January 10, 2010 — The international law firm Vinson & Elkins is expanding to the West Coast by opening a new office in the Silicon Valley, which is rapidly emerging as one of the energy capitals of the world.

Widely recognized as the world’s leading energy law firm, V&E opens its new Palo Alto office with three partners who have relocated from Texas. Boyd Carano of Houston and Kyle Fox and Margaret Sampson of Austin provide clients with extensive expertise in energy project finance and development, emerging company formation and venture capital finance, and intellectual property and life sciences. In addition, V&E is looking to grow the office immediately through lateral hires. 

“California is fast becoming the center of clean energy ventures and venture capital in the United States, especially for innovative technologies such as biofuels, photovoltaic and concentrating solar power, and advanced battery storage,” says Boyd, whom Euromoney annually names as one of the top lawyers in international energy and project finance. “Large segments of the clean energy sector are evolving beyond the traditional Silicon Valley investment strategy to encompass a longer term, more capital intensive approach, involving various financing structures for various stages of development.

“Commercial scale production facilities, such as algae-to-fuel facilities, advanced bio-refineries, and utility-scale solar power plants, will require carefully structured arrangements with contractors, suppliers, operators, off-takers, and government agencies to successfully finance and commercialize clean energy technologies,” says Boyd, who represented eSolar in a transaction with NRG Energy for the development of three solar thermal power plants totaling up to 500 megawatts. “As a result, a lot of the clean energy investors are going to be seeking joint ventures, strategic alliances, and commercial arrangements with traditional energy players, especially those with strong balance sheets and proven track records in power generation, refined products, petrochemical and transmission sectors.”

Kyle, who represents emerging and venture-backed companies, says that President Obama’s commitment to double the renewable energy capacity of the United States by 2012 is supported by the $40 billion set aside for clean energy initiative in the 2009 federal stimulus package, along with the $20 billion being offered in modified tax incentives targeting clean energy.

“We believe that private investment dollars will chase the benefits of federal funding,” says Kyle. “Clean energy and the related technologies are going to become major drivers of venture investment activity in the energy business.

“Silicon Valley is leading the clean energy revolution because of its entrepreneurial community – executives who successfully lead companies from ideas to operations, investors willing to prove a new technology, and professionals who understand the needs of early stage enterprises,” says Kyle. “Clean energy will require pairing Silicon Valley’s substantial strengths with traditional energy financing, regulatory, and operational expertise. Our clients recognize that they need advisors who know both worlds, and who provide guidance throughout the life of a clean energy company, from idea and venture financing through development and operation.”

The final component of the Palo Alto office’s practice focus is intellectual property, which is critical to all clean energy and life science businesses, according to Margaret, who has a Ph.D. in Molecular and Human Genetics and will be leading V&E’s IP practice in California.

“Clean energy clients with IP holdings face a myriad of legal issues, including strategic patent portfolio development, management and freedom-to-operate in the market, mergers and acquisitions, and IP licensing and enforcement,” says Margaret. “It is critical to the long-term success of these clients to have an IP strategy in place at all stages of growth, which anticipates and evolves with the client’s business plan, competitive and development challenges, and the market.”

Boyd, who is the managing partner of the new office, says that V&E will be actively pursuing associate and partner laterals this year.

For more information, please contact Boyd Carano at 650.617.8400 or via e-mail at bcarano@velaw.com. Or you may contact Mark Curriden at 214.220.7879 or via e-mail at mcurriden@velaw.com.