March.20.2020
Orrick announced that a market-leading, four-partner team will be joining our London office, including energy and infrastructure advisors Evan Stergoulis, Simon Alsey and Ravinder Sandhu and real estate advisor Simon Folley. They will join from Watson Farley & Williams. At Orrick, Evan will serve as co-head of the firm’s Global Renewables practice. The team is expected to join on or about April 1, 2020.
The team acts for leading global investors on mergers, acquisitions, project development and financings involving offshore wind, onshore renewable energy and gas & power projects in the UK, Europe and Asia. Most recently, the team advised on the $3 billion project financing of the Changfang and Xidao projects – the largest Taiwanese offshore wind project financings to date, the £1.3 billion bond acquisition of a 50% stake in the Walney Extension offshore wind farm and the £472 million sale of transmission system assets relating to the Race Bank offshore wind farm to Diamond Transmission.
“Orrick offers our clients a deep commitment to the renewable energy and power sectors with a breadth and depth of practice that few law firms can match, including top-ranked practices in the United States, Japan, France and Italy. We are very excited to collaborate with the team in London and globally,” said Evan, who is Band 1 ranked by Chambers Global for his work in the renewables market.
“Being a top firm to the energy and infrastructure sector is a strategic priority for Orrick, and we are excited to expand in London with a team of this caliber,” said London Office Leader Simon Willis.
“We are thrilled to attract to our London office this exceptional team. We have long admired them in the market and are confident that this group will substantially advance our capabilities as one of the leading advisors to the global renewable energy and power sectors,” added Blake H. Winburne, Orrick’s Energy & Infrastructure Sector Leader, based in Houston.
Orrick ranks top 10 globally for its renewables work in 2019 by Inframation and was named a Law360 Project Finance Group of the Year for 2019 – for the sixth time.
Orrick’s renewable energy team is one of only three firms ranked at the highest level by Chambers and Legal 500. Our team is also Chambers ranked for energy and projects work in France, Italy, Japan, the UK, Africa and the United States (where we rank Band 1 nationwide in three distinct categories: Renewables, Power and Infrastructure). Financial Times has recognized the team for numerous innovative projects, including our collaboration with Microsoft on a new framework for corporate PPAs.
These additions continue a string of sector-focused hires in Orrick’s London office over the past year. In January, top cyber & data lawyers Keily Blair and James Lloyd joined from PwC. In 2019, tech-focused capital markets partner Ed Lukins joined from Cooley, Anthony Kay and Richard Hanson, rising stars in finance, joined from Latham & Watkins and Ropes & Gray respectively, energy & infrastructure rising star Hannah Roscoe joined from Herbert Smith and tax advisor Jonathan Rosen joined from Akin Gump. Most recently, regulatory and fintech lawyer Marco Boldini joined in March from PwC.
Evan previously served as global head of Watson Farley Williams’ Energy & Infrastructure Sector Group until 2018. He is a Chambers Global Band 1 ranked renewable energy lawyer with over 25 years of experience in the sector. He advises renewable energy companies, investment firms and pension funds on mergers, acquisitions and financings. He brings considerable experience in offshore wind, onshore renewable portfolios and gas & power transmission and distribution projects.
Chambers Global 2020 reported that market commentators call Evan a "leading figure who has secured incredible and loyal clients because he does an excellent job." In addition, Evan is highly ranked by Chambers UK, Legal 500 UK and IFLR 1000. He has also been named to The Lawyer’s Hot 100 and as one of the 100 most influential lawyers to the wind sector by wind industry intelligence service A Word About Wind.
Simon advises on M&A and commercial contracts in the energy sector, with considerable experience in both generation and transmission assets. He counsels clients on acquisitions, disposals, joint venture arrangements and project agreements in energy and infrastructure investments and financings.
One of only seven lawyers nominated to AWAW’s inaugural Women’s Power List recognising the leading 100 women in the wind sector globally, Ravinder counsels on corporate and commercial matters, including cross-border and domestic mergers, acquisitions, disposals, joint ventures, equity fundraisings, corporate restructurings and regulatory matters involving renewable and conventional energy transactions. Ravinder also has special expertise advising on the sale of UK offshore transmission assets as part of the OFTO tender process run by Ofgem. She is recommended by Legal 500 UK and IFLR 1000.
Recognized by Legal 500 UK and IFLR 1000 for his work, Simon has over 15 years of commercial real estate experience. He has extensive energy sector experience and regularly advises on the acquisition, development, financing and disposal of offshore and onshore wind farms, solar farms and other renewable energy projects. In addition, Simon counsels clients on a broad range of real estate matters, including the property aspects of corporate and financing transactions, advice to corporate occupiers on office moves, and the acquisition and disposal of investment property across asset classes.