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Mark Richards

Mark Richards

Partner

London

Partner and Regional Practice Group Leader - Energy, Environment and Infrastructure

T: +44 (0) 20 3400 4603

M: +44 (0)7958 238781

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Biography

Mark is the EMEA Head of the Energy, Environment & Infrastructure Team with extensive experience in providing multi-disciplinary advice to public and private sector clients. Clients include Amber Infrastructure, 3i, Nord LB, Ingenious Renewable Energy and Barclays Bank.

He works on a wide range of high value, innovative and complex infrastructure projects and has been involved in some of the most high profile infrastructure deals, including the first PF2 transaction to close in the UK. Mark has particular experience in:

  • equity (including secondary market trades);
  • debt structures;
  • infrastructure fund trades;
  • leasing/structured finance; and
  • concession based structures.

As a non-executive director and global council member of the International Project Finance Association, Mark regularly writes chairs and addresses audiences on Global PPP and infrastructure structures. 

Areas of Focus

Data Centers & Digital Infrastructure Data Centers & Digital Infrastructure

Electric Vehicles & Charging Infrastructure Electric Vehicles & Charging Infrastructure

Environment Environment

Real Estate Real Estate

Finance Finance

  • Data Centers & Digital Infrastructure

  • Electric Vehicles & Charging Infrastructure

  • Environment

  • Real Estate

  • Finance

Civic Involvement & Honors

  • Chambers UK, Energy, Projects: Mainly Domestic, 2025
  • Legal 500 UK, Hall of Fame- Infrastructure: Project finance and development, 2026

Client Story

Client Story

Getting vertiport pioneer Skyports off the ground in Dubai

London based start-up Skyports Infrastructure has announced its pioneering ‘vertiport’ operations in Dubai in collaboration with Dubai’s Road and Transport Authority (RTA) and electric air taxi provider, Joby Aviation.

Read more Read more

  • Chambers UK, Projects: PFI/PPP, 2021
  • The Legal 500 UK, Infrastructure, 2021

Admissions

  • England and Wales
  • New York

Related Capabilities

  • Environment

  • Real Estate

  • ESG & Energy Transition

  • Nuclear

  • Renewables & Storage

  • Water & Utilities

  • Financial Institutions

  • Electric Vehicles & Charging Infrastructure

  • Infrastructure

  • Energy Transition

  • Finance

  • Public Sector

  • Data Centers & Digital Infrastructure

  • Aerospace & Defense

Experience

  • Renewable Energy - Advised a client on various renewable energy portfolios, leading on the financing and acquisition of US$150m of ground mounted solar and onshore wind assets.
  • Oil - Advised a national oil company on various financings including their USD$750m corporate facility and their various trade financing and commodities receivable transactions.
  • Schools - Advised Amber Infrastructure on their successful bid in the £2.4bn government-backed ‘Priority Schools Building Programme’ using a unique financing model of a bespoke pooled aggregator funding vehicle. The deal was awarded European Social Infrastructure Deal of the Year at the IJGlobal Awards.
  • Mersey Gateway Bridge - Advised 3i infrastructure on its investment into the Mersey Gateway Bridge, a public-private partnership project which involves the design, build, finance and operation of a 1km tolled bridge across the river Mersey in Liverpool.
  • Hamina-Vaalimaa motorway - Advised the Finnish Transport Agency on the construction of the €660m E18 Hamina-Vaalimaa motorway to carried out on a Public-Private Partnership project model. The Finnish Transport Agency is seeking competitive tenders for service contracts, which include financial planning, building design, road construction, and road maintenance.
  • UK Military Flight Training System - Advised UK Military Flight Training System (UKMFTS) leading the finance, equity and concession agreement negotiations on behalf of UKMFTS project team acting for the Ascent Consortium (Lockheed Martin Corporation and VT Group plc) in relation to the wholesale outsourcing of military flight training.

Related Insights

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Insights
Mar 11, 2026

Dispute resolution in data centre projects: Proactive strategies for a high-stakes environment

The lifecycle of a data centre, from land acquisition to operation, brings together significant capital investment, complex technical systems and layered contractual relationships. While earlier articles in this Insight Series have explored development, financing and transactional execution, an equally critical dimension is the proactive management and resolution of disputes.
Insights
Mar 09, 2026

Beyond the Battlefield: Private Equity, PPPs, and the Future of UK Defence Infrastructure?

BCLP is an international law firm with deep experience in defence and infrastructure investment, including international project financing and public-private partnership (PPP) transactions, committed to finding pragmatic and efficient solutions for our clients. In this article, we examine the opportunities for UK defence sector PPPs arising from the UK government’s Strategic Defence Review and what evolution in UK PPP models may be needed to promote effective private sector investment in UK defence infrastructure.
Insights
Mar 03, 2026

The rise of strategic joint ventures and alternative structures in data centre investment

The UK data centre sector has evolved into one of the most competitive and capital-intensive asset classes across global real estate and infrastructure. Delivering a single hyperscale facility, often requiring more than half a billion pounds of investment—alongside intense competition for powered land and lengthy grid connection timelines, has made the traditional single-developer financing model unsustainable. In response, a new era of, strategic partnerships have emerged. The market is dominated by complex joint ventures and alternative investment structures, designed to pool capital, allocate risks, and align the interests of specialist developers, institutional investors, and hyperscale tenants.
Insights
Nov 28, 2025

Regulatory and ESG challenges in the data centre sector: Building a sustainable future

This is the fifth in a ten-part article series on the legal strategies shaping the future of data centre development in the UK. The United Kingdom’s data centre sector is undergoing a profound transformation. Having established itself as a cornerstone of the nation's economy, the industry now faces its most complex challenge: adapting to an increasingly demanding regulatory and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) landscape. The sector's exponential growth, driven by the insatiable demand for data, has placed it under an intense spotlight. Its high power and water consumption, and the physical impact of large-scale facilities, have brought questions of sustainability and community impact to the forefront. Today, a data centre’s success is no longer measured solely by uptime or tenant covenant strength, but by its ability to maintain a social licence to operate. And this is granted not just by regulators, but by investors, tenants and local communities. These issues are central to risk management, value creation and long-term commercial strategy. Neglecting them can jeopardise financing, erode asset value and cause operational and reputational damage. This instalment of our Insight Series looks beyond individual transactions to the frameworks that shape the entire data centre lifecycle. We explore how leading developers and investors can turn regulatory and ESG pressures into opportunities to build more resilient, responsible and valuable assets.
Insights
Nov 24, 2025

Unlocking Value in UK Data Centre M&A Transactions

This is the fourth in a ten-part series exploring the critical legal strategies shaping the future of data centre development in the UK. The United Kingdom’s data centre market is undergoing a profound transformation. A forecast surge in demand for data centre capacity—driven by advancements in AI, cloud computing, and digital services—is expected to outstrip supply, even with recent government initiatives aimed at accelerating development. Key constraints remain, including lengthy grid connection timelines and a complex, often polarised planning system.  At the same time, data centres continue to attract long-term capital—including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, infrastructure funds, and REITs—thanks to their predictable, inflation-linked returns. Private equity investors have also been highly active, drawn by strong growth prospects and opportunities to consolidate fragmented markets. These dynamics have pushed valuations to record highs and sustained strong demand for UK data centre M&A, defying the slowdown in other real estate sectors post-pandemic. Against this backdrop, data centre M&A transactions are not merely high-value real estate deals; they demand familiarity with operational infrastructure, advanced technology, long-term service contracts, and complex regulatory issues. Executing such transactions successfully requires integrated expertise across M&A, energy, real estate, technology, regulatory, and finance. Understanding the legal and commercial anatomy of these deals is paramount for unlocking maximum value and mitigating inherent risks.

Related Insights

Insights
Apr 01, 2026
The Energy Nexus: Structuring Integrated Power and Data Centre Infrastructure
Awards
Mar 30, 2026
BCLP Shortlisted for Legal Advisor of the Year at the 2026 Partnerships Awards
Insights
Mar 11, 2026
Dispute resolution in data centre projects: Proactive strategies for a high-stakes environment
The lifecycle of a data centre, from land acquisition to operation, brings together significant capital investment, complex technical systems and layered contractual relationships. While earlier articles in this Insight Series have explored development, financing and transactional execution, an equally critical dimension is the proactive management and resolution of disputes.
Insights
Mar 09, 2026
Beyond the Battlefield: Private Equity, PPPs, and the Future of UK Defence Infrastructure?
BCLP is an international law firm with deep experience in defence and infrastructure investment, including international project financing and public-private partnership (PPP) transactions, committed to finding pragmatic and efficient solutions for our clients. In this article, we examine the opportunities for UK defence sector PPPs arising from the UK government’s Strategic Defence Review and what evolution in UK PPP models may be needed to promote effective private sector investment in UK defence infrastructure.
Insights
Mar 03, 2026
The rise of strategic joint ventures and alternative structures in data centre investment
The UK data centre sector has evolved into one of the most competitive and capital-intensive asset classes across global real estate and infrastructure. Delivering a single hyperscale facility, often requiring more than half a billion pounds of investment—alongside intense competition for powered land and lengthy grid connection timelines, has made the traditional single-developer financing model unsustainable. In response, a new era of, strategic partnerships have emerged. The market is dominated by complex joint ventures and alternative investment structures, designed to pool capital, allocate risks, and align the interests of specialist developers, institutional investors, and hyperscale tenants.
Insights
Feb 24, 2026
Structuring the next generation of data centre tenant agreements
Insights
Nov 28, 2025
Regulatory and ESG challenges in the data centre sector: Building a sustainable future
This is the fifth in a ten-part article series on the legal strategies shaping the future of data centre development in the UK. The United Kingdom’s data centre sector is undergoing a profound transformation. Having established itself as a cornerstone of the nation's economy, the industry now faces its most complex challenge: adapting to an increasingly demanding regulatory and Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) landscape. The sector's exponential growth, driven by the insatiable demand for data, has placed it under an intense spotlight. Its high power and water consumption, and the physical impact of large-scale facilities, have brought questions of sustainability and community impact to the forefront. Today, a data centre’s success is no longer measured solely by uptime or tenant covenant strength, but by its ability to maintain a social licence to operate. And this is granted not just by regulators, but by investors, tenants and local communities. These issues are central to risk management, value creation and long-term commercial strategy. Neglecting them can jeopardise financing, erode asset value and cause operational and reputational damage. This instalment of our Insight Series looks beyond individual transactions to the frameworks that shape the entire data centre lifecycle. We explore how leading developers and investors can turn regulatory and ESG pressures into opportunities to build more resilient, responsible and valuable assets.
Insights
Nov 28, 2025
UK Electricity Gridlock: Tackling the Connections Queue and Demand Projects
Insights
Nov 24, 2025
Unlocking Value in UK Data Centre M&A Transactions
This is the fourth in a ten-part series exploring the critical legal strategies shaping the future of data centre development in the UK. The United Kingdom’s data centre market is undergoing a profound transformation. A forecast surge in demand for data centre capacity—driven by advancements in AI, cloud computing, and digital services—is expected to outstrip supply, even with recent government initiatives aimed at accelerating development. Key constraints remain, including lengthy grid connection timelines and a complex, often polarised planning system.  At the same time, data centres continue to attract long-term capital—including pension funds, sovereign wealth funds, infrastructure funds, and REITs—thanks to their predictable, inflation-linked returns. Private equity investors have also been highly active, drawn by strong growth prospects and opportunities to consolidate fragmented markets. These dynamics have pushed valuations to record highs and sustained strong demand for UK data centre M&A, defying the slowdown in other real estate sectors post-pandemic. Against this backdrop, data centre M&A transactions are not merely high-value real estate deals; they demand familiarity with operational infrastructure, advanced technology, long-term service contracts, and complex regulatory issues. Executing such transactions successfully requires integrated expertise across M&A, energy, real estate, technology, regulatory, and finance. Understanding the legal and commercial anatomy of these deals is paramount for unlocking maximum value and mitigating inherent risks.