Energy Storage Market Opportunities, Contracting & Finance

Les Sherman Partner

San Francisco

Chambers publications identify Les as a Leading Lawyer and report that clients say Les is an “icon in California in the renewables space”, has "notable expertise spanning solar and wind generation projects as well as battery storage development" and has “established a reputation as the go-to guy in California”.  Chambers also reports that Clients say Les has "a brilliant mind," "his finger on the pulse of the market" and "a very good eye for detail when thinking through practical agreements and understanding how it is all going to work in practice". Clients note "he is one of the best PPA lawyers in the business." Les also is recognized by Euromoney, The Legal 500 and The Expert Guides as a Leading Lawyer in energy project development, M&A and finance.

Les represents many of the industry’s leading companies on project development, financing and M&A transactions for solar, wind, energy storage, biomass, gas and similar projects. Les has led the Orrick team’s thought leadership in the growing battery and hydrogen energy storage market, has published numerous articles on the topic, and has served as lead counsel on many of the largest storage and renewables+storage transactions completed to date.

Harry Clark Partner

Washington, D.C.

Harry is experienced in areas such as CFIUS/Exon-Florio examinations of foreign investment, military and “dual use” export control regulations (ITAR/EAR), economic sanctions administered by the U.S. Treasury Department (OFAC), customs regulations, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, anti-money laundering rules, anti-boycott requirements and defense industrial security requirements. He executes internal corporate investigations regarding trade and investment rules and advises on such rules in the context of corporate transactions.

Additionally, Harry has extensive experience with government contracting matters. His government contracting work has included, for example, design and implementation of U.S. Defense Department renewable energy projects. He also represents broad industry coalitions on major trade litigations and international negotiations. His experience in these areas includes a leading role in what is often considered the largest-ever international trade dispute: the controversy regarding unfair softwood lumber imports from Canada. It has involved myriad administrative proceedings before federal agencies, NAFTA panel appeals, WTO dispute proceedings, judicial proceedings and international settlement agreements.

Harry has represented a coalition of major U.S. oil companies in antidumping and countervailing duty litigation. As a related matter, he pursues policy issues with congressional and executive branch officials and advises on international trade rules (e.g., GATT, WTO agreements and NAFTA).

Chambers 2022 recognizes Harry as a leader in the field of export controls and economic sanctions (Chambers Global and Chambers USA), as well as CFIUS (Chambers USA). Previous editions have also recognized Harry’s achievements regarding his work related to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. Clients note that Harry provides “accurate, straightforward guidance incredibly efficiently” and “he has an ability to translate complex legal requirements and rules into business-friendly jargon.”

Louise Gibbons Partner

San Francisco

From the full suite of tax equity, preferred equity, cash equity and debt financings to tax credit transfers and all the hybrid structures in between, Louise takes a collaborative and relatable approach to closing each deal. She advises a range of renewables and energy transition industry participants, from project developers, sponsors, borrowers, lenders, investment banks, private equity funds and other capital providers and investors.  She works on a variety of asset classes, including among others, wind, solar, battery storage, hydrogen and renewable natural gas.

Louise was recognized by Chambers USA Nationwide Projects: Power & Renewables: Transactional in 2025, where clients describe her as "excellent," "very thorough," "detailed" and "pragmatic." She was named by Legal 500 as a Next Generation Partner in Energy Transactions: Electric Power in 2024 and noted for her “work in project finance and M&A work on transformative, first-in-kind renewable energy projects.”

As an All-American College sailor, Louise has pursued her interest in law of the sea and international laws throughout her career. She is translating this experience into differentiated advice for clients in the burgeoning U.S. offshore wind market. 

Giji John Partner

Houston; Singapore

He has extensive experience representing project sponsors through development (including through the negotiation and drafting of power purchase agreements and other long-term offtake agreements, physical and financial swaps, engineering, procurement and construction contracts, operation and maintenance agreements, management services agreements and site services agreements), acquisitions and dispositions, joint ventures and financings. His representation has included transactions involving data centers, LNG facilities, methanol facilities, petrochemical refineries, carbon capture and sequestration facilities, natural gas processing and storage facilities, natural gas and CO2 pipelines, wind energy, solar energy, natural gas-fired peaking and combined-cycle power plants, thermal and battery energy storage, transportation, aviation and ports.

Giji's prior experiences include a two year secondment to International Finance Corporation’s Office of General Counsel where he worked on multi-currency corporate financings, project financings and equity investments in infrastructure projects in Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, India, Mexico, Pakistan, Panama, the Philippines, Romania, Russia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan and Turkey.

Giji has long been recognized for excellence by numerous leading industry and legal publications, including Chambers, Legal 500, LawDragon, and Law 360.

He leads Orrick’s Houston office and formerly served on the firm’s Management Committee.

A. Cory Lankford Partner

Washington, D.C.

Recognized by Chambers USA, Legal 500, and Best Lawyers, clients praise his sophisticated regulatory expertise and ability to navigate complex challenges.

Cory's practice focuses on advising developers of renewable energy and battery storage projects, electric utilities, financial institutions, and corporations pursuing renewable energy goals.  He advises clients on their rights and responsibilities under the Federal Power Act, the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act, and the Public Utility Holding Company Act.  In addition, he frequently represents clients in proceedings before FERC to obtain and maintain authorization to sell energy, capacity and ancillary services at negotiated or market-based rates and to purchase and sell direct or indirect ownership interests in energy projects.  Drawing from his broad energy regulatory experience, Cory also helps clients develop and implement compliance programs for FERC and North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) requirements .

Before joining Orrick, Cory served in FERC's Office of the General Counsel, where he led numerous multidisciplinary teams in developing Commission orders addressing Regional Transmission Organizations, open access requirements, transmission, generator interconnection and qualifying facility certification.  His notable achievements include providing legal counsel on rulemakings to revise FERC's pro forma Open Access Transmission Tariff and in evaluating mandatory reliability standards proposed by NERC and its regional entities.  Cory also collaborated with staff at the U.S. Department of Energy to create the National Action Plan on Demand Response and its Implementation Proposal to Congress. 

Wolfram Pohl Partner

San Francisco

Wolf represents many of the country’s most prominent developers and financing parties in structuring transactions to take advantage of tax credits, Treasury cash grants, depreciation benefits, and other available tax benefits. He has represented developers and tax equity investors in financings of both wind and solar projects, as well as on tax planning for energy storage, carbon capture, and carbon sequestration projects. 

Rohit Sachdev Partner

San Francisco

Rohit has extensive experience in the solar, wind, energy storage, and biofuel sectors, and has advised on numerous award-winning transactions. He is recognized by Chambers USAand Chambers Global in the Projects: Renewables & Alternative Energy category. Rohit’s clients describe him as “excellent,” “knowledgeable,” “timely in his work,” “commercially-oriented,” “very plugged into the market” with a “great demeanor."

In recent years, Rohit's practice has focused particularly on project development and project M&A transactions. He has successfully negotiated many GWs of "physical" and "virtual" PPAs and tolling agreements, as well as a variety of construction, supply and other development arrangements. Rohit has also represented clients on the purchase and sale of renewables projects in various U.S. jurisdictions, as well as joint venture and other project asset arrangements. He has particularly focused on the development, financing and sale of domestic and international energy storage projects, including stand-alone, hybrid, front-of-meter and behind-the-meter projects.

Rohit serves on Orrick's Management Committee and co-leads the firm's South Asian Inclusion Network. He previously served as a Fellow for the Leadership Council on Legal Diversity.

He started his legal career at an international law firm in New York, where he focused on project development and project finance transactions across the globe. Prior to law and business schools, Rohit was an investment banking analyst at Credit Suisse in San Francisco where he provided M&A and financial advisory services to technology companies in Silicon Valley.

Paul Zarnowiecki Partner

Washington, D.C.

Paul has extensive experience representing developers, investors, utilities and other strategic participants in the development, financing, acquisition and divestiture of renewable and conventional power projects and other infrastructure assets in a broad range of transactions. He has served as lead counsel on many innovative and complex U.S. renewable energy transactions in recent years, with a particular focus on the solar, wind, energy storage and clean tech sectors.

Paul is recognized by Chambers USA and Chambers Global, where clients describe him as “keenly aware of ongoing market developments” and knowing “what it takes to bring abstract project ideas from the drawing board into commercial operation.”

Paul also serves as the Office Leader for Orrick's 200-lawyer Washington, D.C. office.