Catherine West
Counsel, London
Biography
Overview
Catherine is counsel in the Firm's Debt Finance practice group based in the Firm's London office. She has extensive experience acting for borrowers and lenders on a wide variety of transaction types including corporate and sovereign lending, structured trade and commodity finance (including commodity prepayments, pre-export finance, borrowing base, receivables purchase), project financings, acquisition financings, restructurings and refinancings.
Catherine's focus is on emerging markets, including Africa, Latin America, CEE, Southern Europe, Russia, CIS and Türkiye. She has spent 6 months on secondment in our Moscow office.
Bars and Courts
England and Wales, Solicitor
Education
LPC
College of Law
BA
University of Oxford
Languages
English
Experience
Representative transactions include advising:
- Helios Investment Partners on a financing of the floating vessels for a landmark US$ 7billion LNG regasification project located in Tema, Ghana.
- Helios Investment Partners on a landmark US$7 billion LNG regasification project located in Tema, Ghana.
- International lenders on bridge and term loans into Kazakhstan relating to the development of gas infrastructure in the country.
- The borrower in connection with a US$ 20m facility to finance the construction and operation of a 40MW gas fired power station in Mendora, Argentina.
- Ghana National Petroleum Corporation (GNPC) in relation to a US$280 million facility agreement provided by an international lender relating to crude oil to be lifted from certain oil fields in Ghana.
- Ghana National Petroleum Company (GNPC) in relation to a US$120 million letter of credit facility agreement provided by an international lender for the purposes of funding GNPC's obligations under a gas sale and purchase agreement with Shell.
- Trafigura on confidential oil and metals prepayment financings for commodities sourced in Europe, Africa and Latin America and on secured borrowing base and other structured trade financings (including their up to US$ 2b refined metals borrowing base facility coordinated by Deutsche Bank).
- Moove Africa in connection with its roll out of ride-hailing driver services in Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa in collaboration with Uber. This included advising Moove on numerous financings for the acquisition of vehicles to be utilised in Ghana, Nigeria and South Africa, including a loan to Moove Nigeria B.V.'s from International Finance Corporation.
- The Mauritius Commercial Bank on its up to US$50 million financing to a Turkish sponsor and Dutch borrower for the refinancing and upsizing of their LNG to powership project in Mozambique.
- Deutsche Bank on the financing to the Ministry of Finance of Ghana for the development of Kumasi Inner Ring Road in Ghana.
- Deutsche Bank and UKEF on the UKEF supported financings to the Ministry of Finance of Ghana for the development of Kumasi Market and Bekwai in Ghana.
- Puma Energy on its core corporate syndicated facilities and various structured, trade and corporate financings.
- HSBC in its capacities as arranger, agent and lender in connection with the financing of plant and machinery in the US and Brazil for Fitesa, a leading manufacturer of nonwoven fabrics, backed by a Euler Hermes credit insurance policy.
- Oi S.A., the Brazilian telecoms conglomerate on the restructuring of approx. US$4.7 billion of ECA-supported debt, involving China Development Bank, EDC, EKN, Finnvera, ONDD and Nordic Investment Bank.
- International lenders in connection with US$ 150m and US$ 116m senior secured term loan facilities to a telecommunications company with operations in The Gambia, Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda.
- JP Morgan on the 'POEMS' transactions, innovative £3.5b financings that used mandatory exchangeable bonds issued by Volcan Holdings plc to finance the purchase of shares in Anglo American plc.
