Welcome to the Spring edition of Focus on Latin America, a quarterly publication where lawyers from across our Latin America practice cover key legal issues and developments driving the region’s major industries.
Avianca’s Future Flow Financing – Not Quite Déjà Vu. Discover how the Colombian airline Aerovias Nacionales de Colombia S.A. – Avianca (“Avianca”), which had filed for U.S. Chapter 11 protection, reached a settlement with the lenders to its existing future flow receivables transaction that will result in a restructured loan facility.
Watershed Bond Issuance for Grupo Elektra Subsidiary. This article analyzesNueva Elektra del Milenio’s Rule 144A/Regulation S capital markets offering in January 2021 which featured a future flow offshore structure, excellent coverage levels, and a parent guarantee that resulted in an historic and landmark transaction for Nueva Elektra del Milenio, Mexico and Latin America.
Cross-Border M&A in Latin America During Pandemic Times. As in many areas of the world economy, COVID-19 dramatically disrupted the otherwise steady growth of Latin American cross-border M&A activity. As the market slowly begins to return, participants should consider the potential challenges that will likely emerge in the new environment.
New Mexican Power Regulatory Framework – Defense Mechanisms Available to Investors. The current government launched an attack against the electricity legal framework established by its predecessor. The new framework reflects a major change in policy concerning the participation of the private sector in Mexico’s electricity industry, which could endanger billions of dollars in investments, the creation of thousands of jobs and could result in the emission of thousands of additional tons of CO2.
Look Before You Leap: Are Your Oil Patch Liability Clauses Enforceable? An Analysis Under Civil Law Jurisdictions with Emphasis on Brazil. Among the many risks of doing business in the oil and gas industry, perhaps the most precarious is wellsite liability, which has the potential for participants to spend more time litigating mishaps than finding and producing oil. This article analyzes common risks of a civil law jurisdiction to a Wellsite Contract.
No, Mexico is Not Turning Into Venezuela. Following the Mexican government’s latest initiative to amend the Hydrocarbons Law, concerns about Mexico following in Venezuela’s footsteps to undo the energy reform are growing. It is important to keep in mind certain key differences between Venezuela and Mexico and how each country opened its oil and gas industry to private investment. This will help us understand the process that is underway in Mexico and the likelihood of the government’s success in undoing the energy reform, further discussed in this article. Spoiler alert…Mexico is not Venezuela.
