Legittimo affidamento e incentivi alle rinnovabili: un binomio (im)possibile?

With the judgment delivered in Case C-148/2023, the Court of Justice addressed the issue of protecting the legitimate expectations of operators in the renewable energy sector who had relied on the stability of incentive schemes, subsequently worsened during the incentive period. In continuity with its previous case law, the Court rejected concerns regarding the incompatibility of the new legislative measures with the principles of legitimate expectations and legal certainty. Although reaffirming the fundamental importance of these principles, the Court denied their full applicability in the present case, relying on the alleged foreseeability of the legislative amendment. This note addresses how the ruling reopens the broader question of whether the criteria employed by the Judges are adequate to ensure an effective protection of the legitimate expectations of investors who had relying on the stability of the regulatory framework when making investment decisions.