30 August – LAWFUEL – The Law News Network – Linklaters advises on innovative multi-jurisdictional secured financing in Bolivia Linklaters advised the lenders, Corporación Andina de Fomento and Inter-American Development Bank, in the innovative US$54 million multi-jurisdictional secured financing of Interconexión Eléctrica ISA Bolivia S.A.’s electricity transmission project in Bolivia. The project involves the development, construction, operation and maintenance of transmission lines, substations and associated facilities.
The transaction was secured by conditional guarantees from the Colombian shareholders of Interconexión Eléctrica ISA Bolivia S.A. as well as their shares in the company, the assets of the company, termination rights under the license granted by the Bolivian government and revenues generated by the transmission of electricity in Bolivia.
Linklaters projects partner, Matthew Hagopian, who led the team from New York said;
“In order to secure the financing, the transaction included an innovative security package to take into account restrictions under Bolivian law on the grant of security by Interconexión Eléctrica ISA Bolivia S.A. and restrictions on the grant of security by the shareholders due to their partial ownership by the government of Colombia and related restrictions under Colombia’s sovereign debt obligations.”
Linklaters partner, Gregory Harrington, who worked on the transaction from the São Paulo office commented;
“The financing was negotiated amid political unrest in Bolivia, including significant uncertainty in respect of the regulatory environment for foreign investment in the country, and required the joint efforts of our São Paulo and New York offices over a period of approximately eighteen months. Transaction documents were governed by New York or Bolivian law and regulatory and other approvals had to be obtained in Bolivia and Colombia.”
The full Linklaters team also included Marcelo Arellano, Jason Carss, Jakub Maslikowski and Ruth Olson.
Other advisers included Chadbourne & Parke LLP as New York counsel to the Borrower, Guevara & Gutiérrez S.C. as Bolivian counsel to the Borrower, Indacochea & Asociados, Abogados as Bolivian counsel to the Senior Lenders, Gómez, Latorre & Asociados as Colombian counsel to the Senior Lenders, and Bingham McCutchen as New York counsel to the Trustee and the Intermediary. Internal counsel at the IDB was provided by Rosemary Jeronimides and at CAF by Rossana Sala.
