INTERNATIONAL FIRMS FIRM BRIEFINGS Chadbourne & Parke
2012 Firm Overview Active jurisdictions
Burundi, DRC, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda
Highlight clients
Development Bank of Southern Africa, Standard Bank, GDF Suez, Sithe Global, OPIC
Key offices London, Washington DC, Dubai
Most active disciplines International arbitration, sovereign states, project finance (energy, natural resources and IPP), renewables finance, EPC
Key sectors Mining and metals, oil and gas, power, renewable energy
Law capability UK, US
Key partners Agnieszka Klich, Robin Mizrahi, Melanie Willems
Chadbourne & Parke is one of the most successful US firms in the African market. Despite not having a Paris office, the firm does have a French speaking projects team which has been busy working on the francophone Ruzizi III hydropower project, one of the continent’s most significant current energy projects. Its key strengths are in projects and project finance in the energy, power and oil and gas sectors. Other projects worthy of note have been in the South African re-
newables programme where in 2012 the firm worked on the Dorper Wind Project. A long standing energy client says the firm “brings ex- tensive experience on all stages of the projects and the fact that they have done this a million times over brings reassurance”. Clients recommends Robin Mizrahi for projects and project finance,
Todd Alexander on the construction side and Robert Shapiro for energy and project finance. The firm has cultivated a strong link with bilateral and multilateral agencies and operates throughout the region with an informal network of relationships with local firms.
Matters In disputes, Melanie Willems led a team representing an energy com- pany in ICSID arbitration over a petroleum tax levied by the Nigerian state on its off-shore interests. Agnieszka Klich kept busy, assisting Stan- dard Bank as advisor to the DRC government on the privatisation of a state-owned cement plant and working with an IPR-GDF Suez led consortium (including Mitsui) on the financing and development of two peaking power projects in South Africa with a combined capacity of 1,100MW and lending of $1 billion. In 2012 Robin Mizrahi was advising Sithe Global and Kenya’s In-
dustrial Promotion Services (IPS) on the project financing of the Ruzizi III hydro-power plant, with Burundi, DRC and Rwanda as shared off- takers. Out of Dubai, Clint Steyn led a team to advise ABSA, Nedbank and SMBC on financing of $250 million for the 100MW Dorper Wind Farm. Richard Keenan and Peter Fitzgerald also handled deals in Tanzania and Rwanda.
Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton
2012 Firm Overview Active jurisdictions
Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, DRC, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritius, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Tanzania
Highlight clients
Helios Investment Partners, Republic of Congo, BHP Billiton, ArcelorMittal
Key offices Paris, London, Abu Dhabi, Hong Kong
Most active disciplines Disputes, corporate, finance
Key sectors Mining and metals, oil and gas, power, industry and manufacturing
Law capability English, French, US
Key partners Barthélemy Faye, Michael Preston, Jean-Pierre Vignaud
Cleary Gottlieb is one of the biggest firms for corporate matters and M&A in Africa. It has a strong franchise in advising governments and public entities, as well as private clients and investors. Active in Africa for over 40 years, a key to the firm’s success has been
its international approach, which allows it to serve a wide range of clients across the energy and infrastructure sectors, and its big names in Paris, which count Jean-Pierre Vignaud and Barthélemy Faye. Hong Kong partner Michael Preston is also very active for Asian investments.
Matters Michael Preston led teams to advise Sichuan Hongda Group in a $3 billion investment into coal and iron ore projects in Tanzania and African Minerals Limited on a $1.5 billion equity investment by Shan- dong Iron and Steel Group into its Sierra Leone Tonkolili mine, rail and port and power subsidiaries. Barthélemy Faye was advising Dangote Cement on the regulatory,
due diligence and project structuring of two quarrying and cement fa- cility projects in Congo and Gabon, totalling $600 million. Jean-Pierre Vignaud teamed up with Faye to assist the Gambia River
Basin Organisation, which includes Gambia, Senegal, Guinea and Guinea-Bissau, on the structuring of a public-private partnership proj- ect for a $1 billion hydroelectric power project. The firm was also ad- vising ArcelorMittal in relation to its Liberia Landmark Mining Project.
12 ENERGY & INFRASTRUCTURE | SUB SAHARAN AFRICA 2013
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