38 LEXPERT
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2018
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WWW.LEXPERT.CA
Vilder, Sébastien Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
(514) 982-5080 sebastien.vilder@blakes.com
Mr. Vilder specializes in bank financing, project financing and asset based
financing. He has been involved in numerous bank and project financings in
Canada, Europe, Africa and Asia. Other areas of expertise include energy and
infrastructure projects. He acts for financial institutions, investment funds,
development banks, sponsors and companies.
Veilleux, Niko Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP
(514) 904-5636 nveilleux@osler.com
Mr. Veilleux's practice focuses on public and private M&A, corporate finance,
securities and private equity/venture capital, notably complex cross-border
and multi-jurisdictional transactions. He advises on corporate governance
matters, as well.
Vautour, André Lavery, de Billy, L.L.P.
(514) 878-5595 avautour@lavery.ca
Mr. Vautour is a partner at Lavery. He practises in corporate and com-
mercial law with a particular interest in governance issues and strategic
alliances, joint ventures and investment funds in the fields of infrastruc-
ture, transportation and technology.
Umar-Khitab, Faran Gowling WLG
(416) 862-3582 faran.umar-khitab@gowlingwlg.com
Mr. Umar-Khitab has an active M&A, corporate finance, corporate govern-
ance and commercial law practice. He advises institutional investors, private
equity funds, venture capital funds and strategic purchasers on complex
investments, acquisitions and dispositions across a number of industries.
He also advises a number of TSX and TSXV-listed issuers and provides gen-
eral counsel services.
Tzekas, Christopher J. WeirFoulds LLP
(416) 947-5039 ctzekas@weirfoulds.com
An authority on expropriation, Mr. Tzekas represents provincial ministries,
municipalities and a range of private clients. He has acted on significant
infrastructure projects, such as the extension of the subway into York Region
and the construction of HONI's Bruce to Milton 500 kV corridor. He appears
regularly before tribunals, councils and courts.
Turmel, André Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP
(514) 397-5141 aturmel@fasken.com
Mr. Turmel works on project development in the energy sector, negotiates and
drafts electricity generation, supply and transmission agreements in the bio-
mass, biogas, hydro and wind sectors in Canada, Asia and Africa, and advises
on oil & gas permits and licences. He also works on institutional reforms
in the energy sector worldwide.
LEXPERT-RANKED LAWYERS
finance the Fort McMurray West 500 kV Trans-
mission Project.
Valued at $1.43 billion, the project consists of
approximately 500 kms of 500 kV transmission
line and associated facilities running from Waba-
mun (west of Edmonton) to Fort McMurray.
Under the partnership, Valard Construction,
a Canadian subsidiary of Quanta, will provide
turnkey EPC services for the project while ATCO
Electric, an ATCO company, will be responsible
for route planning and operations and mainte-
nance of the transmission facilities for 35 years.
e proposed route, substations and design of
the transmission line were subject to approval by
the Alberta Utilities Commission, and approval
was received in February of 2017.
In early October 2017, Alberta PowerLine com-
pleted a $1.38-billion four-tranche bond deal to
finance the Project.
e Project is unique in many respects, featur-
ing a two-stage process with the successful pro-
ponent undertaking the land acquisition and ap-
provals process during a development period prior
to execution of the Project Agreement and a debt
funding competition.
Once the Project is in service, Alberta Power-
Line will receive availability payments from the
AESO that will cover operating, maintenance
and rehabilitation costs, debt service and equity
returns, with payments only subject to deductions
for unavailability or non-performance.
e Project construction period commenced in
the summer of 2017 and is expected to continue
for approximately 21 months.
e Project will predominantly cross Crown
land, with approximately 30 per cent of the lands
being privately owned.
Availability payments will be paid on a
monthly basis from the AESO, and will be made
up of non-indexed capital payments, O&M Pay-
ments that cover indexed life-cycle costs and in-
surance payments.
e deal represented the largest P3 bond trans-
action in Canadian history.
Bennett Jones LLP acted for Alberta Power-
Line, the project entity, as well as for Canadian
Utilities Limited as equity investor, and ATCO
Electric Ltd., the operating and maintenance con-
tractor and construction contractor co-venturer.
e Bennett Jones team included John Craig,
Mark Kortbeek, Paul Blundy, Loyola Keough,
Shawn Munro, Deirdre Sheehan, William Os-
ler, Peter Westcott, Paul Barbeau, Denise Bright,
omas McInerney, Brian Reid, Artem Barsukov,
Michael DeFaria, Patrick Daley, Elyse van Spron-
sen and Kate Devlin.
Norton Rose Fulbright Canada LLP repre-
sented the AESO with a team. e NRF team in-
cluded David Eeles, and Richard Borden, Jennifer
