Andy Sears-Black is an associate in the London office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher. He currently practices with the firm’s Projects and Infrastructure practice group.
Andy has a broad practice advising corporations, government-owned entities and financial institutions on a range of energy and infrastructure-related project development and financing transactions, with experience in renewables and energy transition, conventional power and water, and upstream, midstream and downstream sectors.
Prior to joining Gibson Dunn, Andy trained and practised in the London office of a major international law firm. He received his undergraduate Physics degree from Imperial College London, postgraduate diploma in Economics from Queens’ College, Cambridge, and GDL and LPC MSc from The University of Law.
Andy is admitted to practice in England and Wales.
Representative Transactions:
Energy and Power
- Hydro REIN, a renewable energy solutions company in the Nordics and Brazil, on its acquisition of an 80% stake in a portfolio of 25 wind power projects in Sweden and Norway from IOWN Renewable Energy.
- NEOM Company, Saudi Arabia’s new city gigaproject development company, on a $6.5 billion green energy joint venture with ACWA Power and Air Products that will incorporate the region’s largest wind and solar renewables production projects (4 GW in total), more than 400 MW of battery storage and a ground-breaking green hydrogen /green ammonia export project. This was awarded Green Project of the Year at the Global Hydrogen Summit, 2021.
- Hydro REIN in connection with behind-the-meter energy solutions to industrial customers, including solar power generation, battery energy storage systems and other energy efficiency solutions.
- The lenders on the $12.5 billion joint venture for the Jazan IGCC / ASU project, that largest grey hydrogen project in the world, which closed in October 2021 and was awarded Global Deal of the Year at the PFI Awards, 2021 and MENA Hybrid Energy Deal of the Year at the IJGlobal Awards, 2021.
- The Dow Chemical Company on all aspects, of the joint venture between Dow and Al Hejailan group to build a plant producing 12 KTA of polyacrylic acid dispersants (PAA) and 28 KTA of emulsions in Saudi Arabia.
- Masdar and PJB on the development and financing of Southeast Asia’s largest floating solar power plant (145 MW) in the Cirata reservoir, West Java, Indonesia. Awarded Asia-Pacific Solar Deal of the Year by the PFI Awards, 2021, Renewable Energy Deal of the Year by The Asset Triple A Asia Infrastructure Awards, 2022.
- The Dow Chemical Company on the $10.5 billion financial and commercial restructuring of its joint venture with Saudi Aramco in relation to the $20 billion world-scale integrated Sadara chemicals complex (including ammonia production) in Saudi Arabia. The project involved a large number of ECAs, including K-EXIM, K-Sure, Hermes, US Ex-Im and UKEF, more than 30 commercial banks and multiple Islamic tranches. Awarded MENA Petrochemicals Deal of the Year at the IJGlobal Awards, 2021.
- The lenders, including IFC, on the development and financing of a programme of 6 wind farms in Pakistan.
- KfW-IPEX on the financing of the GNA I LNG-to-power project in Brazil.
- ADB, IsDB and other lenders on the financing of the 50MW FWEL-I and 50MW FWEL-II wind power projects in Sindh, Pakistan.
- CGIF as guarantor to the 480bn IDR ($34m) three- and five-year bond and sukuk issuances by Polytama Propindo in Indonesia.
Capabilities
- Projects
- Energy Regulation and Litigation
- Energy and Infrastructure
- Infrastructure
- Mergers and Acquisitions
- Oil and Gas
- Power and Renewables
- Private Equity
Credentials
Education:
- University of Law - 2019 LPC MSc in Law, Business and Management
- University of Law - 2018 Graduate Diploma in Law
- Queens' College - University of Cambridge - 2017 Advanced Diploma in Economics
- Imperial College London - 2016 Bachelor of Science
Admissions:
- England & Wales - Solicitor