Herbert Smith Freehills advises Mitsubishi Corporation on Laos wind power investment

Herbert Smith Freehills has advised Mitsubishi Corporation on its investment in a 600MW onshore wind power project in Laos, the country's first wind power project and the largest in Southeast Asia.

Mitsubishi Corporation is making the investment in wind farm developer Impact Energy Asia Development Limited through its subsidiary, Diamond Generating Asia, Limited, together with a group company of Thailand's Impact Electrons Siam Co., Ltd.

The project is being developed as part of a memorandum of understanding on power interchange signed between the Vietnamese and Lao governments in October 2016. A dedicated power transmission line to Vietnam will enable power from the wind farm to be sold to Vietnam Electricity, a state-owned electric power company, for 25 years.

"We are delighted to have assisted Mitsubishi Corporation with this latest important transaction," said Asia Head of Energy Hilary Lau. "It represents another milestone in the company's transformation strategy to enter new industries and growth areas, including sustainable energy generation."

"The pipeline of renewable energy development and investment has never been stronger in Asia in general, and in Southeast Asia in particular, " said Andrew Blacoe, Japan Head of Energy, Infrastructure and Mining.

"Regionally, this trend reflects the energy industry's ongoing decarbonisation programmes, while at a country level, it is providing solutions for increased and complementary energy generation to support development."

In this case, the project's energy supply will allow Vietnam to secure a power source for its dry season when the country's hydro power generation capacity is limited, stabilising Vietnam's power system while making country’s energy mix greener.

Hilary led a cross-border team advising Mitsubishi Corporation, supported by Head of Energy and Infrastructure Southeast Asia Glynn Cooper, Head of Japan Finance and Tokyo counsel Keith Gamble, Singapore senior associate Ong Kok Jin, and Hong Kong associates Charles Wong and Christie Wu.