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    Energy (Clean-Tech)

 

  • Clean-tech (also referenced as cleantech or clean technology) is a non-trademarked catch-all reference to the collaboration between businesses, industries, investments, and non-fossil fuels technologies and practices (such as bio-based chemicals, biofuels, biomass, biowaste, carbon capture, carbon sequestration, clean energy procurement, climate change abatement, combined heat and power – CHP – generation, commercial and residential energy conservation, commodity chemicals manufacturing, desalination, electric vehicles, emissions abatement, environmental protection, environmental remediation, geothermal energy, green chemistry, green construction, green feedstock development, hydroelectricity, hydrogen development, landfill gasses abatement, microgrids, photovoltaics, pollution credit trading, product packaging, recycling, renewable fuel cells, renewable power generation, smart batteries, smart energy, solar energy, tidal, water remediation, wave power generation, wind power generation), that has the ultimate purpose of improving environmental sustainability (even at the cost of some profitability) through the promotion of more-efficient utilization of resources and methods for energy-intensive activities, such as food production, manufacturing and power production, thus resulting in simultaneous increases in production and supply chain efficiencies coupled with the lessening of the environmental impacts of such activities, through reduction of harmful gas, liquid and solid waste products that would otherwise accelerate increased air, land and sea pollution, and the continued degradation of this planet's ecosystem and environment.

 

  • Over the past decades, the clean-tech community has identified common categories of industrial sectors and some common activities within each such sector that are heavily-invested in clean-tech ventures, and which may receive the greatest benefits in terms of return on investment (ROI) as a result of such investments, such as: agriculture (including agronomy, animal husbandry, aquaculture, controlled environment farming – such as hydroponics – general crop farming, sustainable forestry); atmospheric and environmental (including bioremediation, carbon sequestration, carbon trading, emissions control, monitoring, recycling, regulatory compliance, waste management); clean energy, including biomass, emerging technologies, geothermal, monitoring, nuclear, photovoltaic (pv) solar, renewable fuels, various types of rechargeable fuel cells, waste-to-energy generation, water – such as hydroelectricity – wind); clean industry (including design innovation, equipment innovation, materials innovation, packaging innovation, production innovation, supply chain innovation); energy storage (including battery improvements, hydrogen storage, mechanical storage, thermal storage, ultracapacitors); infrastructure (including cogeneration, collaborative consumption systems, data centers interaction, green building methods, improved semiconductors, smart electricity grids); transportation (including efficiency improvements in conventional vehicles, increased use of electric vehicles, traffic management); water (including distribution, management, transmission, treatment); wind (both offshore and onshore).

 

  • Representation for: biofuels producers; clean energy developers and investors; climate change lobbyists and subject matter experts (SMEs); commercial and industrial (C&I) entities; consultants; educational institutions; entrepreneurs; environmental consultants; farmers; green buildings general contractors; healthcare systems; independent system operators (ISOs); installers (such as for solar and wind); investors; lenders; manufacturers; property managers; power producers; power purchase agreement providers; real estate developers; real estate owners; regional transmission operators (RTOs); renewable energy developers; renewable energy grant applicants; residential power system and storage purchasers; rural electric cooperatives; software developers; pv solar cell manufacturers; venture capitalists; wholesale power purchasers; wind farm developers.

 

  • Negotiating and drafting various agreements, contracts, documents, forms and templates related to clean-tech practice, such as: amendment; capacity sales (renewables with storage); certificate of environmental compatibility and public need (CECPN); certificate of public convenience and necessity; change order; cogeneration; commercial installation (solar energy system plus storage); commodity hedging; concentrated solar plant (CSP); contractor collection protocol; cooperative purchasing; distribution; corporate power purchase agreement (PPA) (in which a third-party seller developer installs, owns, and operates a certified renewable energy generating system or some other efficient power generating system, such as a CHP system, on or near the buyer's property, and such buyer agrees to purchase such system's electric output for a predetermined period); energy configuration services; energy development services; energy marketing; energy performance (EPC); energy supply (ESC); feedstock hedging and sourcing; long-term green power contract; interconnection; net metering credit purchase (NMA); New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) solicitations; offshore renewable energy credit (OREC); on-site power system installation; operation and maintenance (O&M); power production limited warranty; PPA with storage; qualifying facilities (QF) certification and eligibility; renewable energy credit (REC); residential solar system installation; solar concession; solar system inspection; solar system installation; solar system sale and installation; solar system with storage installation; special purpose vehicle (SPV) operating; technology investment (TIA); tolling; transmission; turnkey power generation; virtual PPA (VPPA) (that provides renewable energy credits for the purchaser's facility based on the output of a certified off-site energy generation facility, and serving as evidence that each one-megawatt-hour – MWh – of electricity was provided to the general electricity grid from such certified generating facility – the purchaser's facility does not get any power directly from the certified generating facility, just from the general electricity grid); water rights.

 

  • Negotiating and drafting various business agreements, contracts, documents, forms and templates related to clean-tech practice, such as: cause-related marketing; change orders; commission sales (with recoverable draw); confidentiality; construction management services; dealer distribution; engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services; general contractor services; homeowner association cooperation; independent contractor services; investment; joint development; joint venture; lead generation services; letter of intent (LOI); lump sum contract; mandatory arbitration protocol; net cost contract; non-circumvention; non-compete; non-disclosure (NDA); non-solicitation; products drop-shipping services; referral; renewable energy site lease; renewable energy site lease with option; sales commission protocol; shared facilities; solar consulting services; solar design services; solar easement; solar farm purchase; solar project origination; solar system removal services; strategic alliance; subcontractor services; time and materials (T&M) contract; term sheets; utility green tariff; utility services for renewables with storage; wind farm purchase.

 

  • Negotiating and drafting various intellectual property (IP) agreements, contracts, documents, forms and templates related to clean-tech practice, such as: cease and desist letter (copyright infringement); cease and desist letter (misappropriation of trade dress); cease and desist letter (misappropriation of trade secrets); cease and desist letter (trademark infringement); customer testimonial release; exclusive licensing and supply; franchising; master licensing agreement; mentoring standards; non-exclusive licensing and supply; solar license.

 

  • Management of typical corporate governance activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: B corporation certification; board resolutions; business formation and structure; business plan composition and evaluation; bylaws; clean-tech incubator coordination; community relations; construction; consultation for establishing and structuring corporate clean-tech and renewable energy programs; contracts; contracts management; corporate development; due diligence; employment; environmental; environmental impact statements; equipment contracts; feasibility study assessment and review; human resources; labor; litigation; outside general counsel services; outsourcing; permitting; procurement; regulatory compliance; reputation management; risk analysis; risk management; sourcing; transactions.

 

  • Experience with typical cyber and information technology (IT) issues related to clean-tech practice, such as: blockchain; compliance reporting obligations; conducting internal cybersecurity governance and due diligence legal assessments; data privacy; data security; responses to governmental investigations; risk mitigation assessments for artificial intelligence (AI) use in applications and smart devices; software evaluation; training for management and personnel on cybersecurity.

 

  • Experience with typical environmental activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: brownfields; certificates; Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 404 wetlands permits; due diligence; environmental impact statement (EIS); landfills; permits; preservation; site remediation; wetlands.

 

  • Experience with typical financing activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: aggregated purchases; bridge financing; corporate financing; Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) required contract provisions; lease financing; letters of credit; insurance; investor management and screening; mezzanine loans; monitoring investment-grade credit ratings to maintain a BBB rating or better revolving credit facilities; securities; shareholder agreements and management; term loans; warehouse lending.

 

  • Experience with complex financing activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: carbon credits and swaps; carbon offsets (used to balance theoretically the impacts of greenhouse gas - GHG - emissions produced by new infrastructure projects); distributed generation portfolio financing; economic incentive agreements; energy savings companies (ESCOs) forms (such as for credit risk insurance, energy savings insurance and credit risk guarantee, energy performance guaranteed savings, energy performance shared savings, technical risk insurance); feed-in-tariffs; feed-in-premiums; green bonds; inverted lease; leverages partnership; mutual funds; private equity; project financing; Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) bonds; renewable energy certificates, renewable energy credits and renewable electricity credits (collectively, RECs); REC swaps; renewable identification number (RIN) monetization; renewable portfolio standards (RPS); sale-leasebacks; secured financing; securities; solar renewable energy credits (SRECs); stock purchases; venture capital; unbundled RECs; yieldcos (companies formed to own operating assets that produce predictable cash flows, primarily through long-term contracts).

 

  • Experience with typical mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: asset acquisitions; asset sales; definitive purchase agreement; due diligence; entity acquisitions; entity sales; exchange offers; hedge fund formation; long-form mergers; portfolio acquisitions; portfolio sales; project acquisitions; project sales; project-financed equity investments in special purpose project companies; sell-side processes; short-form mergers; stock purchase agreements; tender offers; third-party consents.

 

  • Experience with typical real estate activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: agreements and contracts; debt finance experience; easements; eminent domain; land use; lease audits; leases; leveraged finance experience; loans; mezzanine financing; options; purchases; revolving lines of credit; rights-of-way; sales; structuring and negotiating complex transactions; title issues; zoning.

 

  • Legal support for tax incentives and strategies, such as: Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Sections 45, 501(c)(3) and 1031; projects funded with grants pursuant to Section 1603 of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Tax Act (ARRTA) prior to 2016; solar investment tax credits (ITCs); wind production tax credits (PTCs).

 

  • Compliance with clean-tech guidelines and requirements of the: California Air Resources Board (CARB); California Coastal Commission (CCC); California Energy Commission (CEC); California Independent System Operator (CAISO); California Public Utilities Commission ((CPUC); Clean Air Act (CAA); Clean Water Act (CWA); Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC); Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund); Emergency Planning & Community Right to Know Act (EPCRA); Endangered Species Act (ESA); Federal Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) Emergency Management Agency (FEMA); Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC); Federal Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (FOEERE); National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA); New Jersey Clean Energy Act (NJCEA); New Jersey Coastal Area Facility Review Act (CAFRA); New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP); New Jersey Industrial Site Recovery Act (ISRA); New Jersey Freshwater Wetlands Protection Act (NJFWPA); New Jersey Wetlands Act (NJWA); New York Independent System Operator (NYISO); New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC); New York State Environmental Quality Review Act (NYSEQRA); New York State Public Service Commission (NYSPSC); North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC); Occupational Health and Safety Act (OSHA); Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (PDEP); Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA); Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).

 

  • Working knowledge of clean-tech guidelines, such as from the: Advanced Biofuels Association (ABFA); American Wind Energy Association (AWEA); Biotechnology Industry Organization (BIO); California Energy Commission (CEC); Clean Technology Trade Alliance (CTTA); Environmental Entrepreneurs (EE); Green Building Initiative (GBI); Hawaii Clean Energy initiative (HCEI); International Green Construction Code (IGCC); Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED); Northeast Clean Energy Council (NECEC); Sierra Club (SC); Solar Electric Industries Association (SEIA); Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target (SMART) program; United Nations (UN) Principles for Responsible Investing (PRI).

 

  • Familiarity with many types of clean-tech startups, such as: agri-tech; communications technology (CT); energy distribution; energy efficiency; energy generation; energy storage; information technology (IT); solar-related; transportation; waste management; water-related; wind-related.

 

  • Consultation for clean-tech startups regarding the legal aspects of potential issues of concern for investors, such as: ability to create early market enthusiasm for the proposed products or services; accurate, clear, concise and visually stimulating pitch deck; anticipated profit margin; anticipation and remediation strategies for the potential regulatory issues; capital efficiency; cash flow management; existence of broad public appeal for the proposed products or services; frequent constructive interactions with industry lobbying associations; frequent constructive interactions with the applicable governmental regulations formulation protocols; insurance program; intellectual property (IP) strategies; management team experience; marketing and promotion strategies; risk management strategies; sales cycle length; understanding the competitive landscape; use of the most-advantageous financing methods (such as angel, bond financing, government grant, government loan, project financing, venture capital; whether there is or could be substantial market interest for the proposed products or services.

 

  • Consultation for clean-tech startups regarding the types of insurance they should include in their insurance programs, at a minimum, such as: auto liability; business interruption; catastrophic; commercial crime; commercial property; cyber liability; directors and officers (D&O) liability; employer's liability; employment practices liability; errors and omissions (E&O) liability; equipment breakdown; excess liability; intellectual property (IP); key person life; premises pollution liability (PPL); professional liability; workers' compensation.

 

  • Experience with typical litigation activities related to clean-tech practice, such as: administrative hearings; alternative dispute resolution;antitrust; bankruptcy; construction issues; employment; environmental; executive compensation; false advertising; intellectual property (IP); labor; management of all domestic and international litigation; mediation; nuisance; permitting challenges; rate disputes; regional transmission organization (RTO) issues; securities; trade regulation; transactions.

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    Last updated 210117_2238

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