Infrastructure and energy
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Pinsent Masons LLP
Stacey is a highly-rated construction and engineering specialist, operating in the energy and infrastructure sectors. He regularly works for major clients such as Drax Power, Hanson, Morgan Sindall and the Renew Group. Examples of the high-profile projects he advises on include: advising Drax Power Limited – as part of the White Rose Consortium (who are one of the two remaining bidders for the flagship Government £1 billion Carbon Capture and Storage Commercialisation Project) and also on the construction and engineering aspects of their £650 million+ Biomass Conversion Project to convert half of their 4,000MW power plant to run on sustainable biomass; advising Hanson in relation to substantial process plant, infrastructure, supply, demolition and build contracts across the UK; advising Viridor Laing (Greater Manchester) Limited in connection with the Greater Manchester Waste PFI worth £3billion, the largest Energy from Waste PPP in Europe; advising the funders on the project and construction documents for the Oldham Social Housing PFI and Lambeth Social Housing PFI (each worth over £100m), involving the construction or refurbishment and management of housing (associated facilities); advising a UK-wide infrastructure business on the long-term manufacture and supply of materials to the Nuclear industry; advising the operator of a non-UK substantial off-shore gas-field on multi-million pound contracts for project management, subsea and installation works associated with upstream gas-field development; advising the Green Frog Group in relation a multi-contract procurement worth over £70 million for the design, supply, installation and testing of power generators (and related mechanical and electrical works) to provide power to the National Grid. He has market-leading experience of advising public and private sector clients in relation to local and international projects (including: methods of procurement, funding structures, guarantees, bonds and bespoke sub-contracts). He regularly advises on bespoke EPC and O&M Contracts (including for project-financed projects), as well as contracts based on FIDIC, LOGIC, IChemE, NEC, ICC, JCT, MF1 and other suites of standard forms. His clients include; government departments, local authorities, universities, developers, funders, contractors, sub-contractors, employers, purchasers and tenants.
![Melanie Grimmitt](/cdn-cgi/image/width=256/https://www.legal500.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2023/07/1555_1196703.jpg)
Pinsent Masons LLP
Melanie is a partner who has specialised in construction law for over 15 years. Melanie has worked on energy and infrastructure projects in the UK and internationally and devised, drafted and negotiated complex and innovative contract structures. Melanie leads the team advising on the construction contracts for the London Array Offshore Wind Farm (the world’s largest offshore wind farm in operation) and is currently advising on another three offshore wind projects. In addition Melanie is very active in the nuclear sector, particularly nuclear decommissioning projects, acting for the NDA and private sector clients. Melanie has drafted and advised on contracts across the suite of standard forms and devised framework arrangements and incentive mechanics for accommodation, IT, energy efficiency, water and energy projects.
Next Generation Partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
![Christian Hellmund](/cdn-cgi/image/width=256/https://www.legal500.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2022/08/Christian-Hellmund-2-Purple-copy.jpg)
Clarion
Partner. Christian is a non-contentious energy lawyer and a partner in Clarion’s Energy & Projects team. Prior to joining Clarion, Christian spent six years at an international law firm advising on a number of high-profile energy and low carbon transactions.
During his career, Christian also spent considerable time advising National Grid Gas Plc’s gas transmission and distribution business, Scottish Power’s Energy Management team and Drax Power’s Fuel Procurement and Trading team while being there on secondment.
Christian advises on a wide range of national and international energy and infrastructure projects including electricity and gas transmission, distribution and supply, energy from waste (EfW), distributed and embedded power generation, decentralised energy solutions, district energy (incl. district heating), energy storage as well as renewables projects such as solar pv, onshore wind, hydro, bioenergy (incl. biomass, anaerobic digestion (AD) and biofuels).
He advises project developers, investors, energy suppliers, utilities, public authorities, housing associations, asset/land owners and equipment manufacturers in a number of sectors ranging from food & drink, retail, hospitality, leisure, construction, manufacturing, transport and many others.
![James Wood-Robertson](/cdn-cgi/image/width=256/https://www.legal500.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2020/02/James-Wood-Robertson.jpg)
Shoosmiths LLP
James is an experienced commercial infrastructure lawyer, who has advised on major capital projects across a variety of sectors in the UK and overseas, including energy from waste, renewable energy, transport, education, health, leisure, and serviced accommodation.
James is a recognised specialist in the waste sector having advised at procuring authority, sponsor or funder level on more than twenty waste PPP projects in the UK, Europe, the GCC and Africa. In recent years, James has advised on a significant number of renewable energy projects, including the acquisition, disposal, financing and refinancing of onshore wind and large scale solar PV projects and rooftop solar PV schemes involving local authorities and housing associations. He also has considerable experience of advising generators, end-users/off-takers and licensed suppliers on power purchase agreements, including corporate/end-user PPAs and heat supply agreements and district heating projects.
His recent experience includes:
advising a West Yorkshire local authority on the procurement of its waste management PPP project and advising a major UK waste business on its successful bid for a waste PPP project in Scotland;
advising a leading Chinese solar manufacturer and developer on the drafting and negotiation of EPC and O&M contracts on several ground-mounted solar PV projects and advising on the disposal of its developed sites;
advising Taiwan's leading solar PV panel manufacturer on all of its UK housing association rooftop solar PV projects;
advising a leading UK bank on the negotiation and completion of its power purchase agreement with an operator of a portfolio of landfill gas power plants, which provides sufficient electricity to meet 20% of the bank's energy requirements;
advising an onshore wind developer on its end-user power purchase agreements with two large corporates and advising the developer and funder of a large onshore wind farm in Scotland on its Contract for Difference (CfD) PPA;
advising a national infrastructure business on heat supply agreements with a school and a residential development in respect of heat generated by the transformers in a major substation being constructed in Highbury, North London; and
advising the UK’s leading airline on its project agreement governing its move from the North Terminal to the South Terminal at Gatwick.
![John Bruce](/cdn-cgi/image/width=256/https://www.legal500.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2023/07/1555_1196709.jpg)
Pinsent Masons LLP
John is a Finance & Projects Partner specialising in the delivery of complex infrastructure and energy projects both in the UK and internationally, acting for procuring authorities, private sector sponsors and funding vehicles.