Close to ten years ago, Mexico’s energy sector was opened up to private investment for the first time. Naturally, international companies saw the pump primed for new ventures. Among these was Swiss petrochemicals company Proman, who saw an opportunity to produce ammonia for fertilizer production in an agriculturally significant region of northwestern Mexico, leveraging Canadian natural gas imports.
The project, however, was not without its hurdles. After seven years of clearing numerous legal and logistical obstacles, the project has finally been given the green light. The Swiss firm has secured $5 billion in financing to move forward. Legal guidance from Milbank and Gonzalez Calvillo was crucial in leading the project to fruition against all odds, given recent global developments. The financial backing for this venture came after fertilizers became scarce following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
A detail of note was that the legal advice for the banks involved was offered by none other than Freshfields and Mexico’s Galicia Abogados. Undeniably, this is a significant milestone in the private energy sector, stating an encouraging precedent.
For more information on this, you can delve into the original reporting here.