Luis is an accomplished project finance lawyer in the Washington, DC, and New York City offices of Mintz. His practice focuses on the structuring, development, and financing of energy, transport, telecommunications, and infrastructure projects in the United States, Latin America, and other jurisdictions around the globe. He represents sponsors, asset managers, commercial and multilateral lenders, and sovereign entities, leveraging more than two decades of experience encompassing project finance transactions, acquisition financings, sales and acquisitions, and special situation projects.
In the international side of his practice, Luis has led transactions in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Jamaica, Kenya, Mexico, Nigeria, Panama, Peru, Turkey, Ukraine, and Venezuela. These deals have involved sponsors, lenders, and other investors based in Canada, the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Japan, Spain, the UK, and the US.
Prior to joining Mintz, Luis was a partner in the Energy and the Banking and Finance groups of a global law firm, where he played a pivotal role in a broad spectrum of project finance matters. He also served as the firm’s US partner liaison with the International Project Finance Association (IPFA). Earlier in his career, he served on assignment in the International Finance Corporation’s legal department for almost three years.
Esteemed by clients, colleagues, and peers, Luis has been consistently recognized by The Legal 500 Latin America for his work involving projects & energy and banking & finance, and by The Legal 500 United States for his handling of energy transactions involving electric power. During his career, he has worked on deals recognized by the International Financial Law Review, Project Finance magazine, Project Finance International, and IJGlobal.
Experience
- Advised F3 Networks, based in Calgary, Canada. F3 Networks is a leading provider of dark fiber infrastructure solutions in North America, empowering businesses with reliable and high-speed connectivity.
- Represented Baconton Power, LLC in the divestiture of its power plan assets, mainly consisting of a four-unit 188-megawatt combustion turbine generation facility located in Baconton, Georgia.
- Advised Rayburn Country Electric Cooperative on the acquisition of the Panda Sherman Power Plant in Sherman, Texas, a 758-megawatt (MW) natural gas–fueled power plant renamed Rayburn Energy Station.
- Represented the Republic of Ecuador’s Ministry of Economy and Finance on the largest-ever debt-for-nature swap transaction at the time. The transaction involved the exchange of Ecuador’s sovereign debt, which consists of existing step-up coupon notes issued by Ecuador and due in 2030, 2035, and 2040 for new sovereign debt consisting of a term facility granted to Ecuador.
- Led a Term B Loan acquisition financing for Draslovka Holdings’ $520 million purchase of the mining services business of The Chemours Company in the US, Mexico, Canada, and Chile.
- Led team that advised NET Power LLC on an investment financing transaction to finance a clean energy joint development project in the United States.
- Advised on the issuance of senior secured cost recovery bonds issued by Rayburn Country Securitization LLC and sponsored by Rayburn Country Electric Cooperative, Inc., an electric generation and transmission cooperative owned by four electric distribution cooperative members with service territories located across 16 counties in northeastern Texas.
- Advised ContourGlobal Solutions Limited Project Financing in matters related to developing a portfolio of 17 environmentally friendly quad-generation and tri-generation plants in Eastern and Western Europe, Nigeria, and Russia.
- Represented IENOVA, Mexico’s largest private energy company, in a loan from the International Finance Corporation and the North American Development Bank to finance five solar power plants with a total capacity of 501 MW in Mexico. IENOVA also obtained a green loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency and the US International Development Finance Corporation.
- Advised DESRI and its affiliates in a number of project financings in the renewables space, including the Alta Luna Solar Project, a 25-MW AC solar photovoltaic power plant in Luna County, New Mexico; the Balko Wind Project, a 300-MW wind electric generating facility in Beaver County, Oklahoma; and the Red Horse Wind 2 Project, a combined wind and solar power facility comprising a 30-MW wind farm and a 55-MW AC solar photovoltaic power plant located in Cochise County, Arizona.
- Represented Deepwater Wind, LLC in the project financing of the Block Island Wind Farm, a 30-MW offshore wind farm off the coast of Block Island, Rhode Island.
- Advised GE's Power Services and its affiliates in their roles of equipment supplier, contractor, and services provider to various Mexican power generation projects, including the Norte 3, A3T, and A4T.
- Represented ICE Canyon / Canyon Partners in numerous financing transactions, including the project financings of Albanesi Energia, Stoneway Capital Corporation, and DESA in regard to power projects in Argentina and the public offering of Eneva, an integrated power-generating company operating in Brazil. Also acted as counsel on the loan financings of Colombian oil company Canacol; Petra Energia, an oil and gas company in Brazil; and HydroChile, a power generation company in Chile.
- Represented IDB in various financing transactions, including the project financing of the ADELCA steel mill in Ecuador (co-financed by IIC and SACE); the project financings of the ATE II and ATE III transmission line projects in Brazil; the financing facilities for Panama-based infrastructure lender CIFI; and the restructuring of financing facilities for Argentina's privatized water utilities.
- Represented the sponsors and the concessionaire in the refinancing of two concessions to provide railway services for the Rift Valley Railroad (RVR) project in Kenya and Uganda. The refinancing involved six direct lenders and a participating bank.
- Represented Marubeni and its subsidiary Marubeni Caribbean Power Holdings, Inc. in the acquisition, valued at over $1 billion, of power generation assets in The Bahamas, Curacao, Jamaica, and Trinidad & Tobago from Mirant Corporation, and the related loan and bond financings.
- Represented global ports operator PSA of Singapore and its subsidiary PSA Panama in a multimillion-dollar project financing for the expansion of a container, bulk cargo, and ro-ro terminal facility at the former Rodman Naval Station on the Pacific side of the Panama Canal.
- Represented Repsol in the $1.2 billion financing for the continuing exploration and operation of the Petroquiriquire oil and gas fields in Venezuela’s Orinoco Basin. Also represented Repsol and ENI on the proposed multibillion-dollar financing for the exploration and production of the Cardon IV offshore block located in the Gulf of Venezuela.
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News & Press
Mintz Expands Energy & Sustainability Practice with Projects & Infrastructure Member Luis F. Torres
January 27, 2025
Luis F. Torres has joined as a Member of Mintz’s Energy & Sustainability Practice in the firm’s Washington, DC and New York offices. An accomplished project finance lawyer, Luis’s practice focuses on the structuring, development, and financing of energy, transport, telecommunications, and other infrastructure projects in the United States, Latin America, and other jurisdictions around the globe.
Recognition & Awards
Recognized by The Legal 500 United States for Energy Transactions: Electric Power (2023)
Recognized by The Legal 500 Latin America for Projects & Energy (2012 – 2019)
Recognized by The Legal 500 Latin America for Banking & Finance (2015 – 2018)
Involvement
- Board of Advisors, Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) (2018 – present)
- Board of Trustees, Foundation for the Preservation of Historic Georgetown (2017 – present)
Recent Insights
Luis F. Torres has joined as a Member of Mintz’s Energy & Sustainability Practice in the firm’s Washington, DC and New York offices. An accomplished project finance lawyer, Luis’s practice focuses on the structuring, development, and financing of energy, transport, telecommunications, and other infrastructure projects in the United States, Latin America, and other jurisdictions around the globe.
