The exclusive member of the VdA Legal Partners network in Angola, PRIME Advogados was formed by the merger of LEAD Advogados and ASP Advogados in June 2025. The firm advises on a wide range of matters spanning energy, M&A, infrastructure and tax, with growing expertise in the mining, renewable energy and data protection spheres. The group is jointly led by seven practitioners: António Caxito Marques, whose work covers civil, criminal and corporate law; António Sousa Penelas, who concentrates on oil industry services, energy, mining and shipping matters; Djamila Pinto de Andrade, who acts on major international transactions; Emanuela Vunge, who focuses on tax and customs disputes; João Manuel Lourenço, who handles investigations and white-collar crime matters; José Miguel Oliveira, who works in the shipping and corporate spheres; and Raquel Lourenço, who advises on real estate and planning issues.
Legal 500 Editorial commentary
Testimonials
Collated independently by Legal 500 research team.
- ‘PRIME Advogados is a firm that stands out for its proximity to the client and proactivity in seeking the best strategy and legal solutions most suited to the success of the cases and processes entrusted to it.'
- ‘Djamila Pinto de Andrade and Emanuela Vunge are the stars of the show on anything transactional.’
- ‘This is the key go-to firm in Angola, offering exemplary levels of service, high levels of expertise, and deep market knowledge. ’
- 'António Caxito Marques has consistently demonstrated knowledge and experience in serving our causes, delivering positive results in the area in which we work most: litigation and debt recovery.'
Key clients
- Africa Finance Corporation Ministry of Finance of Angola Sonangol Group UNITEL ETU ENERGIAS, S.A. Standard Chartered Bank Azule Energy Aviapartner Banco Económico Hemera Capital Partners Paratus Angola UK – Export Finance MASDAR Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company PJSC – Masdar (Masdar) Investec Bank FIRSTRAND BANK LIMITED ETG - HOLDCO INPUTS LTD BP OMATAPALO Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank (CACIB) GARDA WORLD SECURITY Schlumberger Technical Services Inc (Angola) BNP Paribas,Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank,Société Générale,Credit Suisse AG, andStandard Chartered Bank BIOCOM Consortium comprised by Trafigura, Mota Engil and Vecturis Halliburton Overseas Limited KT – Kinetics Technology, SPA Montepio Holdings, S.A.
Work highlights
Advising Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) as Angolan local counsel in connection with the Lobito II project, a greenfield rail infrastructure project linking north-western Zambia to the Lobito rail corridor in Angola.
Advised the Republic of Angola (Ministry of Finance) as local counsel on the update of its London-listed Global Medium Term Note Programme for the issuance of international sovereign debt, including a USD 1.2 billion bond issuance and a USD 728 million tap issuance.
Advised the Institute for the Management of State Assets and Holdings of Angola (IGAPE) and the Angola Debt and Stock Exchange (BODIVA) on the Initial Public Offering (IPO) and listing of 30% of BODIVA’s share capital.
Lawyers
Leading partners
The strongest partners in their field, leading on market-leading deals and endorsed by peers and clients alike.
Practice head
António Caxito Marques; António Sousa Penelas; Djamila Pinto de Andrade; Emanuela Vunge; João Manuel Lourenço; José Miguel Oliveira; Raquel Lourenço