Partner Richard Devine has broad experience representing clients doing business in the Middle East and internationally. His practice is principally focused on energy and covers the spectrum of energy matters.

Richard, who works in the firm's Dubai location, has counseled energy clients on a variety of transactions related to upstream oil and gas, energy M&A, energy regulation, energy transportation and energy trading. He has lived and worked in London, Cairo and in Dubai.

The following is a selected summary of recent transactions in which he has been involved:

Oil and Gas/Natural Resources:

• Advising a mining company in respect of a number of mineral tenders in Afghanistan including review and revision of the relevant concession contracts
• Advising a bidder on Iraq's 4^th petroleum licensing round
• Advising a major US international oil company in connection with its development of an Iraq oilfield as Lead Contractor under the terms of a Technical Services Contract; representation covers assisting with issues of Iraq law associated with establishing petroleum operations in Iraq (such as in relation to procurement, labor law and environmental issues) and advice on the terms of the Technical Services Contract
• Advising a major international oil company on several production sharing contracts in Kurdistan 
• Advising an oil company in relation to the first exploration and production sharing contract in Afghanistan
• Advising a private equity venture on a project relating to the commercialization of a number of "oil lakes" in Turkmenistan
• Advising an independent Gulf oil company on a farm-out of its interests in upstream exploration assets in Egypt and Cote D'Ivoire
• Advising a multilateral institution on a reserve based financing structured on an Islamic compliant basis for a Middle East upstream energy group with oil and gas interests in Egypt and Yemen
• Advising an Asian national oil company on its bids for offshore upstream exploration assets in Nigeria
• Advising an Asian national oil company on its joint operating agreement for an offshore deepwater block in Equatorial Guinea
• Advising a South East Asian company on its gas supply arrangements for the development of a number of independent power projects
• Advising a US private equity fund on its acquisition of an interest in a producing asset in Indonesia
• Advising a US independent oil company on a farm-out of its interests in an upstream exploration asset in Nigeria and on associated operational arrangements
• Advising a South East Asian national oil company on its successful acquisition of almost US$1 billion worth of upstream and midstream oil assets in Latin America (through a joint venture with another national oil company)
• Advising a major international oil company on a major upstream development (oil and associated/non-associated gas) in the Arabian Gulf region
• Advising a major international oil company on the development of an upstream project in Kazakhstan
• Advising a national oil company on its bid for First Calgary Petroleums Limited; a dual listed (TSE and AIM) company with a market capitalisation of nearly GBP 2 billion and assets in Algeria
• Advising various companies on farm-ins and farm-outs in Turkey, Egypt, Gabon and Kazakhstan
• Advising an African government on a comprehensive concession for onshore and offshore mineral rights
• Advising a major international gas company on a long term gas sales agreement

Pipelines:

• Advising confidential clients on various issues relating to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium Project
• Advising a gas transportation, distribution and supply company on the regulatory issues surrounding the postalisation of charging in the Northern Ireland gas transmission system and on the implementation of network codes for its transmission and distribution businesses
• Advising the operator of the British gas pipelines system on the regulatory changes required to implement its proposal to sell several of the Local Distribution Zones, this included drafting a new network code and advising on the arrangements required for the interface between the system operator and distribution operators

Petrochemicals:

• Advising a major international oil and gas company on the expansion of its petrochemicals project in Saudi Arabia in joint venture with a Saudi petrochemical company and, in particular, on related raw material/feedstock supply agreements and tolling agreements
• Advising an international chemicals company on the establishment of a joint venture petrochemicals complex with a Saudi partner in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• Advising an international chemical manufacturer on the establishment of joint ventures in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for the manufacture, offtake and worldwide marketing of methanol, acetic acid and vinyl acetate monomers
• Advising a joint venture comprising the national petroleum and petrochemical companies of two Gulf states on the establishment of the joint venture and of two petrochemical projects
• Advising a Middle Eastern national petrochemicals company on feedstock supply and offtake arrangements in an ethylene dichloride project in Oman
• Advising a Middle Eastern national petrochemicals company on its acquisition of 60% of the shares in a company acquiring and re-commissioning a polyethylene plant in the Philippines

Electric Power:

• Advising a major international energy company on a British nuclear generator's restructuring arrangements
• Advising a major international energy company on an independent power project in Nigeria
• Member of a team advising the Government of the Sultanate of Oman on the restructuring, regulation and privatization of its electricity and water industries; project included: (i) designing and implementing a new regulatory framework, establishing a regulator, and drafting sector legislation, licenses etc; (ii) unbundling the existing utility into new corporate entities; (iii) conducting due diligence on existing contracts; and (iv) designing and implementing new contractual arrangements between the unbundled entities
• Member of a team advising an electricity company on its £1.2 billion acquisition of a UK electricity company
• Advising the sponsor of a proposed IWPP in Saudi Arabia
• Advising the financiers of a steel project in the UAE on gas supply and power supply agreements

Infrastructure and Real Estate:

• Advising a UAE joint venture on its participation in a project to construct a sports complex in Istanbul and redevelop a football stadium into a mixed use retail and residential complex
• Advising the Saudi industrial company owner of a greenfield seamless steel pipe plant on the EPC, technology and financing arrangements for the plant in Jubail, Saudi Arabia
• Advising a Saudi construction company on its tender for the construction of a 2000MW power plant in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
• Advising one of the leading Dubai land developers and the world's first purpose-built sports city, in connection with its corporate, real estate development and other commercial activities

• Law Society of England and Wales

• Legal 500's Europe, Middle East and Africa Guide, Projects and Energy (2013)
• Who's Who Legal – Oil & Gas, UAE (2011)
• "Energy and Natural Resource Lawyer," Expert Guides (2010, 2013)
• Guide to the World's Leading Energy & Natural Resource Lawyers, 8th edition, Legal Media Group (2010)

• Co-author with Ana Severova, "Afghanistan: Beyond the Conflict," Petroleum Economist, December 2012
• Co-author with Ana Severova, "Beyond the Conflict:  Afghanistan's Latest Oil and Gas Bid Round," Infrastructure Journal, November 2012 and Global Energy Review, October 2012
• Co-author with Paul Neufeld, "Force Majeure: Risks and Protection," Petroleum Economist, August 2011
• Co-author with Randel R. Young, "Managing Risk In Emerging Market Hydrocarbon Development Projects," 55 Rocky Mt. Min. L. Inst. 30-1, 2009
• Co-author with Randel R. Young, "Managing Government Renegotiation Risk In International Energy Projects," International Energy Law Review, Issue 7, 2009

• "Iraq Energy Forum - National Oil Companies & IOCs in Iraq" Iraq Energy Forum, Al-Rasheed, Baghdad, Iraq, December 12, 2012
• "Iraq - Challenges and Opportunities for Oil and Gas Exploration and Exploitation" IBA Annual Conference, Dubai, October 31, 2011
• "Iraq – A Template or an Anomaly for the Region," MEPEX: Oil and Money Forum, Bahrain, September 26, 2011
• "Iraq – A Re-emerging Market for Upstream Oil & Gas," MidEast - North Africa Upstream, Geneva, June 13, 2011
• "Iraq and the U.S. - Re-emerging Markets for Upstream Oil & Gas," Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. Energy Conference, London, May 10, 2011
• "New Frontiers of Oil and Gas: Emerging Opportunities and Challenges," Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P. Energy Conference, London, May 11, 2010
• "New MidEast Oil Environments – Iraq update," MidEast-Central Asia Oil Week, Dubai, April 2009
• "Introduction to Legal Issues in the Acquisition of Marginal Fields," African Petroleum Producers Association, Tripoli, August 2006

1998 – Legal Practice Course, College of Law, Chester, England
1997 – L.L.B, honors, University of Birmingham, England

Richard was admitted as a solicitor of the Supreme Court of England and Wales in 2001.

• Law Society of England and Wales