Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP

John focuses his practice on energy and infrastructure transactions and international project finance.

John Beardsworth is head of the firm’s business practice group, which comprises its corporate team, capital finance and real estate team, energy and infrastructure team and its tax and ERISA team. He has served multiple terms as a member of the firm’s Executive Committee and Partnership Admission Committee. With 35 years of experience, he focuses his practice on energy and infrastructure transactions and project finance. John has extensive experience in energy sector restructuring and privatization, utility and infrastructure project development, domestic and international contract and finance matters, and the purchase and sale of energy-related assets.

John is an internationally recognized author and speaker on the development and financing of energy, renewables and infrastructure projects with a particular focus on Africa and emerging markets. He is a co-author of the World Bank’s ground-breaking treatise on resource-financed infrastructure and his work in Africa has been the subject of feature articles. John served as Chair of the American Bar Association’s Infrastructure and Regulated Industries Section (2016-2017). He has undertaken speaking assignments in Brazil, China, India, Kenya, Saudi Arabia, Slovenia, the United Kingdom and Vietnam, as well as for the Practising Law Institute in the United States. John has consistently been ranked for Africa Projects & Energy Law in Chambers Global since 2007.

Relevant Experience

• Advised on the development and financing of a $650 million fiber optic cable system connecting South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, Kenya, Tanzania, India and Marseilles, France. The SEACOM deal involved eight jurisdictions, including Mauritius, Mozambique, Tanzania, Kenya, India, Djibouti, Egypt and South Africa. The deal was named "African Telecoms Deal of the Year” by Project Finance Magazine.
• Represents a major solar developer who is developing the largest solar facility in  Virginia.
• Represents the Government of Kosovo in relation to the renovation and development of approximately 1,200 MW of lignite-fired combined heat and power plants in Pristina and in relation to the privatization of PTK, the Government's Post and Telecommunications company.
• Represents the Government of Uganda on the development and financing of the Bujagali hydroelectric facility on the River Nile, including structuring and negotiating all bidding documentation and project documentation, including requests for proposals, power purchase agreement, implementation agreement, financing and other documents. The deal constitutes the largest-ever private sector investment in the region and was named “African Power Deal of the Year” by Project Finance magazine.

• Represents the Government of Tanzania in the development of its natural gas fields, including Tanzania’s first LNG facility; the Government of Nigeria in its independent power program and in the restructuring of its electric utility; and the Government of Ukraine in connection with the restructuring of its energy sector.
• Advises the Egyptian Electricity Holdings Company on the development of a 2,250 MW combined-cycle gas turbine power plant.
• Advised the Government of Egypt in connection with the development of a comprehensive regulatory framework for the Egyptian power sector and the commercialization of the Egyptian Electricity Authority.
• Served as lead issuers’ counsel for large investor-owned utilities in hundreds of capital markets transactions, in the following areas: first and refunding mortgage bonds, aggregating over $4 billion; preferred stock (fixed- and variable-rate); public offerings of common stock; unsecured notes, aggregating over $2 billion; tax-exempt financings of utility assets, aggregating over $800 million; and miscellaneous nuclear fuel financings, sales of accounts receivables, and debt/equity swaps.
• Represented investor-owned utilities in connection with the acquisition and sale of significant utility assets, including the Shoreham Nuclear Power Station, the Clover Thermal Generating Plant, the North Anna Nuclear Power Station, the Bath County Pump Storage Project and the North Branch IPP.
• Advised a major investor-owned utility in the review and restructuring of its IPP portfolio.
• Represented a major investor-owned utility in connection with the sale of its natural gas subsidiary.
• Represented the governments of the Dominican Republic, Nigeria, Pakistan, Uganda and the United Kingdom on the privatization of utility assets.

Bar Admissions

• District of Columbia
• Virginia

Education

Significant Accomplishments

• Served as lead issuers' counsel for large investor-owned utilities in hundreds of capital markets transactions, in the following areas: first and refunding mortgage bonds, aggregating over $4 billion; preferred stock (fixed- and variable-rate); public offerings of common stock; unsecured notes, aggregating over $2 billion; tax-exempt financings of utility assets, aggregating over $800 million; and miscellaneous nuclear fuel financings, sales of accounts receivables, and debt/equity swaps.
• Advises on the development and financing of a fiber optic cable system connecting South Africa, Mozambique, Madagascar, Kenya, Tanzania, India, and Marseilles, France. The project has involved eight jurisdictions stretching from South Africa to India. The deal was named "African Telecoms Deal of the Year" by Project Finance Magazine.
• Represents the Government of Kosovo in relation to the renovation and development of approximately 1,200 MW of lignite-fired combined heat and power plants in Pristina and in relation to the privatization of PTK, the Government's Post and Telecommunications company.
• Represents the Government of Uganda on the development and financing of the Bujagali hydroelectric facility on the River Nile, including structuring and negotiating all bidding documentation and project documentation, including requests for proposals, power purchase agreement, implementation agreement, financing and other documents. The deal constitutes the largest-ever private sector investment in the region and was named "African Power Deal of the Year" by Project Finance Magazine.
• Represents the Government of Tanzania in the development of its natural gas fields, including Tanzania's first LNG facility; the Government of Nigeria in its independent power program and in the restructuring of its electric utility; and the Government of Ukraine in connection with the restructuring of its energy sector.
• Represented investor-owned utilities in connection with the acquisition and sale of significant utility assets, including the Shoreham Nuclear Power Station, the Clover Thermal Generating Plant, the North Anna Nuclear Power Station, the Bath County Pump Storage Project and the North Branch IPP.
• Advised a major investor-owned utility in the review and restructuring of its IPP portfolio.
• Represented a major investor-owned utility in connection with the sale of its natural gas subsidiary.
• Represented the governments of the Dominican Republic, Nigeria, Pakistan, Uganda and the United Kingdom on the privatization of utility assets.

Professional Associations

• Chair (2016–2017), Infrastructure and Regulated Industries Section, American Bar Association
• Past Chairman, International Law Committee, American Bar Association

Professional Activities and Experience

• Leader in the Field, Africa Projects & Energy Law, Chambers Global Guide, since 2007
• Leading Lawyer, IFLR1000 Energy and Infrastructure: Sub-Saharan Africa, since 2013
• Listed in Corporate Law (since 1995), Public Utilities/Energy Law (since 1995), International Trade & Finance Law (since 2003) and Project Finance Law (since 2006), The Best Lawyers in America. A description of the selection methodology can be found on Best Lawyers’ webpage.
• Identified as lead lawyer for previous awards “African Power Deal of the Year” and “African Telecoms Deal of the Year,” Project Finance magazine
• Latin Lawyer Magazine, listed in the Latin Lawyer 250, International category, 2014