Eight separate project finance transactions on four continents have earned Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP stand out awards as Deals of the Year from IJGlobal, the international journal of project finance and infrastructure.
The Americas and European awards were conferred at ceremonies in March in New York and London, while the Asia-Pacific honors will be bestowed in Singapore later in the summer.
One of the first international law firms to establish a dedicated project finance practice, Milbank has over the past three years closed more than 140 project-based financings worth over $125 billion, drawing on the expertise of attorneys in the firm’s 12 offices worldwide. Pioneering infrastructure projects around the globe, Milbank’s Global Project Finance group comprises more than 100 dedicated attorneys including 22 partners worldwide.
Milbank transactions honored by IJGlobal in the following categories include:
North America Midstream Deal
Milbank advised an international bank syndicate in separate but related financings, totaling more than $1.1 billion, for a pair of natural gas pipelines in southwest Texas. The pipelines, which together run 343 miles, originate at the Waha energy storage and transit hub and stretch to the US/Mexico border, where they help supply Mexico’s electrical utility. Global Project Finance Practice Group Leader Dan Bartfeld and partner Daniel Michalchuk led the Milbank team on behalf of the lenders, which included including The Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi / MUFG, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. (SMBC), BBVA and Mizuho.
North America Power Bond Deal
Milbank advised lenders and institutional investors in an approximately $443 million private placement and $47 million credit facility for the construction of the Pio Pico Energy Center in Otay Mesa, Calif., southeast of San Diego. The 313-megawatt plant is expected to power about 200,000 homes. Jonathan Green, co-chair of Milbank’s Global Project Finance Group, led the deal team.
Latin America Mining & Metals Deal
In a deal showcasing the strong Korean and Latin American nexus of its practice, Milbank advised KEXIM and K-Sure and various commercial lenders providing $2.1 billion in financing to Brazil-Korea joint venture Companhia Siderúrgica do Pecém (CSP), for construction of a new steel mill in Brazil (sponsored by Vale, Dongkuk and POSCO). It is the largest Korean financing ever in Brazil. In addition to Mr. Bartfeld, the Milbank team included São Paulo-based partner Tobias Stirnberg and Seoul-based partner Young Joon Kim.
Latin America Midstream Deal
Maintaining its leading role in US-Mexico pipeline financings, Milbank advised Citigroup, ING, NordLB, Banco Santander, Sabadell, and Goldman Sachs as lead arrangers of $820 million in financing for a natural gas pipeline in Mexico. The La Laguna-El Encino Pipeline stretches for 289 miles between the states of Chihuahua and Durango. Once operational in 2017, the pipeline will carry natural gas originating from Texas, supplying power plants in northern Mexico with an alternative energy source to fuel oil. Milbank was led by Mr. Bartfeld.
Latin America Solar Deal
Continuing its noteworthy renewables and energy infrastructure work in Chile and other parts of Latin America, Milbank represented Rabobank International as VAT lender in connection with the development of the Laberinto solar power facility in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. The facility marks the entry into Chile of EDF Energies Nouvelles, a green energy producer operating in Europe and the Americas and subsidiary of renewable energy pioneer EDF Group, of France. Once operational, the Laberinto facility will be one of the world’s largest solar plants selling output on a merchant basis. The Milbank team advising Rabobank was led by Allan Marks, partner in the firm’s Global Project Finance Group.
Latin America Wind Deal
Milbank represented the sponsors in connection with the acquisition and the financing of the construction and operation of 85.8 MW and a 62.7 MW wind projects, each located in Tamaulipas, Mexico. These projects are the first two phases of the Tres Mesas Wind complex, which represents one of the largest sustainable energy projects in Mexico to date. The innovative financing included dual currency (USD/MXP) debt tranches from OPIC and the North American Development Bank. The transaction won “Project of the Year” at MIREC (Mexico International Renewable Energy Conference). This is the first time that OPIC has issued so-called “green bonds” to support a Mexican renewable energy asset and the first time it has provided a loan denominated in Mexican pesos. The Milbank team was led by partner Allan Marks.
European Telecoms Deal
Continuing its work with innovative satellite telecommunications provider O3b Networks, Milbank advised the company on implementation of a revised financial structure worth $358 million to help acquire eight new satellites and launch four of them. Milbank has advised the company since its initial satellite financing in 2010. The latest round of multi-sourced financing brought together the French export credit agency, four commercial lenders, seven development finance institutions, and nine equity investors. O3b Networks aims to provide broadband internet access to underserved regions of the globe. The Milbank team was led by London-based Global Project Finance partner John Dewar, Securities partner James Ball, Space & Satellite partner Peter Nesgos, and Alternative Investments partner John Williams.
Asia-Pacific Airports Deal
In a milestone assignment in India, Milbank represented underwriters Citigroup, Standard Chartered Bank, HSBC, JP Morgan, and KKR Capital Markets in the $288.75 million Regulation S high-yield debt issuance by Delhi International Airport Private Limited (DIAL), which operates New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport, one of the world’s largest. The landmark issuance, one of the first of its kind for a major Indian infrastructure asset, was overseen by partner Naomi Ishikawa, one of the leading capital markets lawyers in the Asia-Pacific region.
