Projects and Infrastructure

Our Projects and Infrastructure specialists have advised on the majority of high-profile privately delivered transport infrastructure in Ireland over the past two decades.  The team is well positioned to bring its experience to the new wave of investment in public transport (especially rail), strategic ports, airports and major arterial roads to deliver Ireland’s balanced sustainability and economic objectives.  Our colleagues are already advising upon some of the major Project Ireland 2040 transport infrastructure projects which reflect the Irish Government’s new 2:1 spending ratio between public transport and roads infrastructure.

Experience Highlights

• Advising Bremore Ireland Port on the development of a new deepwater multi-model port north of Dublin to serve amongst other things as an offshore wind O&M support facility.
• Advising Real Assets Investment Management on the acquisition and financing of the operational N25 Waterford Bypass PPP demand risk toll road. 
• Advising Iridium and its affiliate Dragados on all of their PPP infrastructure developments (both under construction and operational) in Ireland (including the N25 Waterford Bypass PPP, N25 New Ross Bypass PPP, M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy PPP and M7 / M8 PPP) and upcoming National Development Plan projects.
• Advising a multinational fuel company on its stake in a motorway service areas PPP.
• Advising Exolum Aviation on all legal aspects of its services concession to design, build and operate fuel storage and distribution infrastructure at Dublin Airport, from concession negotiation through construction and operations, along with its provision of services at Shannon Airport.
• Advising the largest Chinese rolling stock manufacturer on its bid for the DART Expansion, the most significant single heavy rail rolling stock procurement ever undertaken in Ireland.
• Advising a leading manufacturer of railway rolling stock on its bid for the overhaul and re-power of all Irish Rail Class 201 locomotives.
• Advised Go-Ahead Group plc on its successful tender to operate orbital bus routes in Dublin.  This project was the first private sector bus route tender to be brought to market by Ireland’s National Transport Authority.

• Advising Plenary Europe as sponsor on its bid for the Irish Social Housing PPP – Bundle Three.
• Advising JJ Rhatigan & Company on its successful bid (and preferred bidder negotiations) with Macquarie Capital for the Higher Education PPP – Bundle One to design, finance, build, operate and maintain new educational facilities at six higher level education campuses across Ireland.
• Advising a construction joint venture on its bid for the €150 million Community Nursing Units PPP.
• Advised an Asian financial institution on its potential participation in the Social Housing Bundle 2 PPP project, including in relation to complex financial participation matters.
• Advising lenders to the Eriugena consortium on the financing and construction of the DIT Grangegorman East and Central Quads PPP project.
• Advising the FM provider to the successful bidder for the Primary Care Centres PPP, Ireland’s first primary healthcare PPP.
• Advising lenders and sponsors on Schools Bundle PPPs 1, 2, 4 and 5 (including on-going operational advice).
• Advising a lender on the Charlemont Street Housing PPP.

• Advising Cellnex SA on the sale of its Irish telecoms towers business (with almost 2,000 sites) in a transaction worth just under €1 billion.
• Advising lenders and funds on their financing and acquisition of Irish operational and under construction hyperscale / colo data centres including in relation to development and regulatory matters. 
• Advising Asterion on its acquisition of 80% of the National Broadband Plan project, a €3 billion State intervention to deliver high speed broadband (primarily by FTTH) to all underserved homes and business in Ireland, along with on-going advice on the operation and roll-out of the National Broadband Plan.
• Advising EirGrid on its partnership arrangements with French transmission system operator RTE for the development and operation of the Celtic Interconnector between Ireland and France.
• Advising the John Laing, SSE and e|net consortium (later Granahan McCourt) on all legal aspects of its successful bid for the National Broadband Plan.
• Advising a multinational telecoms tower owner and operator on its bid for an extensive portfolio of eir towers (with associated services agreements).
• Advising a number of the world’s largest technology companies on the development and construction of their Irish data centres.
• Advising a number of investors and lenders in relation to data centre investments.
• Advising e|net on its provision of infrastructure services and access for the National Broadband Plan and its provision of wholesale telecommunications services to its retail service provider customers pursuant to its Metropolitan Area Networks concession with the Irish Government (including advising upon its original successful bid for that concession).
• Advising a North American data centre developer and operator together with its Irish development partner on the permitting, development, potential financing and operation of a speculative data centre complex in Dublin.
• Advised American multinational company Equinix, who specializes in internet connection and related services, on the expansion of its existing portfolio of data centres in Dublin.
• Advised a number of large multinational technology companies and renewable energy developers in relation to the drafting and negotiation of corporate power purchase agreements (including the first to be announced in the Irish market) and on renewable energy procurement strategies, trading structures and agreements.

• Advising JJ Rhatigan on all legal aspects of its successful bid with Macquarie and Sodexo for the Higher Education Bundle 1 PPP
• Advising Real Assets Investment Management on the acquisition and financing of the operational N25 Waterford Bypass PPP demand risk toll road. 
• Advising a construction joint venture on its bid for the €150 million Community Nursing Units PPP.
• Advising Iridium and its affiliate Dragados on all of their PPP infrastructure developments (both under construction and operational) in Ireland (including the N25 Waterford Bypass PPP, N25 New Ross Bypass PPP, M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy PPP and M7 / M8 PPP) and upcoming National Development Plan projects.
• Advised an East Asian financial institution on its potential participation in the Social Housing Bundle 2 PPP project, including in relation to complex financial participation matters.
• Advising a multinational fuel company on its stake in a motorway service areas PPP.
• Advising lenders to the Eriugena consortium on the financing and construction of the DIT Grangegorman East and Central Quads PPP project.
• Advising the sponsor in relation to all aspects of the Greystones Harbour PPP project, including the development of a new harbour and marina coupled with commercial and residential development.
• Advising lenders and sponsors on Schools Bundle PPPs 1, 2, 4 and 5 (including on-going operational advice).
• Advising a lender on the Charlemont Street Housing and Mixed Use Development PPP.

• Acting for Oxley Holdings Limited in relation to its development of Dublin Landings (capex circa €300 million).
• Acting on behalf of US developer in relation to a residential, retail and hotel / student accommodation development in Dublin (capex of €1 billion).
• Advising Hines on all legal aspects of its development of a new town at Cherrywood in Dublin (to include transport and utility infrastructure, residential, commercial and retail elements) as well as Hines’ other mixed use high density developments in Dublin.
• Advising Ballymore-Oxley on all legal aspects of their development of Dublin Landings and Connolly Quarter (both high density urban core residential, commercial and retail).
• Advising the sponsor in relation to all aspects of the Greystones Harbour PPP project, including the development of a new harbour and marina coupled with commercial and residential development.
• Advising a lender on the Charlemont Street Housing and Mixed Use Development PPP.

• Advising an international energy company on its bid for a majority stake in the Simple Blue floating offshore wind platform, an international multi-GW FOW development pipeline.
• Advising project shareholders, project companies / sponsors and contractors on offshore wind farms in Phase 1, Phase 2 and the 'future framework' of the Irish offshore wind regulatory regime on the regulation, financing and development of their offshore wind farms (including joint venture formation and corporate transactions). 
• Advising GLIL Infrastructure on its acquisition of the 453MW Rathcool Portfolio of 11 Irish onshore wind farms in the largest ever Irish onshore wind farm acquisition transaction by enterprise value (including detailed project contract due diligence and transaction document mitigations).
• Advising lenders to Ib Vogt / Highfield on their development and financing of four Irish solar parks (Rathnaskilloge and Gaskinstown) with a combined generating capacity of over 200MWp.
• Advising the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications on all aspects of the decommissioning of the Kinsale Head and Seven Heads offshore gas fields.
• Advising Hanwha Energy Corporation and its local Irish partner on the development of a 200MW Battery Energy Storage System project in the mid-west region of Ireland (this is the one of the largest projects of its kind in Europe and is required to facilitate a higher share of renewable electricity generation on Ireland’s grid).
• Advising the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications, on the drafting of the RESS Terms & Conditions (providing a unique legal adviser insight into the fundamental design and operation of RESS, Ireland’s renewable electricity subsidy scheme).
• An investor in relation to a proposed 500MW electricity interconnector between Ireland and Wales.
• Advised Statkraft on its acquisition of a large battery energy storage project.
• Advising ING Bank, Hamburg Commercial Bank, Rabobank, Aviva Investors and other domestic and international lenders / investors on their due diligence and financing of over 1GW of onshore wind farms.
• Advised a number of large multinational technology companies and renewable energy developers in relation to the drafting and negotiation of corporate power purchase agreements (including the first to be announced in the Irish market) and on renewable energy procurement strategies, trading structures and agreements.