Brodies LLP fields a deep bench of oil and gas specialists, who have ‘an in-depth understanding of the industry’. The team, which handles national and international mandates, is able to draw on strengths across multiple disciplines, such as shipping, health and safety, IT, IP and employment. Practice head Clare Munro focuses on M&A and the more niche areas of field development, transportation arrangement and decommissioning. Sonia Love has considerable expertise in FPSO field developments, while Greg May is recommended for his expertise in the drilling sector. Rhona McFarlane is a name to note for UKCS upstream and midstream work.
Oil and gas in Scotland
Brodies LLP
Practice head(s):
Clare Munro
Other key lawyers:
Greg May; Sonia Love; Suzanne Hopkinson; Rhona McFarlane; Bryan Wilson
Testimonials
‘All of the partners in the Brodies oil and gas team have significant in-house experience, which means their advice is always on point and extremely pragmatic.’
‘The size of the team and depth of experience makes the Brodies team an excellent legal partner to support any project.’
‘Greg May makes himself available 24/7 and has unrivalled experience in the service sector, which makes him my “go-to” for expert oil and gas contract advice.’
‘Under the leadership of Clare Munro, probably the best real oil and gas firm, in my experience.’
‘Clare Munro understands the business, has an understated style and knows what the client is looking for.’
‘Everything that we have asked for has been done exceptionally well with no fanfare, on time and on budget.’
‘Rhona McFarlane has provided a huge amount of support for us over the past couple of years; she is great to have on your side.’
‘Very deep and broad range of experience in the team across the upstream oil and gas sector.’
Key clients
Spirit Energy
Nobel Upstream
Dana Petroleum
NSMP
Metal NRG Plc
ADNOC
Work highlights
- Advised Metal NRG plc on the acquisition by its subsidiary joint venture undertaking, BritNRG Limited, of the entire issued share capital of Sunswept Enterprises Limited and its subsidiaries.
CMS
CMS fields ‘an exceptionally talented team with genuine expertise in North Sea oil and gas’. The group is prominent in high-value M&A both domestically and internationally. It is also highly experienced in projects, supply chain contract negotiations and high-profile disputes. Norman Wisely, who leads the practice, is recommended for acquisitions and disposals of offshore and onshore assets. Judith Aldersey-Williams is a name to note for commercial contracts and regulatory issues, and Graeme Clubley handles joint ventures and contractual matters. Paula Kidd is recommended for her expertise in decommissioning security arrangements. Of counsel Frances Reilly left for an in-house role at TAQA Group.
Practice head(s):
Norman Wisely
Other key lawyers:
Judith Aldersey-Williams; Graeme Clubley; Paula Kidd; Frank Fowlie; Rob Wilson
Testimonials
‘Full service capability, deep industry knowledge and very pragmatic, solutions-focused advice.’
‘Extremely client-oriented and results driven. They listen to what the client needs.’
‘Depth and breadth of experience is top drawer – you will find they have been involved in most of the key deals in this sector in 2020.’
‘Graeme Clubley is an outstanding partner and a trusted adviser on a wide range of oil and gas topics.’
‘Graeme Clubley is super reliable and always delivers.’
‘Deep knowledge of oil and gas built up over years working with a wide range of clients.’
‘The team at CMS has an unrivalled knowledge of the UK oil and gas upstream arena.’
‘Paula Kidd is very receptive and an excellent adviser.’
Key clients
BP
ConocoPhillips
Equinor
Repsol Sinopec
Premier Oil
SSE
Siccar Point
MOL
TAQA
CNOOC
INEOS
Shell
Schlumberger
Apache
EnQuest
Cairn
Chrysaor
Decipher Petroleum
Nedbank
Beacon Oil & Gas
Zennor Petroleum
Humber Gathering System Limited (Antin)
Ratio Petroleum
Hermes Infrastructure
IFM Investors
Petrofac
Halliburton
Decom Energy (Fairfield)
Petoro
Neo Energy
HitecVision
Kerogen
Dana Petroleum
Ramco
Pale Blue Dot Energy
Saudi Aramco
Eni
Oil Spill Response
Mitsui
Antelopus Energy Pvt Limited
Assala Energy
AkerBP
Work highlights
- Supported BP in the drafting and negotiation of a suite of contracts including a bareboat charter, operating services agreement and ancillary documentation including guarantees, indemnities and amendments of existing field contracts.
- Following conclusion of litigation proceedings, advised TAQA on all legal aspects of effecting the transfer of operatorship including contract novations, OGA consent, employment and property matters.
- Advising EnQuest in connection with the acquisition of Suncor’s entire 26.69% interest in the Golden Eagle field for an initial consideration of $325m.
Burness Paull LLP
Burness Paull LLP has a well-established reputation in the UK offshore sector, which dates back to the firm's inception. It has a strong track record acting for high-profile clients in both the upstream and service sectors, and is highly active in domestic and international transactions, with particular experience of the Egyptian market. Brian Hemming, who heads up the practice, is recommended for acquisitions and disposals, projects and upstream joint venture agreements. The team was bolstered in May 2021, with the arrival of Bob Ruddiman from Pinsent Masons LLP. Bruce McLeod has moved in the other direction.
Practice head(s):
Brian Hemming
Other key lawyers:
Bob Ruddiman
Testimonials
‘Experts in oil and gas, with an excellent customer focus and pragmatic solutions.’
‘Brian Hemming is extremely knowledgeable, pragmatic and personable.’
‘Easy to work with and they find common ground to solve any issues.’
‘The team has considerable knowledge and experience of oil and gas, having worked both in-house and externally across many companies in the industry.’
‘They work with us in a manner which makes the interface between our company and their external legal support as seamless as possible.’
‘Burness Paull’s team has excellent knowledge of the oil and gas sector and associated practices, which extends beyond the purely legal in to the commercial and technical spaces.’
Key clients
Chrysaor
Dragon Oil
Tailwind Energy
Kellas Midstream
Neptune Energy
Anasuria Hibiscus
Wintershall Dea
Savanah Energy
i3 Energy
Spirit Energy
Work highlights
- Acting for Wintershall DEA in negotiations relating to the partial disposal of interests in the East Damanhur onshore concession in Egypt.
- Acting for Savannah Energy plc in relation to its readmission to the AIM market of the London Stock Exchange following its successful acquisition of certain of the Nigerian business and assets of Seven Energy International.
- Acting for AIM-listed i3 Energy plc in connection with its £30m equity fundraising and acquisition of certain Gain Energy’s oil and gas producing assets in Western Canada and also in its acquisition of Toscana Energy and its oil and gas production portfolio in Western Canada.
Pinsent Masons LLP
The oil and gas team at Pinsent Masons LLP is well regarded for its M&A and equity capital markets expertise, and it advises on a large number of UKCS deals, as well as transactions across Africa, Asia Pacific and the Middle East. In addition, other work involves competition, employment, dispute resolution, anti-bribery and anti-corruption, as well as advice to regulatory bodies on industry initiatives. The global oil and gas team is now led by Rosalie Chadwick, following the departure of Bob Ruddiman to Burness Paull LLP. Chadwick is recommended for domestic and international corporate finance transactions. Shirley Allen handles transactional and decommissioning work, while Neil Hehir assists clients with supply chain contracts. The team was recently joined by the hugely experienced Bruce McLeod, who can draw on more than 25 years' experience at Burness Paull LLP and BP.
Practice head(s):
Rosalie Chadwick
Other key lawyers:
Shirley Allen; Neil Hehir; Bruce McLeod
Testimonials
‘Very skilled in a wide range of oil and gas topics, including supply chain, banking and upstream asset issues.’
‘Shirley Allen is a top oil and gas lawyer and delivers high quality deals.’
‘What makes this practice unique is the knowledge and experience of the team.’
‘The individuals that worked with us stand out because of their knowledge and control of the legal practice that we required.’
‘A team of industry top tier professionals; hugely experienced and capable.’
‘Rosalie Chadwick is dedicated, extremely knowledgeable and provides balanced advice in a manner that is easily understood by non-lawyers.’
‘Pragmatic and responsive.’
Key clients
Total E&P UK Limited
Transocean
Shell UK Limited
Jersey Oil & Gas Plc
Ithaca Energy
Solo Oil plc
Energetical Limited
BP
Suncor Energy Services Inc
Talisman Energy
Aker Solution
Wood PLC
Repsol Group
Work highlights
- Advised oil super major Total on its disposal of UK North Sea non-core assets to a subsidiary of NEO Energy, a vehicle backed by Norway-based private equity investor HitecVision.
- Advised Ithaca on the acquisition of Chevron North Sea Limited.
- Advised Transocean following the boarding of the oil rig Paul B Lloyd, Junior at Cromarty Firth Port by environmental activists in June 2019.
Shepherd and Wedderburn
Shepherd and Wedderburn is well known in the market for acting for British independent exploration and production companies on cross-border M&A, as well as capital markets transactions. It has considerable experience of the upstream oil and gas sector, where it advises investment banks, sponsors and financial advisers. Stephen Trombala heads up the team.
Practice head(s):
Stephen Trombala
Other key lawyers:
Tom Swan; John Caldwell
Testimonials
‘Despite not being the largest, it is an incredibly well resourced team, who can always meet our needs.’
‘They are very responsive and well switched-on to the industry and the issues of the day.’
‘They are very commercial and understand the issues that matter to my company.’
‘Stephen Trombala and John Caldwell are both experts in corporate law and the industry.’
Key clients
Cairn Energy PLC
Aminex PLC
Deltic Energy plc (formerly Cluff Natural Resources plc)
Pharos Energy plc
North Sea Midstream Partners
CessCon Decom Limited/CessCon Limited
J de Jonge Flowsystems B.V.
Marin Subsea Limited
Rotojar Limited
Wellpro Group Limited
Garrick Group Limited
TDC (Aberdeen) Limited
Work highlights
- Advised Cairn on the $400m Class 1 disposal of its entre participating interest in the Sangomar development and surrounding acreage in Senegal to Woodside, together with the subsequent $250m return of value to shareholders.
- Advised a syndicate of lending banks in connection with the $950m refinancing by Ineos of the Forties Pipeline System, UKCS.
- Advised J de Jonge Flowsystems B.V. on the successful resolution of its $55m dispute regarding the refitting of the Petrojarl I, the North Sea’s first custom-built FPSO.
Stronachs LLP
Stronachs LLP is highly reputed in upstream acquisitions and disposals that involve domestic and international markets. It also handles midstream matters for clients, including the ownership of pipelines and terminals, as well as operational and contractual issues. The practice is led by Ewan Neilson, who is dual-qualified to practise in Scotland and England and Wales. James Downie is recommended for decommissioning work.
Practice head(s):
Ewan Neilson
Other key lawyers:
James Downie; James Muir; Malcolm Donald
Testimonials
‘Impressive breadth and depth of knowledge and understanding of oil and gas projects.’
‘Primarily we work with James Muir, who provides a consistent high standard of legal support to the project.’
‘James Muir is always accessible and continually delivers quality work against tight project deadlines.’
‘James Downie provides quick and pragmatic advice and knows the oil and gas industry well.’
‘James Muir is very quick to understand the issues being faced and is always willing to discuss with the project team to determine the best approach and path forward.’
‘Really strong team all based locally in Aberdeen in heart of oil and gas market.’
‘Stronachs adapted to our needs in the pandemic and provide flexible secondment support on terms that worked for us as a client.’
‘Small practice, but some real practical oil and gas experience from the firm’s long involvement in oil and gas.’
Key clients
Black Sea Oil & Gas S.A.
Dana Petroleum Limited
Eland Oil & Gas Limited
Enquest
Ithaca Energy (UK) Limited
Premier Oil UK Limited
RockRose Energy
Well-Safe Solutions Limited
Enpro Subsea Limited
Intervention Group Limited
Work highlights
- Acting for Eland Oil & Gas PLC on the disposal to Seplat.
- Advised Enpro Subsea on its sale to Hunting PLC by means of a share acquisition.