Projects Associate Director/Legal Director in Bristol

A firm of great experience in energy matters and has a thriving renewable energy practice.

We have an exciting new opportunity for an experienced energy lawyer to join our Energy Projects team in either Bristol or London. You will be a central senior member of our market-leading energy practice, with a particular focus on energy market commercial and regulatory advisory mandates. This will cover:

• Grid connection and use of system arrangements
• Energy offtake agreements (including corporate PPAs)
• Complex optimisation and route to market structures across power, renewables and storage

The role combines high quality transactional support with cutting edge regulatory advice in a rapidly evolving energy market.

The Energy Projects team is split between Bristol and London with 9 Partners; 1 Legal Director, 5 Associate Directors; 4 Senior Associates; 9 Associates, 6 Trainee Solicitors and 1 Solicitor Apprentice. You will work directly with a number of Partners in the team and will be a key team member for providing support and supervision to the rest of the team.

Key responsibilities

Your key responsibilities will include being part of a team that provides complex, commercial advice in the following areas:

• Regulation and market design: Advising generators, investors, developers, storage providers, and other market participants on UK energy regulation, policy and market design (including liaising with our European colleagues on cross-border regulatory matters). Providing detailed advice on licence conditions, industry codes and frameworks (e.g., Electricity Act, Ofgem rules and consultations, CUSC, BSC, Grid Code) and on Capacity Market rules, the CfD and new revenue support mechanisms (RAB, cap and floor etc). Creating and sharing knowhow on regulatory change (e.g., network charging reforms, access/queue management, code governance reforms, REMA/electricity market design) and supporting client engagement with regulators and industry bodies.
• Grid connection and network arrangements: Drafting, negotiating and advising on grid connection and use-of-system arrangements at transmission and distribution level (e.g. CUSC, Connection Offers/Agreements, Grid Sharing arrangements). Supporting due diligence on grid connection issues (including connection reform) for M&A and project finance.
• Offtake and route to market: Structuring, drafting and negotiating PPAs and related offtake instruments: corporate PPAs (sleeved and virtual/synthetic), private wire PPAs, utility and route to market PPAs, tolling, balancing and other optimisation services, ancillary services and capacity agreements. Advising on novel revenue stacks and merchant opportunities for renewables and storage (including asset optimisation, co-location, multi-market participation and optimisation of constraints).
• Transactions and projects: Supporting M&A and project finance transactions with specialist regulatory, grid and offtake workstreams. Coordinate multi jurisdictional advice with local counsel and internal specialists (competition, public law/procurement, planning, real estate, tax, construction).

In delivering the above scope of work, we expect that you will:

• Act as a trusted advisor; lead negotiations and manage complex workstreams efficiently.
• Supervise and develop junior lawyers and trainees; contribute to precedents and know how.
• Produce client alerts, thought leadership and training on emerging regulatory and market issues.
• Support business development, pitches and key account plans.

Risk and financials

Manage matters to scope, budget and timelines; ensure compliance with internal risk, confidentiality and information security processes. Contribute to team financial performance (utilisation, recovery, matter profitability).

Candidate profile

Essential experience:

• 7+ years post qualification experience (or equivalent) in energy regulation and commercial/transactional work within a leading law firm or in house at an energy company, utility, trader or fund.
• Strong track record advising on the energy market areas noted above.
• Comfortable leading negotiations and interfacing with technical, commercial and financing teams.
• Excellent drafting skills and the ability to translate complex regulation into pragmatic, commercially focused advice.
• Collaborative mindset; confident supervising juniors and coordinating multidisciplinary teams.
• A strong team player, with a proven track record of having led and/or developed a team of junior lawyers.

Desirable experience:

• Track record of having advised on novel energy transition technologies, including hydrogen, CCUS, long-duration storage, behind the meter structures, advanced nuclear and interconnectors.
• Experience of advising on heat networks and/or complementary Energy Transition projects.

What we offer:

• High profile mandates across renewables, storage, hydrogen, flexibility, and new energy technologies.
• Excellent candidate profile across one of our most strategically important sectors.
• A collaborative, growth oriented team with genuine responsibility from day one.
• Competitive remuneration and comprehensive benefits.
• Flexible/hybrid working and support for continued professional development.

Your career development:

Like all our lawyers, you will benefit from our multi-award winning career development programme. At each stage of your career this provides you with:

• Clear expectations of your role and what it takes to progress.
• High quality clients and work, with early responsibility and client exposure.
• Thorough assessment and individual feedback from a range of experienced colleagues.
• Robust technical training with early skills based development, increasingly tailored to you.
• Reward for your contribution, progression and potential, rather than PQE or tenure.

For more information or to apply:

At Osborne Clarke we welcome direct applications. If you would like any further information about the role, or the firm, we would be delighted to hear from you. Please contact, in complete confidence, Angharad Jenkins in the recruitment team on angharad.jenkins@osborneclarke.com or 0117 917 3127.

Osborne Clarke is an inclusive working environment and values diversity in its workforce.

About Us: Osborne Clarke is an international legal practice with over 330 Partners and more than 1,260 talented lawyers in 26 locations. Our sector-based approach enables us to help our clients tackle the issues they are facing today, and prepare for the ones that they will face tomorrow. Advising them both comprehensively and commercially. We love working closely with our clients on new deals, products and solutions which will transform their businesses, markets and even sectors. And our unique approachable culture is not an added extra, it’s fundamental to our success. We value difference and encourage applicants from all backgrounds. We want everyone to feel that OC is a place where you can be yourself and belong, and our range of interest groups and diversity networks - not to mention our great teams - are a part of making that a reality. We value the health and wellbeing of our people and our wide range of initiatives and benefits support this.