Projects and Project Finance
We have extensive international experience advising on projects across a wide range of sectors, including renewables, energy storage, CHP, oil and gas, nuclear, water and waste, mining, airports, stadia, telecommunications as well as network and rail.
Although no two projects are the same, given our significant experience advising a range of energy and infrastructure market participants (including developers and sponsors, governments, financial institutions, funds, contractors and suppliers), we have an in-depth understanding of the key challenges and risks involved, can anticipate issues and deliver practical and solution-focussed advice.
Our advice often spans the full project lifecycle and includes the formation of joint ventures and structuring of shareholder arrangements, as well as other M&A aspects (including asset level DD); all financing, hedging and credit support arrangements; offtake, power trading and energy services arrangements; construction and O&M arrangements; real estate and consents; regulatory advice; and dispute resolution.
On the financing side, we advise on many aspects of Energy & Infrastructure deals, including shareholder funding, project and HoldCo level financing structures, acquisition financings and more structured products, covering all sources of funding (including, for example, senior and mezzanine/subordinated loans, bonds and ECA products).
- Our team is known for complex, high profile development and infrastructure projects (particularly in the UK, Africa, Asia and the Middle East) and are frequently instructed on some of the largest projects undertaken. Our work is often complicated, with tight time frames and significant local and national political sensitivity.
- We are, however, equally recognised for the way we manage less complex projects to maximise efficiencies, whether it be for the completion of a project or a sale or acquisition process.
- In the last two years, we have received a commendation for Energy & Renewables in The Times Best Law Firms 2020 and were shortlisted for the 2019 Energy and Infrastructure Team of the Year in The British Legal Awards and Energy & Infrastructure Projects Team of the Year in The Lawyer Awards. Our work with Ørsted won us the European Wind Deal of the Year at the IJL Global (Project Finance and Infrastructure) Awards and the Europe Renewables Deal of the Year at the Project Finance International Awards and we were shortlisted for Innovation in legal expertise: Managing complexity and scale in the FT Innovative Lawyers Awards.
- Our multi-specialist approach means that you have access to an experienced team bringing experience from different projects and sectors, which is a particular benefit on complex and novel deals but also more generally as it helps maximise efficiencies.
- Across the globe we work closely with a network of leading local firms which allows us to provide advice across wherever our clients need us to be.
Key experience
Advised Ørsted on its disposal of a 50% interest in the 1.2GW Hornsea 1 offshore wind farm located in North Sea off the cost of England to Global Infrastructure Partners. We advised on all aspects of the M&A, financing, construction, O&M and power purchase arrangements. Hornsea 1 will be the world’s largest offshore wind firm when commissioned in 2020. The acquisition was partially financed using a multi-tranche financing package of more than £3.5 billion, consisting of a mixture of investment grade-rated project bonds, commercial bank loans and mezzanine debt – which we developed and structured together with Ørsted as part of a stapled financing package. This financing was at the time the largest single-project financing to date in the global renewable energy sector. Our work on this transaction won us the European Wind Deal of the Year at the IJL Global (Project Finance and Infrastructure) Awards and the Europe Renewables Deal of the Year at the Project Finance International Awards.
Advising Attarat Power Company (APCO) and the project sponsors, Eesti Energia AS (EE) and YTL Power International Berhad (YTL) on the construction and project financing of a 554MW gross oil shale fired mine mouth power station and open cast oil shale mine in Jordan. We advised on all aspects of the project, including the US$ 1.583 billion debt financing, the construction and other commercial contracts, the sell-down of a part of EE’s equity stake to YTL and to incoming investor Guangdong Yudean Group Co. Limited and the related shareholder arrangements. We fielded a small team of two partners and two associates who operated across the various workstreams, ensuring that all aspects of the project came together seamlessly. The financing was provided on the basis of export credit insurance provided by China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure) and was the largest private project financing supported by Sinosure. The project was the first to commercially utilise Jordan’s oil shale reserves and at the time was the largest foreign direct investment in Jordan, with an investment value of US$ 2.1 billion. It was named PFI’s Middle East and Africa Resource Deal of the Year 2017 and Petroleum Economist’s Power Project of the Year 2019.
Advising Vitol on its JV arrangements with Low Carbon Ltd for the development and operation of two battery storage plants. We also advised Vitol on the Immingham CHP plant in the UK from ConocoPhilips and the subsequent sale of a 25% stake.
Key Contacts
