The Legal 500

Gus Papamichalopoulos heads KGDI Law Firm’s highly respected four-partner practice, which includes corporate partner Elisabeth Eleftheriades and project finance experts Despina Doxaki and Ioanna Antonopoulou. The team advised HRADF on the privatisation of the Public Power Corporation (PPC), and advised Vopak LNG Holding on the privatisation of DEPA and DESFA.

Karatzas & Partners Law Firm represented the HRADF on the tendering and development of a gas storage facility in Kavala. Other clients include Duke Energy, which the team advised on the €49.5m sale of its stake in EPA Attikis to Shell. Christina Faitakis heads the practice.

Norton Rose LLP’s Dimitris Assimakis advises on energy-related transactional, licensing, regulatory and dispute resolution matters. Highlights included advising PPC Renewables on its tender for a strategic partner to develop a 200MW single-site photovoltaic project.

PotamitisVekris’ good-quality team is led by highly rated corporate and energy specialist Euripides Ioannou. It recently advised a consortium including Hellenic Petroleum, Edison International and Melrose Resources on the tender for three onshore and offshore exploration licences in western Greece. Other clients include Hanergy, SunEdison and Itochu Corporation.

Drakopoulos Law Firm is ‘the firm to go to for demanding energy projects’, and is praised for its ‘impeccable service, strong team’ and ‘very good market knowledge’. It recently represented IntraPower on the €250m development of power plants in Greece, and advised MagEnergy on hydropower plant PPP projects in Mozambique and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Senior partner Panagiotis Drakopoulos ‘knows energy in a way that very few people do’.

Dryllerakis & Associates provides ‘a first-class service’, and advised Gazprom on the privatisation of DEPA. John Damilakis is ‘experienced and knowledgeable’.

Kelemenis & Co has a good reputation, particularly on the regulatory side. It is the main adviser to the Greek TSO, the nation’s power grid operator which is a subsidiary of the PPC. The firm also advised DEPA on regulatory issues, and on its further privatisation. Yannis Kelemenis is well regarded.

M & P Bernitsas has ‘solid industry knowledge’, and provides ‘quick response times’ and ‘good value for money’. Practice head Yannis Kourniotis and of counsel Yannis Seiradakis ‘both have great knowledge of the renewables sector’. A recent highlight was advising the government on the tender for oil exploration rights in western Greece.

Moussas & Partners Attorneys At Law enjoys a good reputation in the market, and was recently involved in two landmark pieces of litigation following the deregulation of energy pricing in Greece. Nicholas Moussas heads the team.

Watson, Farley & Williams – Greek Branch has a good reputation for advising borrowers and lenders in the sector. It recently advised Anemos Makedonias on a multimillion-euro bond refinancing of two wind farms. Key clients include Alpha Bank, Emporiki Bank, HSBC, and EDF. Virginia Murray is the name to note.

Your Legal Partners’ highly rated team is recommended for transactional and regulatory matters. It counts The Mytilineos Group as a major client, and is advising one of its subsidiaries on several dealings with the PPC, including an arbitration before the Regulatory Authority for Energy. Konstantin Karagiannis and Katerina Politopoulou jointly head the practice.

Zepos & Yannopoulos advised DEPA on its privatisation, and showed its regulatory expertise when it successfully represented Shell in an appeal following the Competition Committee’s allegation that it colluded with BP over fuel prices. Marina Kolia heads the practice.

Wolfgang Gebhardt heads the team at Avramopoulos & Partners Law Firm, which has a strong network of clients from Germany and Northern Europe. Highlights included advising REC Solar Norway on the development of a solar energy site.

KLC Law Firm has a good track record advising on solar energy projects, and is, for example, advising Phoenix Solar on all its photovoltaic projects in Greece. The firm has also acted on several projects in Romania and Macedonia.

Evangelos Courakis and Gregory Logothetis are Koutalidis Law Firm’s two main energy partners, and have experience in transactional and regulatory matters.

Lambadarios Law Firm’s Nondas Lambadarios regularly advises on oil and gas issues, and Constantinos Lambadarios is experienced in renewables. Energean Oil and Gas is a major client.

Nikolinakos – Lardas & Associates Law Firm’s clients appreciate its ‘combination of regulatory and competition law expertise’, and the practice is ‘supported by an extremely experienced litigation team’. The firm also provides transactional advice to clients including Enel Green Power. Nikos Nikolinakos is ‘among the leading energy law experts in Greece’.

Paraskevas Law Firm recently represented Hellas Power in a damages claim against the PPC arising from anti-competitive practices. Dimitris Paraskevas is highly experienced.

Politis & Partners has a good reputation and has been involved in various significant solar energy projects for clients including SPI Solar and SDL Solar. Evangelos Politis heads the team, which also advises Toshiba on its Greek energy projects.

Theodora Monochartzis heads Sarantitis Law Firm’s team, which acts for clients including Global Energy Services and EHOL Hellas.

John Spyridakis and Eleni Tsoukala at Spyridakis – Tsoukala Law Firm are both active in the energy sector. The firm is currently representing a major international energy group in a multimillion-euro share and licensing dispute.