概览
孖士打(Mayer Brown)擅长将公私合作伙伴关系结构应用到美国大型基础设施资产之中,是该领域业界公认的领导者,也是全球客户首选的法律服务提供者。我们擅长将公私合作伙伴关系(PPP)结构应用到大型基础设施资产之中,是该领域的领导者。我们在许多开创性交易中担任法律顾问,处理的交易涉及高速公路、收费公路、铁路网、停车场、机场、港口的长期特许经营权及开发。
我们被《基础设施投资者》2014-2016年刊评为北美年度最佳基础设施律师事务所,被《钱伯斯美国》和《钱伯斯环球》2018年刊评为PPP项目第一等律所。《钱伯斯》指出,我们通过担任政府机构、发起人、贷款人以及承保人的法律顾问积累了深厚经验,在众多具有市场领先地位的美国基础设施业务团队中拥有独一无二的优势,洞察基础设施交易各方面要求。
我们的基础设施核心服务团队由经验丰富的律师组成,他们经常代表政府机构处理基础设施及其他交易事项,其中多位律师曾在政府机构担任法律或政策职务。我们还就与基础设施项目相关的《交通运输基础设施金融创新法案》(TIFIA)、私募债券融资以及监管事宜与联邦政府进行接洽。我们了解政府机构面临的独特问题,也深知政府间关系的敏感性,特别是当具体项目涉及到联邦、州及地方层级的复杂事宜时。
执业经验
Our experience spans across all major asset sectors, including:
- Roads/Bridges
- Airports
- Marine Ports
- Parking
- Mass Transit
- Social Infrastructure/Government Services
In these projects, we represent public sector entities, sponsors, lenders and underwriters. Examples of our experience in these sectors are highlighted below.
Roads/Bridges
- BOT Western Harbour Crossing. We advised Western Harbour Tunnel Company Limited, a joint-venture company, on tender documents and negotiations with Hong Kong SAR Government on the terms and conditions leading to the Hong Kong SAR Government’s grant of a 30-year franchise for the build-operate-transfer (BOT) Western Harbour Crossing project.
- Chicago Skyway. We acted as counsel for the City of Chicago in all aspects of the long-term concession lease of the Chicago Skyway, with a consortium of Cintra Concesiones de Infraestructuras de Transporte, S.A. and Macquarie Infrastructure Group, for $1.83 billion. This ground-breaking transaction was the first long-term lease and concession of an existing toll road or toll bridge or other major infrastructure asset in the United States. The transaction was named 2004 North American Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
- England A1 Road. We advised the successful bidder for the design, build, finance and operation (DBFO) contract for the A1 (Darrington to Dishforth) road in the north of England, a PFI project with a capital value of approximately £240 million.
- Indiana Toll Road. We acted as co-counsel for the State of Indiana in the $3.8 billion long-term lease of the Indiana Toll Road to a Cintra-Macquarie consortium. The project was named 2006 North American Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
- Knik Arm Bridge. We are sponsor’s counsel to a proposer in connection with the PPP project to design, construct, finance, operate and maintain the Knik Arm Crossing, a planned toll bridge and roadway crossing in Alaska to be constructed through an availability payment PPP.
- London A13 Highway. We advised the preferred bidder for the design, build, finance and operation (DBFO) contract for the A13 Highway in East London (the A13 Thames Gateway), a PFI project with a capital value of £200 million.
- Northwest Parkway. We acted as counsel to the Northwest Parkway Public Highway Authority in Colorado in a 99-year, $603 million concession and lease agreement for the Northwest Parkway, a toll road in the northwest suburbs of Denver, with a consortium of the Portuguese toll road operator Brisa Auto-Estradas de Portugal, S.A. and the Brazilian toll road operator Companhia de Concessoes Rodoviarias. The transaction was named 2007 North American Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
- Pennsylvania Turnpike. We served as co-counsel to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the proposed long-term concession and lease of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. In 2008, the Commonwealth received a bid of $12.8 billion in connection with the turnpike, the highest bid ever received on an infra¬structure transaction in the United States.
- São Paulo Beltway. We acted for the principal sponsor, Companhia de Concessoes Rodoviarias, and the concessionaire, Concessionaria do Rodoanel Oeste S.A., in connection with the $1.5 billion long-term limited recourse project financing of the Mario Covas Ringroad in São Paulo, Brazil. This deal was named 2009 Transport Deal of the Year by Project Finance International and Project Finance.
Airports
- Chicago Midway International Airport. We are acting as lead transaction counsel for the City of Chicago in the long-term concession lease of Midway Airport. In September 2008, the City received a winning bid of $2.521 billion from a consortium comprising Citi Infrastructure Investors, an affiliate of the Vancouver Airport Authority and John Hancock Life Insurance. In April 2009, the Concession Agreement with this consortium was terminated because of its inability to finance and make the upfront rent payment required under the agreement. The City of Chicago has announced its continued intent to complete the transaction.
- Hong Kong Airport. We acted for Cathay Pacific Airways Limited in the award of a BOT concession from the Hong Kong Airport Authority for the construction and operation of the second cargo terminal at Hong Kong International Airport.
- San Juan Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport. We are counsel to the Puerto Rico Public-Private Partnerships Authority, a governmental authority of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, with respect to a proposed public-private partnership transaction involving the Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, Puerto Rico’s major airport and a gateway to the Caribbean.
Marine Ports
- China Terminal. We acted for River Trade Terminal Limited in relation to a HK$4.2 billion limited recourse project financing to design, development, construction, completion, management and operation of the Tuen Mun River Trade Terminal.
- Chilean Seaport. We acted for DEG (German Investment and Development Company, a subsidiary of the KfW banking group) and other lenders in connection with the project financing of the privatization of the Chilean seaport of Valparaiso.
- Port of Portland. We represented the Port of Portland in its long-term lease of the port’s Terminal 6 marine container terminal to Philippines-based International Container Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI). We also advised the port in connection with required approvals from the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States for the transaction, which represents ICTSI’s first US port investment.
- Port of the Americas. We are representing the Port of the Americas Authority, a public authority of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, in negotiating a long-term operating concession for the planned $750 million Port of the Americas container terminal project in Ponce, Puerto Rico. Our lawyers have counseled the authority’s board, the negotiation committee and the senior staff as they considered a wide variety of business and legal issues related to the concession negotiations.
Parking
- Chicago Downtown Public Parking System. We represented the City of Chicago and the Chicago Park District in the long-term lease and concession of the Chicago Downtown Public Parking System, the largest underground parking system in the United States. The City received a winning bid of $563 million from an infrastructure investment fund established by Morgan Stanley & Company.
- Harrisburg Parking. We represented a potential equity investor in the proposed concession and lease of the on-street and off-street parking assets of the Harrisburg Parking Authority and the City of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
- Pittsburgh Parking. We represented a bidder for the proposed concession of the on-street and off-street parking assets of the City of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Parking Authority.
Mass Transit
- Chicago Transit Authority Open Fare Card. We represented a bidding consortium in the “open fare” card procurement by the Chicago Transit Authority, which was pursued as a PPP. The winning bidder will be responsible for installing and operating an enhanced fare card system that will allow users to access mass transit services using a variety of electronic and contactless payment means.
- São Paulo Metro Line 4. We advised ViaQuatro as concessionaire with respect to the supply, manufacturing and installation of a driverless operated metro system and the related project financing of the São Paulo Metro Line 4. This project was named 2008 Latin American Infrastructure Deal of the Year and 2008 Latin American Deal of the Year by Project Finance.
Social Infrastructure/Government Services
- England Healthcare PFIs. We represented THP (a consortium comprising AMEC Project Investments Limited and Abbey National Treasury Services plc) on its various bids to be preferred provider in connection with PFI projects being carried out by Hyndburn and Ribble Valley Healthcare NHS Trust (capital value £60m), the Central Manchester NHS Trust and the Manchester Children’s Hospital NHS Trust (capital value £199m) and the Whittington Hospital (capital value £23m).
- Indianapolis Water and Wastewater. We advised the City of Indianapolis on alternative PPP transaction structures related to the operation of and capital improvements to its water and wastewater systems. Ultimately, the city entered into an innovative agreement transferring operation of the systems to Citizens Energy Group. We acted as underwriters’ counsel to Citigroup with respect to the Indianapolis Local Public Improvement Bond Bank’s issuance of $159 million in bonds, secured by payments in lieu of taxes to be made by Citizens to the city. This bond issuance was named a "2010 Regional Deal of the Year”"by The Bond Buyer.
- Long Beach Courthouse. We are advising Meridiam Infrastructure and its Long Beach Judicial Partners consortium on state and local government law and government relations considerations in connection with respect to the Long Beach Courthouse Project. This project is frequently cited as a national model for use of a PPP structure to develop and finance "social infrastructure" such as community college and school facilities. Project implementation by California’s Administrative Office of Courts is using innovative delivery arrangement called performance-based infrastructure that leverages the private sector’s access to financing, technological expertise and management efficiency to provide high-quality public buildings.
表彰
Chambers Global 2022
Ranked Band 1 for PPP Projects
Chambers USA 2021
Ranked Band 1 for US PPP Projects
Law 360
Named “Project Finance Group of the Year” (2017-2020)
Named “Transportation Group of the Year” (2020)
Legal 500 USA 2021
Recognized for Project Finance: advice to lender and advice to sponsor
P3 Bulletin
Received “Organization of the Year – Private Sector” (Highly commended) (2021)
Received “Legal Advisor of the Year” recognition for four years in a row (2016-2020)
US News/Best Lawyers
Received first-tier rankings in the US and Chicago in the 2020 edition of the US News/Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” list