Womble Bond Dickinson (UK) LLP

Partner

Francisco Balduzzi specializes in cross-border and international corporate, commercial, investment transactions and disputes with a substantive focus in Latin America. He has extensive experience in the Energy and Natural Resources (ENR) sector, particularly within the energy service (oil, gas, and power), metal and mining industries. Currently, Francisco is a member of the Firm's Global Energy Leadership team, co-chair of the Mining Practice Group and a core member of the Latin American Practice Group.

In his previous roles, Francisco served as in-house counsel for multinational companies operating in the ENR sector. Most recently, he held the position of Head of Legal LATAM and Asia Pacific for one of the world's largest gold mining companies. Before that, he spent over a decade at a global consulting and engineering company, where he held various regional and global positions, including Group Assistant General Counsel. Throughout these roles, Francisco gained extensive experience aligning legal strategies with business needs and objectives, implementing training programs to proactively manage risk and developing strategies to achieve cost-efficient legal results for clients.

Francisco has provided advice to senior management and boards on various matters, including structuring mergers and acquisitions, project development, global legal entity rationalizations, joint ventures, new country entry, foreign investments and currency restrictions. Additionally, he has managed complex international disputes, conducted negotiations with foreign governments and developed global and multijurisdictional strategies to address clients' legal issues. With his geographic experience spanning across continents, Francisco has worked in countries such as Angola, Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Guatemala, Guyana, Israel, Mexico, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad & Tobago, Uruguay, the United States and Venezuela.

Spanish, Portuguese

Currently, Francisco serves as an Officer at the International Bar Association Mining Law Committee. He has also held leadership positions as the former president of the Houston Chapter of the Association of Corporate Counsel and the board of directors at the Instituto Argentino del Petroleo & Gas in Houston. Additionally, Francisco was the co-chair of the Northwestern University Pritzker School of Law Alumni Club in Houston.