Sullivan & Cromwell provides project development and finance clients with the same commitment to highest-quality legal services that is the essential feature of our other practices. We do not seek to be the largest projects firm. We do seek to be the best. Our teams combine deep and current marketplace experience with sophisticated industry knowledge. Our partners bring the perspectives of decades of work in emerging and developed markets. They offer seasoned advice that enables sponsors and lenders to mitigate and manage the risks of large and complex project investments.

The Firm is noted by a number of sources as the leading law firm in oil, gas and mining projects, the market leader for projects in Latin America, a leader in Public-Private Partnership structures for infrastructure and among the top firms acting for sponsors of projects in the countries of the former Soviet Union.

The S&C Difference

The Firm’s project finance practice differs from those at other major firms in several significant respects:

Focus on Large and Complex Transactions

S&C specializes in big projects. S&C is currently engaged in nearly 40 projects. Their average size is $2.9 billion, and more than half have values (debt and equity) of more than $500 million.

Global Spread

S&C’s project work has a truly global spread. S&C’s active or recent projects include work in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Caspian Sea region, Chile, Ecuador, Madagascar, Mexico, Mozambique, Oman, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Qatar, South Africa, United Arab Emirates, United States, Venezuela and Yemen. The Firm’s U.S., English, French and dual-qualified projects lawyers work together on these matters as an integrated team.

Integration

Our Firm offers the only truly integrated U.S. and English law projects team. Our unified global partnership structure allows us to staff matters from our offices around the world, considering only the best interests of the client.

Diversity of Client Base

Although much of our work is for borrowers and sponsors, we also work frequently for lenders, representing many different commercial and investment banks and agencies. Nearly every one of S&C’s closed project financings over the last five years was for a different client.

Capital Markets Experience

Most S&C lawyers doing projects work have extensive capital markets experience. In contrast to other firms, a single project team at S&C is able to execute the financing, whether it ultimately takes the form of a bank/MLA/ECA loan, a project bond or a combination of them.

Awards and Rankings

We measure our success by the quality of our legal work and the value that it creates for our clients. Awards and rankings do not always reflect quality and value, but they are indicative of the standing of our project development and finance practice.

• The $3.9 billion BTC Pipeline project was named “Deal of the Decade 2001-2010” by Infrastructure Journal.
• The $16 billion PNG LNG project was named “Asia Pacific Deal of the Year” by Project Finance International, “Asia Pacific Oil and Gas Deal of the Year” by Project Finance, “Global Deal of the Year 2010” by Infrastructure Journal, “Australasian Law Awards: Project Finance Deal of the Year” by Asian Legal Business and “Energy Projects: Oil & Gas Team of the Year” at the Chambers USA Awards for Excellence 2010.
• The $823 million Boleo mining project was given the “Exploration and Development Funding Award” by Mining Journal and “Latin America Mining Deal of the Year” by Project Finance.
• The $4.14 billion Dolphin Energy cross-border project was named “Middle Eastern Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by Project Finance International, “Middle East Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by Project Finance and “Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by Infrastructure Journal.
• The $2.34 billion Esperanza copper, gold and silver project was named “Americas Mining Deal of the Year” by Project Finance International and “Latin American Mining & Metals Deal of the Year” by Project Finance.
• The $4.8 billion Yemen LNG project in Yemen was named “Global Deal of the Year” and “Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by Infrastructure Journal, “Middle East Oil & Gas Deal of the Year” by Project Finance International, “Middle East Oil & Gas Deal of the Year 2008” by Project Finance and “Project Finance Deal of the Year” by Asian-Counsel. S&C represented Yemen LNG Company Ltd.  Among other kudos, PFI noted that the project was “40 times greater than the average Yemeni large-scale investment and will be one of the top contributors to the macroeconomic growth and industrial development of Yemen for years.”
• The $3.3 billion Ambatovy nickel and cobalt project in Madagascar was named one of the “Deals of the Year 2007” by Trade Finance,  “African Mining Deal of the Year 2007” by Project Finance and “EMEA Mining Deal of the Year” in 2007 by Project Finance International. S&C represented the project company. Among other commendations, the project was noted as being “a new dawn for international investment in the continent” by PFI.
• The $1.6 billion Meadowlands stadium project in the United States was named “North American Leisure Deal of the Year” in 2007 by Project Finance.
• The Intersur Concesiones toll road project in Peru was named “Project Finance Deal of the Year” for 2007 by LatinLawyer. The IIRSA toll road is of significant strategic importance to Peru, and has been lauded for its unique approach to hedging risk with Peruvian government-backed obligation certificates. S&C represented Goldman Sachs.
• The $4.875 billion closing of the $7.0 billion Emirates Aluminium project in United Arab Emirates was named “EMEA Industry Deal of the Year” in 2007 by Project Finance International and “Middle East Manufacturing Deal of the Year 2007” by Euromoney Project Finance. S&C represented the project company. PFI noted that the project included a “two-fold bank loan and bond mandate, with the former aspect emerging as one of the major deal successes during the credit crunch.”
• The $2.35 billion Orient Overseas North American Container Terminals (aka Port Harbour) was named “North America Deal of the Year” in 2007 by Project Finance International and “North American Acquisition Deal of the Year” in 2007 by Project Finance. S&C represented Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board. PFI noted “[w]hen the deal came to market, it was the largest container terminal acquisition in North America and the largest North American port financing done in the syndicated loan market.”
• Infrastructure Journal’s “2007 Global League Tables” ranked S&C as tied for #1 in the “Top Mining Legal Adviser” category (for completed deals, ranked by value). S&C was also the top law firm advising on North American transport projects in 2007.

Sullivan & Cromwell’s Project Development and Finance Group has been cited for its excellence by the following publications in the past five years:

• Chambers Global
• Chambers UK
• Chambers USA
• Chambers Europe: Europe’s Leading Lawyers for Business
• IFLR 1000
• Infrastructure Journal
• Practical Law Company, PLC Which Lawyer? Yearbook
• The Legal 500 US: Corporate and Finance
• The European Legal 500
• The Legal 500, Europe, Middle East, and Africa 

Sullivan & Cromwell Project Development and Finance lawyers have been recognized as leaders in their field by the following publications in the past five years:

• The Legal 500 US: Corporate and Finance
• Chambers Global
• Chambers USA
• Chambers UK
• Euromoney, Guide to the World’s Leading Project Finance Lawyers
• Euromoney, Guide to the World’s Leading Energy and Natural Resources Lawyers
• IFLR 1000
• Law Business Research, An International Who’s Who of Business Lawyers
• Law Business Research, An International Who’s Who of Mining Lawyers
• Law Business Research, An International Who’s Who of Project Finance Lawyers
• Lawdragon
• Legalease/Legal Business, European Legal Experts
• New York Super Lawyers
• Practical Law Company, PLC Which Lawyer? Yearbook
• Woodward/White, The Best Lawyers in America