Projects

Overview

Gibson Dunn maintains a leading Projects practice group, with experience across multiple jurisdictions and an in-depth knowledge of the industrial, commercial, financial, risk management and political issues that are inherent in the development and financing of major infrastructure projects.

The group has been widely recognized among the top projects and public-private partnership (PPP) practices domestically and internationally, with expertise across the full project life-cycle. This includes advising sponsors and developers on bid submission in competitive procurements, achieving commercial and financial close, resolving project-related disputes, restructurings, refinancings, and acquisitions and dispositions of infrastructure assets. Our asset class expertise includes roads, bridges, airports, ports, rail, social infrastructure, digital infrastructure (including towers, fiber and data centers), waste, water, stadiums, parking facilities, power generation and transmission, oil and gas, biomass, biogas and e-fuels, battery storage, hydrogen and renewable energy sources.

Our team is experienced in drafting and negotiating all project documentation, including requests for proposals, PPP concessions, development agreements, offtake contracts, feedstock supply agreements, leases, construction contracts, operations and maintenance agreements, interface arrangements, terminal services agreements, equipment supply agreements, financing documents, joint venture agreements, and sale and purchase agreements. This includes managing political risk issues and related strategy, as well as navigating project-related disputes, claims submission, change orders, mediation, arbitration and litigation.

Likewise, we are adept at creating innovative financing structures, with expertise representing both borrowers and lenders, across all types of debt and equity financing transactions, including credit facilities, project bonds (including tax-exempt), private placements, hedging, structured finance and securitization, equity issuances and loans from export credit agencies, multilateral agencies and governmental agencies (including U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loans and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Water Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (WIFIA) loans), and equipment lease financings.  We also have experience working on debt restructurings and workouts in connection with distressed project assets.

Given our unmatched asset level expertise, and knowledge of critical project contracts and risks, and experience with relevant public sectors grantors (where applicable), we frequently advise on acquisitions and dispositions of major infrastructure projects and companies operating in the sector, representing both strategics players and infrastructure funds.

Our Projects group has represented the sponsors and developer on many of the most high-profile project development, financing and investment transactions, including multiple “Deal of the Year” transactions. The group has core team members located in the United States, Europe, the Middle East and Asia, with substantial experience throughout the world, and it takes pride in Gibson Dunn’s seamless integration with and coordination across all relevant geographical and practice group areas.