Claudio Rodriguez
Partner
Overview
Claudio Rodríguez is an attorney in Holland & Knight's Mexico City office. Mr. Rodríguez focuses his practice on energy and infrastructure matters.
With experience in several Latin American markets and more than 19 years in close connection with the energy market in Mexico, Mr. Rodríguez represents international energy, construction and infrastructure companies doing business in Mexico, including with regard to wind, roads, downstream, water, solar, cogeneration, combined-cycle, pipeline, liquified natural gas (LNG), nuclear, geothermal and transmission projects. He is considered by peers and clients as a pragmatic and business-oriented attorney who quickly understands the effects of complex regulation on his clients' businesses, including those derived from the Mexican Energy Reform and new federal administration criteria. He has significant knowledge on international business law, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), corporate compliance and anti-corruption, and anti-money laundering across Latin America and has strong connections with Spain, Portugal, Italy and France.
Mr. Rodríguez is 'consistently highlighted by peers as a significant practitioner in the power sector.'
– Chambers Latin America, 2019
In addition, Mr. Rodríguez has extensive experience representing developers, procurement firms, producers, investors, contractors, suppliers and multilateral institutions in all phases of development, M&A and financing of energy projects. He advises clients regarding complex regulatory issues and project development; engineering, procurement and construction; operations and maintenance; and supply contracts, as well as services, hydrocarbon transportation, self-supply and power purchase agreements (PPAs) in the power, renewable energy and gas sectors.
Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Mr. Rodríguez served as general counsel and legal manager of global European companies in Mexico and Latin America.
Representative Experience
- Advised a global automotive company in a claim by virtue of a Qualified Power Supplier request to increase power tariff because of the global increase of energy prices
- Represented a Portuguese company in its strategy to launch waste-to-energy businesses in Mexico
- Represented an American-Mexican consortium in the definition of regulatory confirmation criteria to be submitted before the Mexican Energy Regulatory Commission in connection with power storage projects in Mexico
- Represented several Spanish consortiums and global solar companies in the first and second long-term power auctions called by the National Power Control Center (NPCC)
- Represented a global Chinese solar panel manufacturer in the understanding of a PPA to be awarded under the second long-term power auction
- Represented a global Spanish power company in defining competition rules under the new wholesale power market in Mexico
- Represented global Spanish solar companies in the successful challenge of NPCC decisions through Reconsideration based on the Power Industry Guidelines
- Represented a global Spanish power company in the negotiation of a power purchase agreement to supply an American car manufacturer
- Represented a Spanish solar company in the execution of due diligence for several solar projects in Mexico and the closing of co-development agreements as needed to participate in the second long-term power auction
- Represented a global French-Belgian gas and power company in the negotiation of a steam purchase agreement to supply the largest glass manufacturer in Mexico
- Represented a German fund in the financing of a 30-megawatt (MW) wind farm in the state of Tamaulipas
- Advised a Spanish power generation company in the search, legal analysis and acquisition process of a qualified service provider (QSP) in accordance with the Electricity Industry Law
- Advised in the merger of three companies belonging to one of the most important Spanish generation groups in the world with respect to its subsidiaries in Mexico
- Advised a company with Mexican and Portuguese capital in its collaboration schemes with technological entities for the development of a thermoelectric plant in Mexico
- Advised a Portuguese company in the sale of its assets in Mexico under the waste-to-energy scheme to another Portuguese company
- Advised a Spanish company in the elaboration of joint venture agreements for the capital stock of electricity generation assets under photovoltaic technology to a British portfolio company for the participation of such assets in long-term auctions
- Advised in the assessment of agreements for the purchase and sale of photovoltaic power generation assets between a Spanish company and a Greek consortium
- Advised a French company in obtaining financing for a legacy photovoltaic power generation project
- Advised a Spanish company in the sale of 90 percent of the shares representing its capital stock and its electricity-generating subsidiaries in Mexico to an Australian fund
- Advised a Spanish global company in a payment default case filed by Pemex in connection with the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement for the construction of two oil rigs
- Representation of a Spanish company with coordination, execution and finalizing the award of an alternate dispute resolution mechanism process between the company and the Comisión Federal de Electricidad (CFE) regarding its differences on construction issues under a financed public works agreement related to a wind power project in Oaxaca
- Acted as co-arbitrator in an arbitration proceeding under International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) rules between a generating entity and a consumer partner under a legacy agreement in accordance with the Public Electricity Service Law
- Representation of a French company with coordination, execution and finalizing the award of an alternate dispute resolution mechanism process between the company and the CFE on its disputes regarding the existence of gas liquids under a power capacity and associated power purchase and sale agreement with respect to a thermoelectric plant
- Representation of a Spanish company with the coordination, execution and finalizing the award of an alternate dispute resolution mechanism process between the company and the CFE on its differences regarding construction issues under a financed public works agreement related to a 400 kilovolt (kV) transmission line with a length of 160 kilometers
- Representation of a Spanish company with the coordination, execution and finalizing the award of an alternate dispute resolution mechanism process between the company and a Monterrey construction group on its differences regarding construction issues under a construction agreement for the largest combined cycle power plant in Latin America, generating 1,130 megawatts (MW)
Credentials
- Universidad Panamericana, Ph.D.
- University of Exeter, LL.M., with merit
- Universidad Iberoamericana, LL.B.
- Economic Association of Mexico in Italy, Directive Board
- Portuguese-Mexican Chamber of Commerce
- Mexican Academy of Energy Law (AMDE); Coordinator, Foreign Affairs Committee
- Mexican Bar Association; Chairman, Energy Committee, 2009-2011
- International Bar Association
- Adjunct Professor, Foreign Investment and Economic Regulation, Universidad Iberoamericana School of Law
- Adjunct Professor, International Business Law, Universidad La Salle Graduate School
- Adjunct Professor, Public International Law, Universidad La Salle
- Adjunct Professor, International Business, Instituto Tecnológico Autónomo de México
- Adjunct Professor, Private International Law, Universidad de las Américas
- Adjunct Professor, Energy Law, Escuela Libre de Derecho
- Chambers Latin America – Latin America's Leading Lawyers for Business guide, Energy & Natural Resources, 2011-2016, 2018-2023
- The Legal 500 Latin America, Leading Lawyer, Energy and Natural Resources, 2022, 2023
- Chambers Global – The World's Leading Lawyers for Business guide, Energy & Natural Resources, 2017-2023
- The Best Lawyers in Mexico, Construction Law, 2020-2022; Energy Law, Project Finance and Development, 2020-2023; Natural Resources Law, Oil and Gas Law, 2023
- Leading Lawyer, The Legal 500 Latin America, Energy and Natural Resources, 2013-2019, 2021
- Top 100 Energy Leaders in Mexico, Energy and Petroleum Magazine, 2020
- Latin Lawyer 250, Mexico, 2012-2016
- Who's Who Legal, Mexico - Energy, 2013-2016, 2021, 2022; Energy - Oil & Gas, Renewables, Power/Electricity, 2021, 2022
- Leading Lawyer, IFLR1000, 2014-2016
- English
- Portuguese
- Spanish
