Paul Hastings announced on Friday the addition of two Houston partners with significant experience handling domestic and cross-border energy transactions in the U.S. and Latin America.
Luis Fernando Gomar and Rocio Guadalupe Mendoza were previously at Baker McKenzie. They are Paul Hastings’ first lateral partner hires in Houston since the firm established an energy transition and infrastructure team in June that is co-led by Houston partner Kfir Abutbul.
“With practices focused on advising clients on domestic and cross-border conventional and alternative energy transactions, Luis and Rocio are excellent additions to our energy transition and infrastructure team,” Abutbul said. “They fit perfectly with our growing team of lawyers advising energy industry participants and investors in their pursuit of growth while helping them navigate the fundamental changes reshaping the energy landscape, as the world works toward a low-carbon future.”
Gomar advises clients on mergers and acquisitions, divestitures, fund formations, joint ventures, project development and structured finance. Prior to his three-year tenure with Baker McKenzie, Gomar led the Mexico City offices at Thompson & Knight and Strasburger & Price. The University of Texas at El Paso graduate started his career at Kemp Smith.
Two deals Gomar has led in the past year include representing the principals of SunPro, one of the largest residential solar panel installation companies in the U.S., in the sale of a majority interest to a group of private equity firms sponsored by Compass Energy and MGG Investments for $180 million and advising PetroBal in a $250 million RBL financing for the development of oil and gas fields in Mexico.
Mendoza, who made partner at Baker McKenzie at the beginning of this year, routinely counsels upstream oil and gas and midstream clients. The 2011 UT Law graduate worked closely with Baker McKenzie North American Energy Transaction Practice Chair Denmon Sigler, whom she followed to two different firms. Mendoza started practicing with Sigler at Baker Botts and moved with her to Winston & Strawn and then eventually to Baker McKenzie.
Recently, Mendoza advised Valero Marketing and Supply de México, S.A. de C.V., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Valero Energy Corporation, on its entry into several joint ventures to develop midstream assets in Mexico.
She has also guided Hannon Armstrong, a real estate investment trust company dedicated to investments in climate solutions, on several equity investments in U.S. onshore wind, utility-scale solar and solar-plus-storage portfolios developed and managed by third party sponsors, as well as the disposition of certain wind and solar assets from their domestic portfolios.
In 2019, Mendoza was on the Sigler-led deal team that advised Houston chemical company Kraton in the $530 million sale of its Cariflex business unit to Korea’s Daelim Industrial Co. Ltd.