The Legal 500 Green Guide: Asia Pacific

Energy, natural resources and infrastructure expert Anton Trixl, who was lead author of the 2020 and 2021 New Zealand chapters of The Renewable Energy Law Review, is advising Hiringa Energy and Balance Agri-Nutrients on their joint venture development of a clean-tech project in Taranaki to produce green hydrogen using renewable energy; once complete, it will be one of the largest wind-to-green hydrogen projects globally. The firm is also assisting Hiringa with the development of a hydrogen production and refuelling network across New Zealand; the stations will provide refuelling for zero emissions heavy hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric vehicles such as trucks and buses.

Carbon forestry project expert Dan Williams is  acting for Meridian Energy on the design and implementation of its Forever Forests project, which aims to establish 1.5m permanent trees to offset its emissions.

Notable is also the firm’s pro bono work for numerous organisations with an environmental and sustainability focus, such as the Banks Peninsula Conservation Trust, NZ Food Waste Champions and the Whakatipu Wildlife Trust.

The firm is one of New Zealand’s first law firms to become Toitū carbonzero certified in line with international best practice and via the Toitū Envirocare certification programme makes an active effort to measure and mitigate the emissions it produces over day-to-day operations. The firm has also shown its commitment to restoring local biodiversity by annually funding 2,000 native trees that are used for planting projects throughout New Zealand.

In 2021, head of the firm’s projects team Kanya Satwika, among others, advised Masdar (also known as the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company), PJBI (a subsidiary of Indonesia’s state-owned electricity company PLN), and PMSE (a joint venture between Masdar and PJBI) on a 145MW floating solar power plant in the country’s West Java province, the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia.

In the sustainable finance space, the firm was involved in the first investment grade green project bond from the private sector in Indonesia: It advised Star Energy Geothermal Salak – Darajat on their $1.1bn amortizing dual tranche senior secured green project bonds. The proceeds of the transaction were used to finance the Wayang Windu Geothermal power plant as well as assets with direct emissions of less that 100g CO2 per kWh (compared to a national average of around 900g CO2 per kWh). The firm has also handled various green sukuk transactions. Most recently, in 2022, it advised on the the largest ever green sukuk tranche globally: It acted as Indonesian legal counsel to the joint lead managers in the Republic of Indonesia’s issuance of a $3.25bn sukuk offering, including a US$1.5bn green sukuk.

In a country where waste management and reduction of single-use plastic is a relatively new concept, the firm has implemented a policy not to provide plastic straws and water bottles. The firm is also one of five organisations in Jakarta, one of the most polluted cities in the world, to install an air pollution monitor in its office which allows the public to get accurate and real time data of air quality.

Heading the team is Miho Niunoya, who is a member of the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry’s Committee on Appropriate Introduction and Management of Renewable Energy Generation Facilities. Other key contacts are Naoki Kanehisa and Yuri Suzuki, who are both members of the Green Finance Network Japan, which aims to provide a platform for bringing together Japanese green finance players in both the public and private sectors.

The firm also holds membership in several other initiatives and associations. For example, it is a member of the Financial Stability Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures, and of the deregulation sub-division of the Japan Wind Power Association, which enables the firm to get the latest information on regulations applicable to wind power projects and the industry.

Leading the firm’s climate change practice is Simon Watt, who is recognised for his expertise in climate change issues both domestically and internationally, having assisted the New Zealand government with the design of its emission trading scheme and in the development of climate change legislation. Watt’s experience includes transaction-related carbon issues, carbon trading, carbon pass-through and carbon-related forestry matters, and he has continuously held key roles at the country’s Climate Change and Business Conference since it began in 2004.

In an ongoing highlight, Watt and other key team members are advising the Electricity Authority on a number of regulatory developments to support New Zealand’s energy transition and adapt to the effects of climate change. Watt is also a key individual advising the Project Crimson Trust, which aims to establish afforestation projects across New Zealand with the goal of incentivising investment into native forestry in order to strengthen and contribute to sustainable ecosystems.

On the contentious side, the firm is acting for Genesis Energy in defending a High Court claim brought by a private individual against seven New Zealand companies which are involved in contributing to GHG emissions. This represents the first time a private law claim has been brought in New Zealand in respect of the GHG emissions of private businesses.

Beyond its legal work, the firm publishes articles on climate-related issues, and runs the multi-year series of reports ‘The Big Picture – Climate Change’, discussing an overview of climate change developments on a yearly basis. Together with Toitū Envirocare, the firm also measures its own carbon footprint as a business, and has established an Environmental Sustainability Committee which seeks to educate the team’s behaviours and implement best practices.

Notably, the team aspires to provide legal support only to projects that make a positive impact through alignment with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and to leverage legal solutions to help drive the sustainability transition. In order to enforce this, the firm has developed an “SDG” tracker to assess and measure the impact of its work against the SDGs.

An example of work handled by the firm is its advice to Evident regarding the development of a new DLT-based alternative investments platform for impact investing, which incentivises clients to make a sustainable difference with their investment. Another client was TMS Offshore Services in connection with Project GreenSeas, including creating a climate alignment framework to support green finance solutions for the shipping industry and climate disclosures to improve climate-related data transparency.

Firm founder Ben McQuhae is deeply involved in green finance in the region. He is a founder of the Hong Kong Green Finance Association and the Hong Kong representative on the UNDP Financial Centres for Sustainability network.

The firm has also shown an active effort to integrate sustainability in its own international operations. It has committed to source 100% renewable energy for its office electricity consumption through purchasing renewable energy certificates or carbon credits. It has also taken part in a number of green finance initiatives, and its lawyers regularly speak on panels on matters relating to ESG, climate, and environmental law.

The firm has been advising Red Core Geothermal in connection with the development of its three geothermal power plants. With the Philippines suffering from electricity outages and high electricity prices, the three power plants are expected to address power supply issues in Manila and the entire island of Luzon; the first plant has the potential to sustainably produce 13-35 megawatts of electrical power, and the second and third plants 45-185 megawatts and 30-130 megawatts respectively.

The firm has also conducted a study on the feed-in tariff system in the Philippines, including the requirements and procedure for the establishment of solar power plants in the country.

Head of the energy department, Patricia A O Bunye, is the founding president of NGO Diwata, which recently launched the project ‘Tanging Tanglaw: Turning IP Grandmothers into Solar Engineers’. Through the assistance of Bunye, Barefoot College in Tilonia, India, and other partner companies, the innovative project aims to empower indigenous peoples (IP), specifically women who are no longer the primary caregivers of their families, by teaching them how to harness solar power to light up their communities.

Shanghai-based Nancy Sun leads the firm’s global resources industry group and China’s energy practice with specific experience in carbon markets, having assisted Shell on its participation in the national carbon market and Vitol on its investment into the expansion of the carbon emissions market in China. The group has also been training New Hope’s legal counsels on carbon trading, carbon footprints, and carbon neutrality, and providing legal assistance to ensure ESG compliance across the supply chain for major clients such as Apple.

A highlight for the banking and finance team in Beijing was its advice to Bank of Communications Financial Leasing in connection with the first green bond issued by a Chinese-funded financial leasing company in the overseas market.

Co-head of sustainable finance in Hong Kong, Vivien Teu, is a key member of the firm’s global ESG leadership group. She assisted B Lab and B Market Builder Hong Kong and Macau on the legal requirement for Hong Kong B Corps, which was introduced in January 2021, and has been appointed a member of the B Lab Regional Standards Advisory Group for Asia.

A notable client service is the ESG hub launched by the firm’s global ESG steering committee which allows clients to review ESG legal developments across the world. In 2022, of counsel Gary Yang, who is also a member of the global ESG leadership group and heads the environmental law practice in China, additionally launched an ESG newsletter “Dentons Global ESG Legal and Policy Update” in Chinese language.

A notable client service is the ESG hub launched by the firm’s global ESG steering committee which allows clients to review ESG legal developments across the world. In 2022, of counsel Gary Yang, who is also a member of the global ESG leadership group and heads the environmental law practice in China, additionally launched an ESG newsletter “Dentons Global ESG Legal and Policy Update” in Chinese language.

Hong Kong

Dentons’ China and Hong Kong practices not only stand out for their sustainability-related work for clients but also their ESG advocacy, regularly organising client webinars, briefings and publications on ESG, sustainability and environmental issues. The Hong Kong team also provided input to the CFA Institute, PRI and the Hong Kong SFC on issues around ESG disclosure standards for fund products, and the management and disclosure of climate-related risks.

Co-head of sustainable finance in Hong Kong, Vivien Teu, is a key member of the firm’s global ESG leadership group. She assisted B Lab and B Market Builder Hong Kong and Macau on the legal requirement for Hong Kong B Corps, which was introduced in January 2021, and has been appointed a member of the B Lab Regional Standards Advisory Group for Asia.

An example of the firm’s recent work is its advice to Amazon, one of the biggest emitters in the world, on the due diligence and transaction documents for a renewable energy captive power project, which aims to reduce the company’s carbon emissions and mitigate its contribution to climate change. Another highlight was the firm’s role in connection with acts implemented by India’s Ministry of Environment, Forests & Climate Change, reviewing their efficacy and aiming to establish a progressive framework to meet the challenges of climate change and respond to the quickly changing realities around environmental protection.

A key contact is Gurgaon-based Vishnu Sudarsan, whose expertise lies in advising clients across the energy, transport, and urban infrastructure sectors.

The firm also publishes articles discussing the growth of ESG in India and internationally, aiming to keep its clients as well as other readers informed of developments in the area.

A stand-out area of expertise is the firm’s work with green bonds, sustainable development bonds, and carbon neutral bonds, providing advice related to the issuance of both domestic and foreign bonds. A recent client was Shenzhen Municipal Government regarding its debut offshore bond issuance, including green bonds with net proceeds used to finance water treatment projects, sponge city related projects, and clean transportation projects. Another highlight was the firm’s advice to China National Nuclear Corporation on its successful issuance of carbon neutral green bonds on the Shanghai Stock Exchange; the funds raised will be used to develop wind power, photo electricity, and other green and low-carbon projects.

Besides its client work, the firm’s ESG practice team supervises the ESG working group which handles internal ESG management. Apart from implementing various internal sustainable practices, the firm also provides ESG training and carbon reduction training to its lawyers, who regularly participate in conferences focusing on topics such as environmental protection and energy saving.

The firm’s extensive pro bono legal services include providing advice to a number of NGOs, such as the WWF and The Nature Conservancy.

An example of the latter is a recent deal led by Batjargal Gombosuren, who has expertise in corporate as well as energy matters, involving comprehensive legal advice to Enserv regarding the acquisition of Mongolian renewable energy company MOSHEA Eco,  which has solar energy development rights near Ulaanbaatar.

The firm has also acted as policy and regulatory expert in connection with the identification of green investments and green projects portfolios. Uchralbayar Iderkhangai, whose broad experience covers project finance, construction and dispute resolution, and former government lawyer Enkhbat Batsukh recently assisted the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development with a request from the Ministry of Economy and Development of Mongolia to identify a green pipeline of projects and review the investment environment and policy for green development, with a focus on renewable energy.

Despite the firm’s own small carbon footprint, it has shown internal efforts to integrate sustainability into its activities and operations, such as the installation of LED lights and encouraging staff to adopt environmentally friendly habits, including reducing their use of single-use plastic.

Its high-profile climate change work includes two major Supreme Court decisions on climate change and the Resource Management Act 1991 in Zealand, among various other internationally recognised cases. In other areas of environmental law, the firm has assisted clients, including non-profits, environmental protestors and other individuals, with matters such as a challenge of offshore oil drilling activities and a challenge to government policy on the exportation of indigenous timber.

Most recently, the firm acted pro-bono on two climate change claims brought by Michael Smith, an indigenous leader in New Zealand. The claims concerned greenhouse gas emissions, and the client alleged that the defendants (including the Government of New Zealand) had breached common law rights and obligations owed to him, other indigenous people, and future generations. David Bullock, who regularly publishes and presents on environmental law matters, and other key contact Michael Heard, also recently acted for two NGOs, Kiwis Against Seabed Mining and Greenpeace Aotearoa, in a successful challenge to consents for a world-first seabed mining operation in New Zealand’s exclusive economic zone.

Notable is aso the firm’s advice to environmental organisation Te Ipukarea Society and representatives of the indigenous leaders of the Cook Islands in a judicial review over the issue of fishing licenses to foreign tuna fishers.

The Hong Kong and Singapore teams have a strong track record in green and sustainable finance; together they advised CK Hutchison on its inaugural issuance of $500m green bonds. Another area of focus is the financing of renewable projects: With their expertise in the emerging offshore wind market, Hong Kong-based James McLaren and Ying Fu, and counsel Xylia Sim in Singapore advised a consortium of financial institutions on the 605MW southeast Greater Changhua offshore wind project’s $3bn financing. Fu and Sim also sit on the firm’s Asia ESG Steering Committee.

The Singapore and Bangkok teams have additional experience in sustainable Islamic finance, having advised the Malaysian government on its $800m issuance of the world’s first sovereign sustainability sukuk. Bangkok managing partner and project finance expert Wanwisar Nakarat is assisting Bangkok Bank with its $287m loan to Super Energy Corporation to develop its 550MW Vietnamese solar project portfolio. The Bangkok team also provided pro bono advice to LightBlue Environmental Consultants working on Thai food waste and to the Legal Response Initiative at COP summits and the UNFCCC.

In order to upskill its lawyers, the firm partners with the University of Oxford to deliver its ESG Accelerator programme. Its thought leadership publications include ESG Legal Outlook and the Sustainable Futures blog; Hutchinson is a key contributor.

The firm’s internal targets to reduce Scope 1 & 2 emissions by 70% and Scope 3 emissions by 50% by 2030 are SBTi-approved, its Global Environment Programme is ISO14001:2015 certified, and it has an A- CDP Climate Change score. The Hong Kong and Singapore offices are BEAM Plus Platinum and BCA Green Mark Gold Plus certified respectively.

Singapore

At Linklaters LLP, Gilly Hutchinson, who was a former senior policy advisor in the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change and has extensive experience advising on energy and infrastructure projects, was appointed head of ESG Regional Development in Asia in 2021.

The Hong Kong and Singapore teams have a strong track record in green and sustainable finance; together they advised CK Hutchison on its inaugural issuance of $500m green bonds. Another area of focus is the financing of renewable projects: With their expertise in the emerging offshore wind market, Hong Kong-based James McLaren and Ying Fu, and counsel Xylia Sim in Singapore advised a consortium of financial institutions on the 605MW southeast Greater Changhua offshore wind project’s $3bn financing. Fu and Sim also sit on the firm’s Asia ESG Steering Committee.

The Singapore and Bangkok teams have additional experience in sustainable Islamic finance, having advised the Malaysian government on its $800m issuance of the world’s first sovereign sustainability sukuk. Bangkok managing partner and project finance expert Wanwisar Nakarat is assisting Bangkok Bank with its $287m loan to Super Energy Corporation to develop its 550MW Vietnamese solar project portfolio. The Bangkok team also provided pro bono advice to LightBlue Environmental Consultants working on Thai food waste and to the Legal Response Initiative at COP summits and the UNFCCC.

In order to upskill its lawyers, the firm partners with the University of Oxford to deliver its ESG Accelerator programme. Its thought leadership publications include ESG Legal Outlook and the Sustainable Futures blog; Hutchinson is a key contributor.

The firm’s internal targets to reduce Scope 1 & 2 emissions by 70% and Scope 3 emissions by 50% by 2030 are SBTi-approved, its Global Environment Programme is ISO14001:2015 certified, and it has an A- CDP Climate Change score. The Hong Kong and Singapore offices are BEAM Plus Platinum and BCA Green Mark Gold Plus certified respectively.

Thailand

At Linklaters LLP, Gilly Hutchinson, who was a former senior policy advisor in the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change and has extensive experience advising on energy and infrastructure projects, was appointed head of ESG Regional Development in Asia in 2021.

The Hong Kong and Singapore teams have a strong track record in green and sustainable finance; together they advised CK Hutchison on its inaugural issuance of $500m green bonds. Another area of focus is the financing of renewable projects: With their expertise in the emerging offshore wind market, Hong Kong-based James McLaren and Ying Fu, and counsel Xylia Sim in Singapore advised a consortium of financial institutions on the 605MW southeast Greater Changhua offshore wind project’s $3bn financing. Fu and Sim also sit on the firm’s Asia ESG Steering Committee.

The Singapore and Bangkok teams have additional experience in sustainable Islamic finance, having advised the Malaysian government on its $800m issuance of the world’s first sovereign sustainability sukuk. Bangkok managing partner and project finance expert Wanwisar Nakarat is assisting Bangkok Bank with its $287m loan to Super Energy Corporation to develop its 550MW Vietnamese solar project portfolio. The Bangkok team also provided pro bono advice to LightBlue Environmental Consultants working on Thai food waste and to the Legal Response Initiative at COP summits and the UNFCCC.

In order to upskill its lawyers, the firm partners with the University of Oxford to deliver its ESG Accelerator programme. Its thought leadership publications include ESG Legal Outlook and the Sustainable Futures blog; Hutchinson is a key contributor.

The firm’s internal targets to reduce Scope 1 & 2 emissions by 70% and Scope 3 emissions by 50% by 2030 are SBTi-approved, its Global Environment Programme is ISO14001:2015 certified, and it has an A- CDP Climate Change score. The Hong Kong and Singapore offices are BEAM Plus Platinum and BCA Green Mark Gold Plus certified respectively.

Hong Kong finance partner Francis Chen has advised on a number of syndicated sustainability-linked loans, including most recently, West Kowloon District Authority as borrower in its inaugural HK$4bn sustainability-linked loan facilities, and an international bank on a three-year HK$1.2bn sustainability-linked loan facility to Tongda Group.

Outside of the sustainable finance space, the firm’s Hong Kong team advised a shipping company on voluntary carbon offsets and is working on climate-related disclosure procedures for an asset management company.

Also committed to climate action beyond its client work, the firm sponsors the Kowloon Motor Bus’ decarbonisation initiative and has partnered with A Plastic Ocean Foundation, which promotes coastal water purification though supporting the local pearl oyster population. Notably, it also partnered with the Commonwealth Secretariat to rebuild the Energy Module of the Law and Climate Change Toolkit, a UN resource for helping countries develop Paris-aligned legal frameworks as they take action against climate change.

Recently, the firm acted for Japan Bank for International Cooperation in one of the first Japanese government guaranteed green bond issuances. Another work highlight was the firm’s advice regarding the formation of a carbon neutral fund (led by MUFG Bank, NTT Anode Energy Corporation and Osaka Gas and managed by Z Energy), which will invest in renewable energy projects; the fund was elected by the Ministry of the Environment as a role model of impact finance.

Key contact Kiyoshi Honda has been teaching renewable energy law at Musashino University as a visiting professor since 2018 and was a member of the Committee for Carbon Offset Certification formed by Ministry of Environment from 2011 to 2017.

In a recent highlight, Adrian Joyce, among others, assisted JFE Engineering Corporation, a major Japanese engineering company, with the establishment of a joint venture with Thuan Thanh Environmental Joint Stock Company, a Vietnamese recycling company, for a large-scale waste-to-energy project in Vietnam. An innovative matter was energy expert Sadayuki Matsudaira’s advice to Hokuriku Electric Power Company regarding its investment in NCT Holdco, a US-based producer of renewable biocarbon products, such as black pellets, which can be burnt like coal, helping to reduce CO2 emissions in coal-fired power generation.

Of note is also the firm’s pro bono legal advice to Mobile Sea Otters (MSO), a non-profit organisation which seeks to restore deteriorating kelp forests along Japan’s coastline.

The firm operates a sustainability study group which aims to create and advocate for sustainability opportunities. The group hosts internal and external events, writes newsletters and articles, and works with clients and others seeking to improve their sustainability practices.

The firm’s lawyers also often serve as climate change and environmental experts at the request of the Japanese government and bar associations, such as in the Study Group on Competition Policy for Realisation of Green Society organised by Japan’s Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, which establishes competition policy for the country’s move toward carbon neutrality.

In Melbourne, head of Asia Pacific as well as Australia’s finance and projects team, James Morgan-Payler, assisted Vestas with a number of large-scale wind projects across Asia Pacific and advised Maoneng on the development of the 240MW Mornington BESS project. He also acted for K-Water in connection with the Tina River Hydro Development Project. Key contact for transactions, Ewan Robertson, recently advised Fortescue on the £164m acquisition of Williams Advanced Engineering to support its decarbonisation efforts.

Perth-based global hydrogen practice lead George Varma was a featured speaker at the Connecting Green Hydrogen APAC conference 2022; he is currently advising Shanghai Electric Power Construction on the development of the 300MW Rodds Bay Solar Farm, one of Australia’s largest solar farms.

In 2022, firm members also spoke at the Australia Wind Energy conference and the Offshore Wind Australia conference in Sydney, where renewable energy project expert Simone Alphonse is acting for Goldwind on the development of multiple wind and solar projects across Australia.

The firm also works on a number of climate change-related projects on a pro bono basis and for this purpose founded the One Million Hours Pledge, which is open to all organisations in the legal sector.

The firm’s aim to achieve a 50% reduction in scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions by 2030 and net zero by 2040 is SBTi validated. As part of this, the firm has committed to using 75% renewable electricity by 2030 and 100% by 2040.

In an ongoing highlight, the firm is assisting Systemiq, a system change company focused on building a sustainable economy, with the design and implementation of local waste management projects around the East Java province together with the company’s partners in Indonesia. The projects are self-sustaining through the generation of plastic credits and other local revenue sources, and the proceeds are reinvested in local projects under a circular economic model.

The firm also recently acted as Indonesian counsel to clients in connection with the formation of an electric vehicle battery cell manufacturing joint venture company in Indonesia, and is currently advising a restoration project developer on cooperation agreements with a public holding company and its subsidiaries for the management of lands owned by the companies for the generation of carbon credits.

Internally, the firm provides ‘green training’ for its lawyers in order to promote awareness around renewable energy and carbon-trading issues. Much of this training is led by senior associate Aldilla Stephanie Suwana, who previously worked at the Indonesian Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries and the National REDD+ Agency, and specialises in environmental law and climate change policy, including carbon trading, environmental remediation, and energy.

In addition to the firm’s wider involvement in the decarbonisation of the shipping industry, it is assisting the Vessel Technology Assessment System (VTAS) project which promotes fuel efficiency in the maritime sector.

A member of the Legal Sustainability Alliance, the firm has a global environmental charter to set and implement internal de-carbonisation targets. Its sustainability practices received a silver EcoVadis rating in 2021. Many of the firms’ offices, including the Singapore office, have attained a sustainability certification.