Sectors /
Energy Transition /

Power

Our lawyers have acted on several of the world’s leading power projects, working alongside major contractors and providing secondees to major contractors and system operators.

Advising on the building, ownership and operation of power plants takes sector-specific knowledge and experience. Our Energy group helps clients all over the world with all aspects of power generation, supply, transmission (including interconnectors), distribution and offtake.

We have considerable experience in project development, operation and financing agreements required for complex power projects in different parts of the world.

The BCLP team has detailed knowledge of various sub sectors within the power industry. For example, we advise on projects involving complex transmission and distribution systems. We advise clients including Governments, licensed operators of national grids and local distribution network operators, independent power producers, as well as utilities and leading energy companies from across the world, including those in the renewables sector. Our lawyers also have experience assisting developers involved with distributed generation, microgeneration and microgrids.

The BCLP team includes lawyers who focus on infrastructure finance, non-contentious construction, contentious construction, commercial dispute resolution, engineering, and regulatory and environmental advice. Our lawyers pool knowledge across jurisdictions, helping to provide clients with a smooth and efficient service.

We act for a number of power purchasers and power distributors on the offtake side. Our clients include regulatory bodies in multiple jurisdictions. We have worked on a number of large power plants transactions across the globe, in each instance applying detailed knowledge of offtake arrangements both in terms of project economics and due operation of the facilities.

Advised a Greek energy company on the development and financing of a 400MW combined cycle power plant in Greece.
Advising a big 6 utility in the UK on various electricity supply arrangements including the innovative use of battery storage technology.
Advising on the planning aspects of the UK-France High Voltage AC and DC Interconnector running through the Channel Tunnel.
Represented a trading and investment business conglomerate as the foreign sponsor and equipment supplier on its bid for the greenfield construction of a 2x660MW power plant project, including drafting and conducting negotiations on the PPA and operation and management agreement.

News & Insights

Insights
Mar 20, 2025

The data center power crunch: how businesses and governments are addressing energy demands

Insights
Jul 10, 2023

Achieving Net Zero – Regulation of District and Communal Heating and Cooling and Impact on the Real Estate Sector

This is our first insight on new regulation that will affect the district/communal heating and cooling sector. It focuses on consumer protection and the impact on building owners/landlords and management companies. Our second insight to be released shortly will focus on the regulations that will affect new property developments and in particular those in “Heat Network Zones”. The district/communal heating/cooling sector is to be fully regulated in the UK as from late 2023/early 2024. Consumer protection is at the forefront of the changes. Heat/cooling suppliers (entities contractually obliged to provide heat/cooling) and heat/cooling network operators will need to be “authorised” to carry out those activities. Heat/cooling networks, for the purpose of regulation, will comprise direct heat/cooling networks and communal heat networks. From early/mid 2024 OFGEM will oversee and enforce requirements opposite heat/cooling suppliers and heat/cooling network operators in respect of: authorisations to carry out those activities; reliability of the supply of heating, hot water and cooling; the reasonableness of charges for those supplies; reduction of emissions of targeted greenhouse gases generated by heat/cooling networks; and plain communication to customers about services and charges. This will impose a significant regulatory burden on a sector that hitherto has been able to operate in a broadly unregulated environment. Many building owners, landlords and management companies will – perhaps unwittingly and unwillingly - fall into the category of a regulated heat/cooling supplier or heat/cooling network operator. If so they will need to keep abreast of the evolving regulatory landscape, review their current arrangements to check regulatory compliance and if required create an action plan to ensure compliance.

Awards
Sep 28, 2022

Legal 500 UK 2023

Awards
October 5, 2021

Legal 500 UK 2022

Insights
May 13, 2016

Show me the CATO! Funding and financing - one follows the other: Volume 3

The third in a series of articles exploring the competitively appointed transmission owners (CATO) regime. This update details the revenue stream structure associated with these projects.

Insights
Mar 29, 2016

CATO - Better Late than never? Volume 2

The second in a series of articles exploring the competitively appointed transmission owners (CATO) regime. This update highlights the difference between Ofgem’s two development models proposed in its consultation – ‘early’ and ‘late’.