ROMANIA Trends and Developments Contributed by: Cosmin Vasile and Violeta Saranciuc, Zamfirescu Racoți Vasile & Partners
Increasing Number of Arbitration Disputes in the Renewable Energy Sector Romania is seen as one of the most promising renew - able energy markets in Europe due to the excellent natural conditions for renewable energy production. The market has attracted and continues to attract, with greater prospects for the future, the interest of local and foreign investors. With a variety of financ - ing and business models adopted in the development of renewable energy projects, a dynamic and rapidly evolving landscape and a lack of experience, particu - larly in the first waves of renewable development in the country, renewable projects have given rise to a rising number of disputes in the past several years. Firstly, Romania itself has been involved in a series of investment arbitrations initiated by foreign investors over renewable reforms. Secondly, many renewable projects have ended in disputes being submitted to commercial arbitration due to problems at the financ - ing or development stage. Considering the multiple and complex facets of renewable development pro - jects, arbitration appears to be the preferred dispute resolution method. In particular, foreign investors entering the Romanian renewable energy market have most often opted for arbitration under the purview of international arbitral institutions, which is perceived as a more neutral dispute resolution choice. Bucharest Arbitration Days 2026 Bucharest Arbitration Days (BArD) is an annual event dedicated to international arbitration and the neces - sary reforms in the field, organised by CICA since 2019. The seventh edition of this conference was organised in June 2026 under the title “Evidence in International Arbitration: Evolving Principles and Prac - tices” and turned its attentions towards one of the most fundamental dimensions of arbitral justice: evi - dence.
Building on the 2025 focus on access to justice and due process, BArD 2026 re-examined evidence as the link between fact, law and persuasion. The con - ference addressed admissibility, privilege and proof across legal traditions, while also considering emerg - ing issues such as digital and AI-assisted evidence, sustainability and data integrity. The 2026 edition was opened by Ștefan Deaconu, President of the Court of International Commer - cial Arbitration attached to the Chamber of Com - merce and Industry of Romania, and Elena-Simina Tănăsescu, President of the Constitutional Court of Romania, reflecting the continued institutional support for arbitration in Romania and for the country’s role as an arbitral seat. The participation of renowned arbitration profession - als from across the world, including keynote speakers Prof. Franco Ferrari, Clarence D. Ashley, Professor of Law and Director of the Intesa Sanpaolo Center for Transnational Litigation, Arbitration, and Commercial Law at NYU School of Law, and Prof. Laurence Bois - son de Chazournes, arbitrator at Matrix Chambers and Professor Emerita at the University of Geneva, confirms Romania’s steady upward trend on its way to becoming one of the most attractive places for arbitra - tion in the CEE region.
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