Project Development & Finance

Squire Sanders’ project development and finance practice is internationally recognized. Our lawyers have advised on project development issues in some of the most noteworthy energy projects in the industry. Several of these were the first of their kind in their respective countries. Two deals in recent years were also named "Deal of the Year" in highly respected project finance publications. Our experience includes the development of greenfield projects from the concept or bidding stage; analyzing tender documents and off-take documents and assisting in the preparation of bids; tax structuring; negotiating consortium, teaming and joint development agreements; assisting to obtain project approvals and preparing detailed legal risk analyses for use by project proponents and financiers in achieving bankable feasibility for projects.

Our lawyers have extensive experience in the area of energy and resources project finance and frequently work with major project sponsors, financial advisers, investment banks, commercial banks, export credit agencies and multilateral financial institutions. Many of our lawyers have also been internationally recognized for their expertise in this area including attribution in Euromoney Legal Media Group’s Guide to the World’s Leading Project Finance Lawyers. Our work in energy project finance covers both equity and debt structures, as well as other sophisticated finance structures such as leveraged leasing , tax effective and public finance.

Representative Experience

• Representing a US-based energy company in all aspects of the development of an 890 MW natural gas-fueled merchant power plant at Macae, near Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, which included development of an undersea pipeline to bring flared gas from offshore platforms to an onshore gas-fired power generation facility.
• Counseling in all the legal issues related to the development by AES of a 300 MW natural gas-fired generation facility and LNG importation and distribution terminal. This representation included legal assistance in: (i) negotiation and drafting of the real estate purchase agreement for the site; (ii) negotiation of the generation concession and obtaining all permits required for development and operation of the facility; (iii) negotiation and drafting of all EPC agreements with the different contractors; (iv) securing of all easements and rights of way required for construction of the transmission lines interconnecting the generation facility with the national transmission grid, as well as for development of the natural gas pipeline that brings gas from the importation terminal to another generation facility in Santo Domingo; and (v) financing of the project with international lenders.
• Advising the Egyptian Electricity Authority in preparation for requests for proposals for, and subsequent negotiation of, the BOOT power purchase, ground lease, Central Bank guarantee and financing accommodation agreements for the 650 MW gas-fired Sidi Krir, Port Said East and Suez Gulf power projects.
• Advising National Grid UK, as a member of its legal panel, on proposals for overhead electricity lines that will be required to connect new nuclear power stations to the electricity grid.
• Representing a US-based energy company in preparing and negotiating an operation and maintenance agreement, major maintenance agreements, a power purchase agreement and other project-related agreements for power generation facilities in Manaus, Brazil.
• Representing a US investor in the preliminary stages of the development of a proposed Orimulsion-fueled power generation facility near Moin in Costa Rica.
• Representing a US investor in all aspects of the development of the first project-financed merchant plant and the first fully integrated energy project in Latin America (located in Peru), including project structuring, joint venture documentation, finance documentation, construction contracts, operation and maintenance agreements, and other project agreements. This project was named Deal of the Year by a major international project finance publication.
• Serving as project counsel to an international consortium of energy companies in all aspects of the development, permitting, construction, operation and maintenance of a 1 billion cu. ft. LNG receiving and regasification terminal under development in Sonora, Mexico, including infrastructure connecting an LNG regasification terminal in Sonora with distribution points in Mexico and the United States.
• Counseling a Kazakh utility company in bridge loan and eurobond financings intended to support capital improvements in the national grid.
• Representing a Spain-based utility in a US$1 billion LNG project in Egypt and in the negotiation of a natural gas purchase agreement with the government of Egypt.