for the construction of a state-of-the-art 1075 MW supercritical parameter unit at the Kozienice Power Plant. The amendment extended the time for project completion by several months in relation to the originally planned deadline for reasons independent of the parties (value of the entire project: around PLN 5.1 billion);
- legal advice to, including representation of, contractors in a utilities-sector tender for the construction of a 450 MW power unit at the Turów Power Plant (project value: around PLN 1 billion);
- legal advice to an investor on preparing and selecting a contractor regarding the construction and the functioning of the Gdańsk Oil Terminal – project of strategic importance for the development of the Polish economy and energy security (project value: around PLN 800 million);
- legal advice to, including representation of, a winning consortium of contractors in a utilities-sector tender for the construction of a 910 MW power unit at the Jaworzno III Power Plant (project value: around PLN 5.4 billion);
- legal advice to, including representation of, a winning consortium in a utilities-sector tender for the construction of two power units (5 and 6) at the Opole Power Plant with an installed capacity of 1800 MW (project value: around PLN 11.5 billion).
Professional experience
- since 2023 JDP DRAPAŁA & PARTNERS
- 2019–2022 Eversheds Sutherland Poland
- 2012–2019 Dentons
- 2008–2012 Wierzbowski Eversheds (now Eversheds Sutherland Poland)
- 2006–2008 Schampera Dubis Zając i Wspólnicy (now SDZLEGAL Schindelm)
- 2004–2006 Kancelaria Radcy Prawnego Michał Drozdowicz
Education
- 2000–2004 Olsztyn Bar Association, adviser trainee
- 1994–1999 Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, Faculty of Law and Administration
