Project Development & Finance

Hughes Hubbard acts as a premier architect of complex project finance transactions, bridging the gap between legacy industrial foundations and the next generation of global infrastructure. We advise on high-stakes transactions across a broad spectrum of industries, from traditional energy, mining, transportation and infrastructure to the rapid expansion of critical minerals, renewable energy and digital infrastructure platforms.

Our practice is distinguished by its ability to structure and execute sophisticated, bankable financings that support both the physical and digital foundations of the modern world.

• Diverse Client Base & Partnering: We represent a broad and sophisticated range of market participants, including lenders (domestic and international commercial banks and private credit lenders), sponsors, private equity firms and portfolio companies. Our team also advises borrowers, developers and equipment suppliers in complex non-recourse and limited-recourse financings.

• Sophisticated Financing Structures: We have deep experience in diverse structures, including warehouse and portfolio financings, net asset value (NAV) facilities, regulatory-compliant models, and asset-backed solutions.

• Energy Transition & Traditional Power: We support clients throughout the project lifecycle, from development and construction through refinancing, restructuring and exit. Our work spans from traditional utility-scale energy projects to the extraction and processing of critical minerals essential for the transition to clean energy economy.

• Digital & Physical Infrastructure: We are at the forefront of the rapid expansion of digital infrastructure, providing the legal guidance required to finance large-scale, AI-ready data centers and related assets. In parallel, we continue to advise on essential physical infrastructure, including transportation hubs and global transit networks.

• Global Lifecycle Support: Our lawyers help clients source, finance and manage essential assets globally, ensuring transactions are bankable in increasingly evolving legal, regulatory and geopolitical landscapes.

Full-Service Project Finance Offerings

Our multidisciplinary team brings together capabilities in corporate, real estate, tax (including investment tax credits), hedging and derivatives, VAT financings, bankruptcy and restructuring, energy and infrastructure regulation, sanctions, OFAC and anti-money laundering (or AML) compliance, CFIUS (and foreign direct investment), ERISA, insurance, and environmental law to address the full range of commercial and legal considerations in project financings. We advise on flexible capital solutions and provide strategic guidance on challenging transactions, helping clients navigate regulatory, tax and environmental issues in both domestic and international markets. This integrated approach enables investors and stakeholders to pursue opportunities in essential infrastructure and real assets with confidence and agility.

Globally Recognized Litigation and Arbitration Advice

Our disputes lawyers are globally recognized and rated for their energy and infrastructure experience, particularly in complex, cross-border insolvency, restructuring, litigation and arbitration, including in matters related to uranium concentrates, oil, gas, construction and disputes arising from commodity and derivatives transactions.

Partner Led, Solutions Driven

Our teams are efficiently staffed, partner‑led and commercially focused, bringing senior attention to the most complex and high‑stakes transactions. Clients rely on Hughes Hubbard not only to execute financings efficiently, but to help structure resilient and bankable energy, mining and infrastructure projects that can withstand regulatory scrutiny, commodity price volatility and geopolitical risk over the long term.