Kenneth Hansen

Partner Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP

Kenneth Hansen

Kenneth Hansen represents debt and equity investors, including bilateral and multilateral development finance agencies, in structuring, negotiating, documenting and implementing domestic and international project financings, particularly in the energy sector. He leads the firm's extensive practice in connection with the US Department of Energy's Loan Guarantee Program for innovative and alternative energy projects and the EPA’s WIFIA program for water infrastructure projects and the CHIPS Program to support semiconductor manufacturing.

Ken's sectoral experience ranges from power generation, transmission and distribution to oil and gas, transportation, and telecommunications infrastructure, as well as a range of industrial and commercial projects. He is also experienced in debt workouts and the settlement of investment disputes, including political risk insurance claims.

Representative experience

US Department of Energy project financings

Ken advised applicants in nearly half of the financings to have closed to date under the Title XVII Loan Guarantee Program for projects that embody innovative energy technologies, including most recently Hanwha QCells Georgia in a US$1.4 billion DOE-guaranteed financing of the construction of a fully integrated solar panel production facility involving the manufacture of silicon ingot, wafers, modules and completed panels. Ken also advised the following project sponsors that successfully closed DOE loan guarantees:

Solar power generation projects:

Sempra Generation in a US$359 million loan guarantee for the construction of the 150 MW Mesquite photovoltaic solar power project in Arizona;
Cogentrix of Alamosa LLC for a US$90.6 million loan to support one of the first, and the largest, utility scale, concentrating photovoltaic energy generation facilities;
BrightSource Energy in the US$1.6 billion financing of the 392 MW Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, which, when completed, will be the largest solar project in the U.S.;
Prologis in a partially DOE-guaranteed US$1.4 billion loan to support the installation of approximately 733 MW of photovoltaic solar panels on industrial buildings across the U.S.;
Abound Solar Inc. in a US$400 million DOE-guaranteed financing for its construction of two photovoltaic panel manufacturing facilities;

Wind power generation projects:

Caithness Energy and GE Energy Finance in the multi-phase development and approximately US$2 billion financing of the 845 MW Shepherd's Flat wind project in Oregon;
FirstWind Energy in the US$117 million financing of the 30 MW Kahuku wind and battery project in Hawaii; and
Yale University and Wagner Wind Energy LLC in the US$102 million financing of the 50 MW Record Hill wind power plant in Maine.
Ken also advised (i) Credit Suisse as lead lender in the US$937 million partially DOE-guaranteed financing of NextEra's 250 MW Genesis solar thermal project under construction in Riverside County, California, including a US$702 million offering of pass-through certificates issued under Rule 144A, a US$150 million bank loan facility and an US$85 million letter of credit facility; and (ii) Grupo ACS and Banco Santander S.A. as equity investors in the 110 MW Tonopah thermosolar electric generation project developed by SolarReserve in Nevada.

U.S. Department of Commerce CHIPS Program

Ken led Norton Rose Fulbright’s representation of the CHIPS Program Office in its issuance of direct funding awards of up to:

US$4.745 billion to Samsung Electronics of to support Samsung’s planned investment of over US$37 billion to turn its existing presence in Central Texas into a comprehensive ecosystem for the development and production of leading-edge chips;
US$406 million to GlobalWafers America, LLC and MEMC LLC, subsidiaries of GlobalWafers Co., Ltd., to support US$4 billion in construction of wafer manufacturing facilities in Texas and Missouri;
US$77 million to Entegris to support construction of its state-of-the-art semiconductor supply chain manufacturing center in Colorado Springs, Colorado; and
US$23.9 million SolAero Technologies Corp., a unit of Rocket Lab, to boost its production in Albuquerque, NM, of highly efficient, radiation resistant compound semiconductors, so-called space-grade solar cells, that power spacecrafts and satellites and are used in U.S. space programs including missile awareness systems, the James Webb Space Telescope, and NASA’s Artemis program.

Cross-border transactions

Represented the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank) in:

- the US$900 million project financing of the 450 MW open cycle gas-fired Azura Power Project in Nigeria; and

- a US$500 million trade financing for Naftogaz, the natural gas utility of Ukraine.

Represented the U.S. International Development Finance Agency (DFC) (formerly the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC)) in:

- the updating of DFC’s form of political risk insurance contract for equity investors to reflect differences between the OPIC and DFC statutes;

- the development of a guaranty against devaluation risk for US$300 million in project bonds for the AES Tiete Hydropower Projects (Brazil);

- settlement of the Alliant Kyiv expropriation claim against the Government of Ukraine pursuant to which OPIC reopened its investment-promotion programs in Ukraine; and

- the restructuring of OPIC’s financing of Enron’s Dabhol Power Project (India) and in related political risk insurance claims by Enron, General Electric, Bechtel and Bank of America.

Represented Actis in connection with financing and political risk insurance provided by OPIC for the 100 MW Kepito Wind Power Project in Kenya.
Represented Longwing Energy in connection with OPIC's US$150 million financing of the 98 MW first phase of the Zaporizhia Wind Power Project in Ukraine and related political risk insurance coverage issued jointly by OPIC and two commercial insurers and in subsequent political risk insurance claim under those policies following the Russian invasion and occupation of the project site.
Represented Goldman Sachs as hedge provider in connection with the financing provided by OPIC for the 258 MW Taiba Ndiaye wind power project in Senegal.
Represented the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in its issuance of:

- a US$85 million first-call liquidity guaranty supporting the Government of Ecuador’s payment obligations in a blue bond issuance where its payments were insured by a US$656 million DFC AAD policy. This transaction, from which the financing savings support conservation projects in the Galapagos Islands, was named IJGlobal ESG Bond Deal-of-the-Year for 2024;

- a US$155 million partial credit guaranty, co-guaranteed by a US$1 billion of political risk insurance issued by DFC, each in support of the Government of Ecuador’s payment obligations in a US$1 billion blue bond refinancing of US$1.5 billion of sovereign debt, with the financing savings, which was the largest amount raised for conservation through a blue bond refinancing to date, directed to conservation projects in the Ecuadorian Amazon;

- a US$200 million first loss guarantee of a blue bond financing for The Bahamas, which complements a US$70 million co-guarantee from Builders Vision and US$30 million credit insurance from AXA XL.

- a US$200 million “policy-based guarantee” of a blue loan financing to promote a healthier and more productive ocean in The Bahamas, including reforms and actions to foster business recovery for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in the Blue Economy;

- a US$100 million partial risk guarantee issued in support of a “blue bond” debt conversion by Barbados, with an additional US$50 million co-guaranteed by second-loss guarantee from The Nature Conservancy. The interest savings is dedicated to conservation and climate change resiliency projects;

- its US$70 million investment in a total US$175 million securitization program over diversified payment rights (DPRs) arising primarily out of remittances to persons in El Salvador from family members abroad; and

- a proposed guaranty of obligations of the Ministry of Transportation of Argentina in connection with a portfolio of highway PPPs.

Represented IDB Invest in its US$70 million investment in a total US$175 million securitization program over diversified payment rights (DPRs) arising primarily out of remittances to persons in El Salvador from family members abroad.
Represented IDB, Corporación Andina de Fomento (CAF), Nederlandse Financierings-Maatschappij voor Ontwikkelingslanden N.V. (FMO) and Banco Internacional del Perú S.A.A. in their US$140 million project financing of Maple Energy's US$254 million ethanol production facility with an associated 37 MW power plant and sugar plantation.
Represented CAF in:

- the US$1 billion refinancing of US$1.031 billion of El Salvador’s outstanding bonds, with the savings dedicated to conservation, water security and ecosystem restoration efforts and regenerative agriculture in the Lempa River watershed. CAF provided US$200 million in standby letters of credit, while DFC provided US$1 billion in arbitral award default PRI coverage. This transaction, the largest debt conversion transaction of its kind to date, was named the IJGlobal Social Infrastructure Deal-of-the-Year for 2025; and

- US$99 million project co-financing with two Chilean commercial banks of the 144 MW Atacama PV solar project being developed in northern Chile by Canadian Solar; and

- formation of template sovereign and commercial insurance policies and a template intercreditor agreement.

Represented the International Finance Corporation (IFC), the OPEC Fund for International Development and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration in an approximately US$150 million of senior secured loan facilities to finance a 73 MW portfolio of utility-scale solar projects in Honduras.
Represented the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in connection with:

- the development of a "guarantor-of-record" political risk guaranty which supported financing for the Phu My 2.2 power project (Vietnam);

- political risk guaranties provided jointly MIGA to support financing for the Phu My 3.0 power plant (also in Vietnam); and

- the formation of its template partial risk guaranty.

Represented Interconexión Eléctrica S.A. E.S.P. in:

- its successful bid to purchase in a privatization the controlling interest in Companhia de Transmiss o de Energia Eletrica Paulista SA (CTEEP), the São Paulo state power transmission company, Brazil's second-largest power transmission company, and in a related interim financing package and its replacement with a US$554 million Rule 144A/Regulation S offering; and

- the financing by the IDB and CAF of an expansion of the electrical transmission system in Bolivia.

Represented Endesa (Chile) in the monoline-insured bond financing of two toll roads, Autopista del Sol S.A. and Autopista Los Libertadores (Chile).

Rankings and recognitions

The Best Lawyers in America, Project Finance Law, Best Lawyers, 2006 - 2025
Chambers Global, Projects (USA), Chambers and Partners, 2006 – 2017, 2019 – 2025
Chambers Global, Energy, Latin America – wide, Chambers and Partners, 2006 – 2017
Chambers USA, Nationwide: Projects; Chambers and Partners, 2005 – 2024
Chambers USA, Nationwide: Projects: PPP; Chambers and Partners, 2023 – 2024
Acritas Star, Acritas, 2019 – 2021
Who's Who Legal, Project Finance, Law Business Research Ltd., 2018 – 2019
Washington DC Super Lawyers, International, Thomson Reuters, 2013 – 2021
Recommended lawyer, Banking and finance and Projects and energy, Legal 500 Latin America, 2018
Client Service All-Star, BTI Client Service All-Stars report, 2017 – 2018
Recipient of the Charles Fahy Distinguished Adjunct Professor Award for the Graduate Program at Georgetown University Law Center, 2011 – 2012

Education

JD, cum laude, University of Pennsylvania Law School, 1983
MPA, Harvard University, 1979
MA, Yale University, 1976
BA, cum laude, Harvard University, 1974

Admissions

District of Columbia Bar
Massachusetts State Bar

Publications

"Ex-Im Bank Expanding Domestic Finance Options, Project Finance NewsWire, June 2022"
"Sophisticated Use of Political Risk Insurance, Project Finance NewsWire, March 2022"
"Buying American for Infrastructure, Project Finance NewsWire, December 2021"
"EXIM Has Work to Do at Home," Project Finance NewsWire, December 2020
"DFC Launches the DFC-DPA Loan Program," Project Finance NewsWire, August 2020
"DFC Replaces OPIC," Project Finance NewsWire, February 2020
"FOIA: Keeping Information Confidential," Project Finance NewsWire, August 2019
"DOE Loan Guarantee Program: New Rules," Project Finance NewsWire, December 2016
"World Bank Guarantees for Private Projects," Project Finance NewsWire, April 2016
"More US Loan Guarantees for Distributed Generation," Project Finance NewsWire, September 2015
"DOE Nuclear Loan Guarantees: Part Deux," Project Finance NewsWire, November 2014
"DOE Window Reopens for Renewable Energy Loan Guarantees," Project Finance NewsWire, September 2014
"DOE Reopens for Renewable Energy Loan Guarantees," Project Finance Newswire, April 2014
"Power Africa: Market Reactions to the Obama Initiative: Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, Nigeria and Tanzania," Project Finance NewsWire, December 2013
"Powering Africa," Project Finance NewsWire, August 2013
"DOE Loan Guarantees for Advanced Fossil Fuels: They're Back!," Project Finance NewsWire, August 2013
"Federal Loan Guarantees for Projects in Rural Areas," Project Finance NewsWire, August 2013
"Feed-In Tariff Insurance," Project Finance NewsWire, November 2012
"USDA Loan Guarantees: A Viable Alternative for Renewable Energy Projects?," Project Finance Newswire, March 2011
"DOE Loan Guarantee Update; Negotiations with the US Department of Energy over loan guarantees for innovative and renewable energy projects have been moving much faster," Project Finance Newswire, January 2011
"Next Generation Vehicles: Opportunities and Obstacles," Bloomberg Law Reports, November 8, 2010
"US Department of Energy Moves on Loan Guarantees," Project Finance Newswire, February 2010
"DOE Moves on Loan Guarantees," Project Finance NewsWire, February 2010
"DOE's Open Window for Loan Guarantees for Conventional Renewable Energy Generation Projects," Project Finance NewsWire, October 2009
"DOE Loan Guarantee Program Developments," Project Finance NewsWire, August 2009
"Financing Renewable Energy Projects After the Stimulus," Project Finance NewsWire, April 2009
"Heavy Demand for DOE Loan Guarantees," Project Finance NewsWire, November 2008
"A BIT of Insurance," International Political Risk, Moran, West and Martin, editors, The World Bank Group, 2008
"Tactics When Caught in an Expropriation," Project Finance NewsWire, April 2007
"The Dabhol Power Project Settlement: What Happened and How?," Infrastructure Journal, December 2005
"PRI and the Rise (and Fall?) of Private Investment in Public Infrastructure," Privatising Development: Transnational Law, Infrastructure and Human Rights, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers, 2005
"Tales from the Dark Side: Lessons Learned from Troubled Investments, International Political Risk Management: Looking to the Future," The World Bank Group, 2005
"Political Risk Insurance and Project Workouts, Cross-Border Debt Restructurings," Euromoney, 2005
"The Next Frontier: Subsovereign Projects," Project Finance NewsWire, June 2004
"Managing Political Risks in Emerging Market Investment," The Transnational Lawyer, 2004
"Help for Projects in Developing Countries," Project Finance NewsWire, October 2003
"The Rise (and Fall) of Private Investment in Public Infrastructure," International Political Risk Management: The Brave New World, The World Bank, 2003
Co-author, "Political Risk Coverage: What's New?," Project Finance NewsWire, December 2001
"Spotlight on Political Risk Insurance," Project Finance NewsWire, October 2001
"New Product For Devaluation Risk," Project Finance NewsWire, June 2001
"The Multiple Pledge-of-Shares Problem: Report of a Little Progress, International Political Risk Management: Exploring New Frontiers," The World Bank, 2001

Speaking engagements

Ken's speaking engagements include:

Panelist, “Managing Political Risks,” American Society of International Law Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C., April 2025
Panelist, "Guidelines to Government for Scaling-up Renewable Energy Projects," EnergyNet Powering Africa Conference, Miami, FL, February 2020
Panelist, "Frontier Markets and the BUILD Act," NY Society of CFAs, New York, NY, December 2019
Keynote, Millennium Challenge Corporation's "MCC College," September 2017
Speaker, "Financing Private Sector Renewable Energy Projects," in the World Bank's Legal and Judicial Development Week program, Washington, D.C., December 2016
Panelist "Step-in Rights in Project Financings," International Bar Association Annual Conference, Washington, DC, September 2016
Panelist "Innovative Financing Techniques for Renewable Energy Projects," conference sponsored by Siemens Financial Services and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, March 2016
Panelist, "Public-Private Partnerships in Infrastructure Projects," Annual Meeting of the American Bar Association's Section on International Law, New York, April 15, 2016
Panelist, "Investing in Infrastructure, Doing Business in and with Emerging Markets," Practising Law Institute, New York, July 2015
2015 LAC Workshop, International Finance Corporation, Buenos Aires, April 2015
Panelist, "Products, Policies and Underwriting Considerations in a Volatile World," TFX Washington: Agency and Project Finance, Washington, DC, April 2015
Turkey Infrastructure and Energy Finance Seminar, London, May 2014
Moderator, "The Arab Spring: Dawn or Sunset for MENA Project Financings," Focus on Emerging Markets: Energy Explosion, Washington, DC, January 2013
Seminar on Multilateral Agency Project Finance and Political Risk Insurance, Istanbul, Turkey, March 2012
Solar Power in Emerging Markets: A Tutorial, San Francisco, CA, December 2011
Panel moderator, "U.S. Distributed Solar Markets: Outlook and Analysis," Infocast's Distributed Solar West Summit, San Diego, CA, November 2011
Second Annual Focus on Emerging Markets Conference, Washington, DC, November 2011
Panel moderator, "Mexican Energy: New Developments in Renewable Energy, Independent Power Projects and Natural Gas Supply," Platts 15th Annual Mexican Energy Conference, Houston, TX, November 2011
Panelist, "DOE Loan Guarantee Program," Infocast Solar Power Conference, Newark, NJ, June 2011
Speaker and panelist, "DOE Loan Guarantee Program," Energy Bar Association's Annual Meeting, Washington, DC, December 2010
Moderator, "Changing Perceptions of Risk in the Aftermath of the Financial Crisis," Seventh Biennial MIGA-Georgetown Symposium on International Political Risk Management, Washington, DC, October 2010
Chairman, Kyrgyz Opportunities Forum 2: Stabilizing Today, Prospering Tomorrow, with H.E. Roza Otunbayeva, President of the Kyrgyz Republic, Washington, DC, September 2010
Panelist, KPMG Conference on Solar Energy, Jersey City, NJ, September 2010
"What Makes Green Energy Different," Focus on Emerging Markets, Washington, DC, September 2010
Speaker and Moderator, "Negotiating the DOE Loan Guarantee Process," Infocast's 4th Annual Carbon Capture & Sequestration Summit 2010, Washington, DC, July 2010
Moderator, DOE Loan Guarantee Program, Infocast Conference, Washington, DC, March 2010
Speaker, "Status Report - The Loan Guarantee Program," Infocast's Projects and Money Summit, New Orleans, LA, January 2010
Moderator and panelist, "Thin Film Finance and Legislation," Thin Film Summit, San Francisco, CA, December 2009
Moderator and panelist, "Using Loan Guarantees in Renewable Energy Finance," Infocast Renewable Energy Summit, Washington, DC, November 2009
Panelist, "DOE Loan Guarantees - The Window to Apply for Guarantees for Mainstream Renewable Energy Projects is Open," Infocast Webinar, October 2009
Panelist, "$30b DOE Loan Guarantee Rounds 3 &4 SOLICITATIONS - Application Procedures and Strategies for Commercial Energy Efficiency," Alternative Energy, Advanced T&D and Transmission Infrastructure Projects, Infocast Webinar, August 2009
Webinar on the DOE Loan Guarantee Program sponsored by the Solar Energy Industries Association, August 2009
Webinar on the DOE Loan Guarantee Program sponsored by the American Wind Energy Association, July 2009
Panelist, "The New Energy Financing Mechanisms Created by ARRA--Status and Outlook for Game-Changing Structures," Infocast Webinar, June 2009
Program moderator, First Annual OPIC Investor Conference, May 2009
DOE Loan Guarantee Program Update, American Wind Energy Conference, Chicago, IL, May 2009
Panelist, "Aftermath of the Dabhol Settlement," International Bar Association conference on International Project Finance, Washington, DC, April 2009
DOE Loan Guarantee Program: Issues and Update, Nuclear Energy Institute's annual meeting of the Lawyers' Committee, Washington, DC, March 2009
Panelist, DOE Loan Guarantee Webinar, Infocast Webinar, March 2009
Panelist, "How the Stimulus Bill Will Affect the Market: Opportunities - New Projects, New Sources of Money," Webinar, February 2009
Speaker, "Briefing on the Economic Stimulus Bill Moving through Congress," Infocast Webinar, January 2009
Commentator, "Emerging Issues, Opportunities and Challenges for the Political Risk Insurance Industry," MIGA-Georgetown Symposium Washington, DC, December 2008
Panelist, "Project Finance – Private Perspectives," Egypt-U.S. Finance Conference, Cairo, Egypt, November 2008
Panelist, "Petroleum Politics: The Squeeze on Foreign Operators," LatAm Oil and Gas Congress, Houston, TX, October 2008
Panelist, "Private Investment in Power Projects," US-Africa Infrastructure Conference, Washington, DC, October 2008
Speaker, "DOE Loan Guarantee Program Update," 2008 Project Finance Conference, Amelia Island, FL, May 2008
Panelist, "Euro 2012: Infrastructure Needs and Investment Opportunities," Ukrainian Institute of America, New York, NY, March 2008
EDC Legal Symposium, sponsored by Canada's Economic Development Corporation, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, January 2008
"Emerging Political Risks and Options in the Southern Cone," Association of International Petroleum Negotiators Regional Conference, Santiago, Chile, November 2007
"Insuring Political Risk in Oil and Gas Projects," Marsh's Oil, Gas and Energy Investments Seminar, Houston, TX, June 2007
"Update on the DOE Loan Guaranty Program for Novel Technologies," Chadbourne Global Energy and Finance Conference, Deer Valley, UT, June 2007
Moderator, "Risk Mitigation Case Studies from the MDB's Private Sector Arms: Emerging Markets and Public-Private Partnerships," Banking on Development Conference 2007, The U.S. Commercial Service and the World Trade Center of New Orleans, New Orleans, LA, March 2007
Moderator, "Global Sourcing and the Global Lawyer," Georgetown Journal of International Law 2007 Symposium, Washington, DC, January 2007
"Bolivia and Beyond – Breach of Contract and International Expropriation," American Society of International Law Seminar, Washington, DC, May 2006
"Lessons from Recent PRI Claims, Near Claims and Non-Claims," Seventh Annual Structured Trade & Export Finance in the Americas, Miami, FL, February 2005
"Tales from the Dark Side -- Political Risk Lessons Learned from Recent Investment Disasters," International Political Risk Management: Looking to the Future: Identifying and Managing the Critical Challenges Facing the Market, Washington, DC, November 2004
"ADB-IBC Political Risk," Project/Trade Finance & Export Credit Summit 2004, Shanghai, People's Republic of China, November 2004
"Increasing Capital Flows to Africa," Corporate Council on Africa and U.S. Export-Import Bank Conference, Johannesburg, South Africa, September 2004
"Why Your Arbitration Agreement Matters: Anticipating Disputes in International Transactions," DC Bar Program, Washington, DC, May 2004
Middle East Roundtable, Export-Import Bank of the United States, Washington, DC, April 2004
United Nations Business Council's Workshop on Emerging Market Finance, New York, NY, March 2004
Panelist, Sixth Annual Structured Trade and Export Finance in the Americas Conference, Miami, FL, February 2004
"Issues in Structuring International Project Financings," Seoul, South Korea, November 2003
"Tales from the Dark Side: Lessons Learned from Recent Investment Disputes," Fourth Annual Political Risk, Trade Credit & Project Finance Summit, Manila, Philippines, November 2003
"Legal Issues in Structured Export Finance in the Americas," Fifth Annual Structured Trade and Export Finance in the Americas Conference, Miami, FL, February 2003
"The Role of the Multilateral and U.S. Financial Agencies," The Decline of Financial Capital in Latin America, New York, NY, November 2002
"International Political Risk Management: The Brave New World," MIGA-Georgetown University Symposium, Washington, DC, October 2002

Memberships and activities

Advisory Committee of the Millennium Challenge Corporation, 2016 - 2018
Associate General Counsel for Investment, Assistant General Counsel, Senior Commercial Counsel and Counsel, Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), 1986 - 1995
General Counsel, Export-Import Bank of the United States, 1995 - 1999
Professorial Lecturer, the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University, 2000 - present
Adjunct Professor:

- Georgetown University Law Center, 1991 - present

- Boston University Law School, 1992 - 1999

- The George Washington University National Law Center, 1992 - 1994

- Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University, 1993

Member: American Bar Association; American Society of International Law; American Economic Association; Washington Foreign Law Society (president, 2004 - 2005)