Five energy lawyers from Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) joined King & Spalding’s Paris office, led by former head of the North Africa practice at HSF Mehdi Haroun. King & Spalding wants to expand its practice into the field of energy with capabilities across Europe and North Africa.
Haroun is a dual-qualified French and Algerian lawyer and has particular experience in matters in France and North Africa. Additionally, the team added Philippe Trosset and Ruxandra Lazar, both counsels, and associates Nora Djeraba and Marion Morvan, recently joined by Raphaële Bouniol, an associate from French law firm Darrois Villey Maillot Brochier.
Haroun and the group regularly advise clients on their operations in North Africa, including OMV on its $866 million purchase of Pioneer Natural Resources in Tunisia, BHP Billiton, RWE Dea, and BAT. They also represent Tullow on a first-of-its-kind gas-to-power project in Mauritania; DONG Energy in the first French offshore wind-farm project (1,500 MW); and Solar Euromed on the first French CSP project. They also advised Solar Euromed and BAT on project development/acquisition in Sudan.
"North Africa is an increasingly important region in the international energy market and a region where King & Spalding has been very active in recent years, with instructions in countries such as Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Libya," Kenneth S. Culotta, leader of the firm’s global transactions practice, said. "As France, along with other EU countries, struggles to meet its need for energy resources and its ambitious climate goals, it also offers significant project opportunities. Mehdi and his team add even more strength to our practice in Europe and elsewhere. They have hit the ground running and are working closely with our Middle East, London and U.S. offices on several matters."
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