Wind Energy

Wind energy has been the largest source of clean renewable energy for decades. We have been a leader in wind since its inception, and continue to represent industry leaders around the globe.

We have one of the largest and most experienced Wind Energy practices of any law firm in the world. As such, we represent the world’s largest and most well-established wind energy sponsors, developers and investors. We also act for new-entrant and medium-size clients, in each case consistently providing value–driven advice.

Our team has been named Project Finance Group of the Year by Law360 four times, most recently in 2016, and our Renewables and Alternative Energy practice is ranked Band 1 by Chambers USA and Chambers Global, and Tier 1 by Legal500 in 2018. Our group is described in Chambers as “extremely broad and experienced, capable of covering any matter related to our business in a timely and cost-effective manner.” We frequently provide counsel on many of today’s most high-profile, innovative and award-winning wind energy development, finance and M&A transactions.

Wind Development

We provide counsel on the myriad issues that attend wind project development, including critical early-stage real estate control; permitting; and project tax- and finance-driven structuring issues; energy offtake solutions (including utility, synthetic/virtual and C&I PPAs, hedging solutions, and merchant facilities); turbine and other equipment supply; balance of plant; O&M; transmission; interconnection; and all other aspects of project development.

Wind M&A

We’re recognized for counseling clients on the acquisition and divestiture of wind energy assets. We’ve represented our clients in connection with the transfer of ownership interests in thousands of megawatts of assets worth billions of dollars. These transactions have included single-asset and multiple-project portfolios, joint venture arrangements, and highly structured cash and tax equity M&A transactions across the European continent, the United States, Latin America and Asia.

Wind Finance

We’ve helped clients finance billions of dollars of wind projects involving every conceivable type of debt (including bridge, construction, term conversion, long term, letter of credit facility and back-leverage financing), equity (including all varieties of tax equity and cash equity) financing and lease transactions.

Engagements

Pattern Energy Group LP on the construction and tax equity financing for the 150 MW Fowler Ridge IV Wind Farm LLC, and sale of the cash equity interest to a YieldCo, Pattern Energy Group Inc.

BlackRock Renewables in the purchase of a cash equity interest in wind projects in Texas, New Mexico and Kansas, aggregating in excess of 800 MW and including a letter of credit facility for the provision of credit support under related offtake agreements.

EDP Renewables North America LLC in over 1,000 MW of wind energy projects, including all of its financings with tax equity players over the past few years, and on sales of cash equity minority interests in several wind projects.

Apex Clean Energy on the development and sale of the 298 MW Kingfisher project to First Reserve, including a 20-year energy hedge with Morgan Stanley and a back-to-back power purchase agreement with Southern Company affiliate Gulf Power.

Eurus Energy in construction financings, tax equity financings and, in some cases, back-leverage financings for over 350MW of wind energy projects.

Gamesa Energy in the sale of three wind projects with a total capacity of 400 MW, construction financing of two of these projects, and the tax equity financing of the entire portfolio.

EDF Renewables on tax equity financings and lease financings of over 780 MW of wind energy projects, including the 150 MW Slate Creek wind project in Kansas.

GE Energy Financial Services in forming an investment partnership to own, finance, construct and operate the 211 MW Grandview wind energy project located in Texas, and in the subsequent sale of GE’s interest in the project.

TerraForm in the $2 billion purchase of seven contracted wind farms (total 930 MW) located in the U.S. and Canada, from Invenergy Wind LLC, the largest independent wind owner in the U.S.

Glennmont Partners on the acquisition from the Spanish utility Iberdrola of a wind portfolio composed of wind assets located in the south of Italy with an aggregate capacity of 245 MW.