Laura Kiwelu

Partner
Norton Rose Fulbright LLP

London
United Kingdom
T :+44 20 7444 2603
London
United Kingdom
T :+44 20 7444 2603

Biography

Laura Kiwelu is a projects, renewables and carbon finance lawyer based in London, with a particular focus on Africa, the energy transition and the move to a low carbon economy.

Laura has advised on several first of a kind and other landmark projects and initiatives in Africa, including first in country solar PV projects in Malawi (incorporating battery energy storage), Botswana, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and Kenya, and from 2014 to 2018 was based in Tanzania.

She has also advised on a range of private power supply arrangements, transmission and distribution projects and off-grid electrification projects. Her power sector experience is broad and includes advising on renewable power purchase agreements with corporate offtakers and power trading.

Laura advises on a range of carbon finance and carbon credit offtake transactions, particularly those in the voluntary carbon markets and involving nature based solutions.

Earlier in her career Laura spent three years at a major merchant power generation plant in the UK advising on power, gas and carbon trading. 


Expérience professionnelle

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  • Solicitor, qualified in England & Wales

Advising:

  • Africa GreenCo - on its establishment as the first renewables trading company in Southern Africa, including advising on risk allocation, project documents and regulatory aspects.
  • JCM Power - on all aspects of its 60MW solar PV and 20MW solar PV and battery storage projects in Malawi, including on extensive negotiations with the government and offtaker, political risk insurance and power purchase agreement credit support with African Trade Insurance Agency, and on financing arrangements.
  • A major gold mining company - on power supply arrangements with a captive solar PV and battery storage project in Burkina Faso.
  • Alten Renewable Energy - on all aspects of a 40MW solar PV project in Kenya, including on project document negotiations and financing arrangements.
  • A conservation, renewables and off-grid start-up - on establishment documentation and contracting arrangements.
  • KETRACO, through the Power Africa program - on a pilot transmission project to be developed in Kenya on a PPP basis by Africa50.
  • A multilateral institution and a sovereign wealth fund - on the establishment of the platform for distributed and captive renewable power projects in Nigeria, including on regulatory and structuring aspects.
  • The Botswana Power Corporation - on the project documents for its competitive grid-tied and 100MW solar PV project tenders, including on the PPA and connection agreement and advising on regulatory and procurement issues.
  • East African government corporations - on risk allocation and structuring of geothermal power projects through USAID and AfDB supported programs.
  • A major European developer - on the development of a 50MW solar PV project in Zimbabwe, including on negotiations with ZETDC.
  • A major mining company - on its power supply arrangements for a mine in DRC on a cross border basis with power being wheeled through Zambia.
  • A US impact investment fund - on its offtake of Verified Carbon Units from a reforestation project in Tanzania.
  • A climate fund - on the due diligence aspects and offtake arrangements in relation to a reforestation project in Brazil.
  • A fund manager - on the joint development and offtake arrangements for carbon credits from soil carbon projects in France.
  • A global commodities trading company - on its carbon trading template documents.
  • ​Gigawatt Global - on all aspects of an 8.5MW solar PV project in Rwanda, including negotiation of a PPA, concession agreement and on finance documents. This was the first solar PV project to reach financial close in East Africa.
  • Virunga Power - on various aspects of a 4.5MW hydropower and mini-grid project in Tanzania.
  • The lenders - on a solar PV and battery storage micro-grid system in the Comoros Islands, including drafting and negotiating the concession agreement and PPA, advising on structuring and regulatory issues, and advising on the financing aspects.
  • The Zimbabwe Power Company - on the expansion of the 1,050 MW Kariba South hydropower project.
  • English
  • French
  • Swahili