Middle East

For the last 30 years, we’ve executed some of the most complex transactions across the Middle East meeting both international standards and local practice requirements. Our multi-disciplinary experience spans the region from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to Qatar, Egypt and Oman.

We have been especially active in relation to energy (oil and gas and electricity) and process industries (including petrochemicals and refineries), as well as transport, infrastructure and telecommunications. In recognition of the growing importance of Islamic banking, we have established an Islamic Finance group drawing on the expertise of lawyers from our corporate finance, project and asset finance, leveraged finance and capital markets groups. Our Islamic Finance Group has extensive and knowledge of the full range of Shari’a-compliant financing structures, including Sukuks.

Our lawyers have advised on many of the largest transactions to reach financial close in the region, including over half of the independent power and water projects. To help facilitate such complex international transactions, we work directly with export credit agencies, international and regional banks, the capital markets and Islamic institutions.

Notable recent experience includes advising:

• The ECAs and the commercial banks in the US$24.4 billion financing of the Barakah nuclear power project. This transaction was named “MENA Public Sector Financing Deal of the Year” by IJ Global.
• Nabors Industries Ltd. on its joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Development Company, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian Oil Company to own, manage and operate onshore drilling units in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
• JBIC, PIF and the lenders on Phase II of Sumitomo Corporation’s US$5.2 billion expansion project for the PetroRabigh Refining and Petrochemicals Project in Saudi Arabia. The transaction was named “Middle East and Africa Petrochemical Deal of the Year” by Project Finance International and “Best Chemicals Deal of the Year” by EMEA Finance Magazine.
• The lenders (including, export credit agencies, Islamic banks and other financial institutions) in connection with the US$19 billion Sadara Integrated Chemicals Project in Saudi Arabia. This transaction won a multitude of awards including “Global Deal of the Year”, “Middle East Deal of the Year” and “Middle East Petrochemicals Deal of the Year” by Project Finance Magazine.