The Legal 500 > Europe, Middle East & Africa > Israel > Infrastructure

Barnea Jaffa Lande & Co.'s infrastructure and project finance team has strong international experience, acting for international development companies, engineers, and other contractors in project development mandates in Israel and abroad. Domestically, the team has acted for two major Chinese companies participating in a number of significant tenders spanning the rail and road, water desalination, and energy sectors. In addition, the team is advising China Harbour Engineering Company on its bid for a $6bn PPP project in Turkey. The practice group is headed by Simon Jaffa, who acts for General Electric in all of its energy projects in Israel, and also includes Inon Yogev. Also of note, litigator Shai Avnieli joined the team from S. Horowitz & Co, bringing to the team significant experience in construction, infrastructure and real estate litigation.

Fischer Behar Chen Well Orion & Co acts for traditional and alternative lenders, project developers and multinational consortiums in project finance and development mandates in a wide range of major infrastructure developments. Headed by Gilad Winkler, the team is involved in some of Israel's largest rail projects (including the Tel Aviv LRT), major defence projects (the IDF's supply centre and intelligence campus), and multiple significant water projects (such as the Sorek Plot B desalination facility), among other social and utilities, transport, and energy infrastructure developments. In addition, the team also has experience in acting for infrastructure funds, including listed funds. Also recommended is Hagit Horowitz, whom clients have called 'very knowledgeable, from procurement to completion, and all phases in between'.

Gornitzky & Co.'s infrastructure and project finance team acts for project companies and consortiums in large-scale PPP, BOT and PFI projects in the power, water, mining and transportation space. Practice co-head Itay Geffen is acting for a consortium of domestic and international companies in relation to the project bid for the green line of the Jerusalem LRT project, as well as the project bid for the Tel Aviv LRT's green line and purple line. Another key contact is Ronit Rozenstein-Barel, who has experience acting for lenders and investors, including infrastructure funds such as the Noy Fund. Jack Smith is a name to note for projects in the areas of conventional and renewable energy, electricity and power generation.

Herzog Fox & Neeman has a strong reputation in the infrastructure and project finance space, where it acts for multinational project consortiums, public and private project tenderers, lending bodies and financiers, and project operators. The practice group is jointly headed by Mark Phillips and Adam Eytan ('one of the brightest lawyers in this field'). Phillips is acting for one of the bidding consortiums for two new segments of the Tel Aviv LRT, and Eytan is advising the private-sector project companies on the development of multiple large-scale defence projects. The team is also involved in a number of major road projects, and utilities and water desalination projects, as well as a significant port development.

Meitar Law Offices  has a well-known project finance group that is particularly active in the energy infrastructure space, though the team has also had strong recent showings in the rail, road and water sectors. In addition to acting for domestic and international project companies and concessionaires, the team also has a strong reputation for advising domestic banks and insurers on the financing of major infrastructure projects, which recently included the financing of the addition of a new line on the Jerusalem LRT. Key figures in the project finance team include practice head Jonathan Finklestone and Tani Zahavi, 'a problem solver, not a problem maker'. Also recommended are Guy Kles, Elad Sharbani, who was recently promoted to partner, and Renelle Joffe, who is a name to note for energy-sector work.

Shibolet & Co. with Raved, Magriso, Benkel & Co. provides high-quality services to project companies, contractors and financiers in a huge range of domestic and international infrastructure projects, spanning energy infrastructure, road and rail projects, ports and various other utilities projects. Of particular note, in 2019 the firm's client Trans-Jerusalem J-Net was chosen as the winner of a multibillion-dollar tender for the expansion and further development of the Jerusalem light rail network. A key figure in the team is David Magriso, who led the J-Net tender and is also advising key participants in tenders for the Tel Aviv LRT extensions and one of the country's most significant highway projects. Also recommended are Revital Ben-Artzi, Orit Marom-Albeck, and Alon Ziv, who is a standout figure in the project finance space and is particularly active in the energy sector.

Yigal Arnon & Co has a particularly strong reputation for advising governmental bodies on the development of major transport infrastructure projects, thought the team also has a strong client roster of project contractors and investment funds. In addition to the team's key strength in transport and port infrastructure, David Schapiro is involved in an innovative telecoms project to bring widespread fibre optic internet connections to Israel. Other key figures in the team include Doron Tamir, Micha Tollman and Oren Roth, who are acting for NTA in relation to all sub-projects of the Tel Aviv LRT and also assisted with the publication of the group's main tenders for the LRT project. Simon Weintraub is another name to note.

With firm-wide strengths in finance, litigation, planning and construction, and high-value international corporate transactions, Goldfarb Seligman & Co. advises domestic and international corporates, state-owned companies, investors and lenders on financing and investment transactions, and development agreements in a huge variety of infrastructure projects. In the domestic market, one of the team's most active clients is Netivei Ayalon, the government-owned highway management company, which the team advised on over 50 new tenders in 2018. Headed by Rami Sofer, the practice group is also acting for large international engineering companies in major projects in the rail and ship infrastructure sectors. Other recommended figures include Oren Reif, who has been particularly standout in the energy infrastructure space, Dubi Zoltak, who leads the capital markets team, and Rayek Khoury. Orit Farkash-Hacohen left the firm to serve in the Israeli parliament.

Gross, Kleinhendler, Hodak, Halevy, Greenberg, Shenhav & Co. has experience acting for public sector bodies in major infrastructure tenders, and also advises domestic and international contractors and sub-contractors on their participation in bids and development mandates in the rail and road, energy, IT, and water sectors. Tal Danon Shenhav has advised the State of Israel throughout the process of a number of major highway tenders, and is also acting for an Israeli utilities company in the development of a project in the Republic of Guinea. Anat Klein is particularly active in the energy space, but also has expertise in infrastructure, more generally, having recently been involved in a bid for the development of new lines on the Tel Aviv LRT.

Lipa Meir & Co is best known for advising national governmental bodies, state-owned companies and municipalities on infrastructure tenders, with particular expertise in the defence and water desalination sectors. The team acts for the Israeli Water Desalination Administration in relation to the ongoing operation of all five of Israel's desalination plants, and department head Michal Schwartz is advising the Ministry of Finance on tenders for two large-scale desalination projects, including the NIS2bn development of the Sorek Site B development. In the defence sector, the team is representing the Ministry of Defence in two major tenders, including the IDF technology campus, one of the largest development tenders ever issued in Israel. Another key figure is Zuriel Lavie, who has niche expertise in agriculture law and also has extensive experience acting for the country's kibbutzim.

M. Firon & Co Advocates and Notaries is consistently involved in bids for and the development of significant road and rail infrastructure, port developments, defence projects and nationwide real estate projects. Headed by Tamar Firon-Smorodinsky, the practice group acts for well-known domestic development companies such as Electra and Ashtrom Group, and has a growing roster of international corporates, including multiple Chinese engineering groups and, most recently, a major international utilities company. In addition to acting for development consortiums in connection with LRT projects in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, the team is also advising the construction contractor on the NIS4bn development of the new shipping port at Haifa. Also recommended are Timor Pesso and Ran Mahlab.

S. Horowitz & Co has considerable strengths in banking and finance, litigation, construction, and administrative law, skill sets that all contribute to the firm's ability to handle mega-project financing and development matters. Key names on the lender side include Clifford Davis, who specialises in international transactions and has experience in export credit financing, and Aharon Bloch and Michelle Liberman, who acted for the lenders in relation to the Jerusalem LRT BOT, Israel's only operating light railway project. Names to note for bidders and project companies include Benjamin Sheffer, who is acting for an international bidder in  tender for the design and construction of an additional line on the Tel Aviv LRT, and Eran Bezalel, who is involved in a number of large projects related to the Cross-Israel Highway.

Yehuda Raveh & Co. has a very strong reputation in Israel's project finance market, and has been a longstanding key adviser to a number of high-profile domestic banks and investment groups, and energy companies, particularly in the renewables space. In particular, the practice group is among the most experienced in high-profile PPPs and was also an early pioneer of IPPs in Israel. Practice head Ron Vered is highly regarded by peers in the market; he is currently involved in two headline tenders for the development of large-scale IDF facilities, and is also involved in the financing and development of some of the country's most significant PV projects.

Yossi Levy & Co has a strong reputation for project finance in BOT and PPP projects, which has recently seen it involved in development mandates in the energy, transportation, water, and social infrastructure sectors. In particular, the team has a long-standing relationship with Electra, which it recently advised on development projects spanning student dormitories, power projects, and a major government complex. Uri Mandel heads the practice group, and is rated by clients for his 'practical, service-oriented approach' and his 'commitment to a high standard of legal services'. In addition to acting for a variety of EPC contractors and other project companies, Mandel is also instructed by a number of domestic banks and alternative lenders.

Over the last three years, Amit, Pollak, Matalon & Co. Advocates and Notary has significantly increased its presence in Israel's infrastructure market, and has become a regular counsel to multinational consortiums in bids for the country's largest infrastructure projects. Department head Nadia Davidzon has built up a roster of international clients including Bombardier, IBI Group, and Macquarie, and has recently been involved in tenders for the extensions of the Jerusalem LRT, the design of underground stations for Tel Aviv's metro network, the development of the IDF's logistics centre, and the EPC contract for the desalination plant at Ashdod. The firm also has an active administrative litigation practice, which recently represented Lesico in the Supreme Court regarding a disputed tender award.

Rated by clients for its 'excellent service at a great value', Epstein Rosenblum Maoz (ERM) has experience advising multinational bidding consortiums and a variety of other bidding participants in transport and water projects, and is particularly experienced in power and energy projects. The practice group is headed by Amnon Epstein, 'a very client-focused partner', who is routinely instructed by European and other international engineering companies and lenders. Also recommended is Asaf Rimon, who is especially experienced in project finance transactions in the energy space.

The team at Erdinast, Ben Nathan, Toledano & Co. is regularly instructed by international and domestic corporates participating in multinational bidding consortiums for Israel's largest infrastructure projects. Jointly headed by Uri Noy and Nadav Olgan, the team is particularly active in the power and energy space, but has also been involved in a number of recent tenders in the transport, defence and water sectors. In January 2019, the firm further strengthened its project finance practice with the hire of Roy Gross from Amit, Pollak, Matalon & Co. Advocates and Notary.