Jorge Kamine is a partner in the Corporate & Financial Services Department and Co-Chair of the Project Finance & Investment Practice Group. Mr. Kamine focuses his practice on a wide range of transactions in the energy and infrastructure sector globally with a particular emphasis on the debt and equity financing of projects and the structuring, acquisition and divestment of investments in a broad array of energy and infrastructure projects and assets. He has broad experience across the energy industry, including specific experience with renewable and conventional power and transmission, LNG, hydrogen, and biofuels, and with public-private partnerships and investments in transportation and other non-energy infrastructure. He is also a member of the Latin America Practice Group.
Mr. Kamine has extensive debt finance experience advising a wide variety of developers, strategic and financial sponsors, and lenders in project financings and the financing of portfolios of energy and infrastructure projects, development companies and platforms. He also has substantial experience with other forms of highly structured secured and unsecured debt and equity financing structures often involving first-of-its-kind and innovative structures.
Mr. Kamine has had extensive M&A experience representing both buyers and sellers in a wide range of equity and asset sale transactions, including auction and private sale settings and acquisitions and divestitures involving distressed and bankrupt companies. He has also had significant experience structuring and negotiating a variety of strategic equity investments, joint ventures, shareholder and investment agreements and other corporate transactions related to the development and operation of energy and infrastructure projects.
Mr. Kamine also has substantial project development experience that spans the entire life cycle of projects, particularly as it relates to advising clients participating in government-sponsored tenders for energy and infrastructure concessions and offtake contracts, structuring cross-border investments, negotiating EPC and material supply contracts, and obtaining political risk insurance.
His geographic experience includes work on matters in over 25 countries throughout the world with significant experience handling matters and transactions across the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean.
He is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese, and regularly negotiates in those languages.
Mr. Kamine is ranked in the Chambers USA and Global Guides for his work on projects in the energy sector. He has also been named to Latinvex's "Top 100 Lawyers" for Latin America and in The Legal 500 Private Practice Powerlist: US-Mexico and recognized by Latin Lawyer 250, Best Lawyers, and The Legal 500: Latin America for his project finance, energy and infrastructure sector work.
He is a frequent speaker and panelist at various industry and academic conferences and seminars on topics related to project finance, energy and infrastructure projects and energy policies in Latin America and the United States. He is also a frequent contributor to the Inter-American Dialogue's Latin America Advisor and Latin America Energy Advisor as well as Latinvex, LatinFinance and Latin Lawyer magazines.
Experience
Prior to joining Willkie, Mr. Kamine was an attorney at Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and in the Latin America and the Caribbean practice group of The World Bank.
- Mr. Kamine has been listed as a Recommended Lawyer for Renewable/Alternative Power, Legal 500 United States
- Mr. Kamine has been listed as a Notable Practitioner by IFLR for the category of Project Finance
- Mr. Kamine has been recognized by Best Lawyers in the area of Project Finance
- Mr. Kamine has been recognized by Chambers Global in the Projects – USA category and Chambers USA in the Projects - USA – Nationwide category
- Mr. Kamine has been recognized by Latin Lawyer 250 and The Legal 500: Latin America for his project finance, energy and infrastructure sector work in the region
- Mr. Kamine has been named to Latinvex's "Top 100 Lawyers" for Latin America for excellence in the area of Energy and Project Finance
- Mr. Kamine has been recognized among the leading U.S.-based counsel active in the Mexican market as part of The Legal 500’s 2022 Private Practice Powerlist: US-Mexico.
In addition to his practice of law, Mr. Kamine has long been active and in leadership positions in a number of organizations and associations, particularly those involved with the Latinx community, international law, international development, foreign policy, energy, and alumni of his law school, including most notably:
- American Bar Association (Co-Chair, Project Finance and Development Subcommittee of the Business Law Section)
- American Society of International Law (Corresponding Editor, International Legal Materials and Advisory Board, Latin America Interest Group)
- Consejo Mexicano de Asuntos Internacionales (COMEXI) (Member)
- Council on Foreign Relations (Member)
- Harvard Law School Association (Member, Latino Alumni Committee)
- Harvard Law School Association of the District of Columbia (Past President and Founding Board Member)
- Harvard Law & International Development Society (Board of Advisors)
- Hispanic Bar Association of Houston (Past President and Board Member)
- Inter-American Dialogue (Member of Board of Advisors for the Latin America Energy Advisor)
- Law360 Project Finance editorial advisory board (Board member, 2021- 2023)
Mr. Kamine's recent publications have included:
- Co-author “Long Term for US Renewable Offtakes,” Project Finance International (December 19, 2023)
- Co-author, “Renewable Energy Country Comparative Guide,” The Legal 500 (June 9, 2023)
- Interviewee, "Latin America Energy: Renewables Drives Growth," Latinvex (March 8, 2023)
- Panelist, “CCUS: A Tracking Transition Series,” Energy Voice (January 18, 2023)
- Co-author, “Renewable Energy Country Comparative Guide,” The Legal 500 (July 20, 2022)
- Co-author, "US Investors Stand To Benefit From Brazil's New Forex Law," Law360 (April 1, 2022)
- Co-author, "Chile Aims to Win Green Hydrogen Race," Project Finance International (February 17, 2021)
- Mr. Kamine has been a frequent speaker and panelist at various conferences and seminars on topics related to energy projects and policies in Latin America and the United States, particularly with respect to the financing of renewable energy projects.
Among other transactions, Mr. Kamine worked on the following notable transactions*:
Project Finance and Other Finance Transactions
- Arevia Power, a U.S. renewable energy developer, in its $150 million senior secured loan facility with warrants to pay for development expenses, overhead and other working capital needs from Global Atlantic, an affiliate of KKR and GCM Grosvenor.
- Bank of America Merrill Lynch in:
- a $1.4 billion loan facility for multiple rooftop solar projects with a loan guarantee from the U.S. Department of Energy for NRG Energy and Prologis' Project Amp, which was named "Finance Innovation of the Year" by Renewable Energy World; and
- a loan facility for SolarCity's SolarStrong project, which involved the installation of more than $1 billion in solar power installations for privatized U.S. military housing, and was recognized by the Financial Times U.S. Innovative Lawyers report.
- Caliche Development Partners on a multi-draw, senior secured debt facility of up to $150 million with Orion Energy Partners to support the construction of its subsurface salt cavern storage complex in Texas
- Foundation Credit in connection with:
- its role as a lead lender, in the restructuring, bridge financing and foreclosure sale of the Red Rocks Biofuels project to NEXT Renewable Fuels, Inc., a next generation fuels company dedicated to sustainably producing clean, low-carbon fuels that intends to redevelop the renamed Lakeview RNG project to convert forest waste into renewable natural gas and clean hydrogen; and
- its role as a holder of preferred stock in NEXT Renewable Fuels, Inc., including in evaluating a proposed SPAC transaction and the capital raising strategy for NEXT especially as it relates to the Lakeview RNG project.
- MUFG Bank, Ltd., as lead arranger, administrative agent and collateral agent, in connection with a new holding company secured credit facility and the repricing and extension of an existing revolving and term senior secured credit facilities for the 620 MW, gas-fired Kleen Energy power plant in Connecticut.
- Panamint Capital, an energy transition platform, in structuring and negotiating new investment structure and equity and debt investments and commitments totaling over $2 billion from an affiliate of Global Atlantic, an insurance company subsidiary of KKR
- Peru LNG S.R.L. and its four sponsors in the financing of their $3.8 billion liquefied natural gas export project in Peru and a 408-kilometer pipeline that connects to an existing pipeline network east of the Andes, which was named "Best Energy Deal of the Year" by LatinFinance and "Latin America Deal of the Year" by Project Finance International.
- Sites del Perú S.A.C., a subsidiary of Sitios Latinoamérica, S.A.B. de C.V., in its inaugural offering of S/872 million ($235 million equivalent) in Senior Notes.
- Sonnedix in the project financing of the 150 MW Atacama Solar PV plant, its first merchant solar project in Chile.
- SunEdison, Inc. in:
- structuring and negotiating of a $500 million third-party equity commitment facility from First Reserve Corporation, for SunEdison's first-of-its-kind, US$1.5 billion "warehouse" debt financing facility for the construction of renewable energy projects; and
- several financings of utility-scale solar projects in Chile and Honduras with an aggregate installed capacity of more than 200 MW and totaling approximately $500 million in debt financing from various multilateral development banks, climate funds and commercial banks, including a project named by IJGlobal as the “Latin American Solar deal of the Year” for 2014.
M&A, Joint Ventures and Cross-Border Investments
- Arroyo Energy Group in its acquisition of operational and development-stage natural gas-fired power projects in Mexico.
- First Solar, Inc. in a range of M&A and other commercial transactions in relation to the expansion of its solar energy business in sub-Saharan Africa.
- Haddington Ventures on the creation of a $650 million equity syndication program to finance construction of the world's largest green hydrogen platform; this transaction won the “Net-Zero Transition Award” at the IFLR Americas Awards 2023 and was named “Deal of the Year for Oil & Gas – Hydrogen – North America” at the IJGlobal Awards 2022.
- Odinsa S.A., a major developer of transportation projects in South America, in the following transactions:
- the sale of a 50% stake in certain of its toll road assets in Colombia to a Macquarie Asset Management fund and the formation of a new infrastructure platform, establishing one of the largest transportation infrastructure partnerships in Latin America and representing a significant investment for roads infrastructure in Colombia and the region. Named “Deal of the Year: M&A” at The Legal 500 Colombia Awards 2024; and
- the sale of a 50% stake in certain of its airport concessions in Colombia and Ecuador to a Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) affiliate as part of the expansion of the infrastructure platform the two partners formed to operate and develop their South American road projects; through this multi-stage sale, Odinsa extends its strategic partnership with MAM into a new sector (airport concessions) and jurisdiction (Ecuador).
- STOA on its acquisition of a 12.3% equity stake, alongside Acciona, in Concessionária Linha Universidade S.A (Linha Uni), the project company to whom the São Paulo Metro Line 6 concession contract was awarded; this transaction was named “Project Finance Deal of the Year” at the IFLR Americas Awards 2023 and “Deal of the Year for Transport - Latin America” at the IJGlobal Awards 2022.
- SunEdison in numerous M&A transactions, including:
- the restructuring and sale of approximately 578 MW operating solar projects and 1,000 MW of solar development assets located in Brazil, Chile, Honduras, Mexico and Uruguay to Actis, which was named Restructuring of the Year for 2017 by LatinFinance and Latin America M&A Deal of the Year by Power Finance & Risk;
- the restructuring and sale of its global residential solar business including its Australian business to Flextronics International Ltd.; and
- the structuring and design of first-of-their-kind, warehouse facilities, designed to finance the construction and acquisition of a pipeline of renewable energy projects.
Pro Bono
Mr. Kamine has made a long-standing commitment to pro bono, including, among other representations, the representation of a new initiative incubated by Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisers to develop a holistic, programmatic approach to make the global fashion industry more sustainable, a nonprofit making strategic investments in Nepal to rebuild infrastructure and promote microenterprises, a bilateral donor in the structuring, negotiating and administering approximately $20 million in development projects in Haiti. He has also worked on asylum cases, the formation of new U.S.-based nonprofits, and many other pro bono activities intended to give back to his local, national and global community.
*Mr. Kamine advised on certain of these matters prior to joining Willkie.
Credentials
Education
Harvard Law School, J.D., 1998 Rice University, B.A. (cum laude), 1995
Bar Admissions
Court Admissions
United States Supreme Court