Year: 2023

Rodrigo Carè is a dual qualified New York and Italian lawyer, with a focus on construction arbitration and commercial disputes in the Middle East.

 

Early in his career, Rodrigo completed a long secondment with the LNG and Natural Gas divisions of Eni SpA.

 

Rodrigo has significant experience representing clients in disputes before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), the London Court of International Arbitration (LCIA), the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID), and the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce (SCC). He also has experience within the energy projects and infrastructure space.

 

Rodrigo completed his studies in the U.S. (Georgetown University Law Center) and Italy (Roma Tre). He is fluent in English, Spanish, French, and Italian.

 

Since becoming a member in 2023, Rodrigo believes AIEN provides invaluable resources, networking opportunities, and access to a wealth of expertise across the energy sector. “Through my membership, I have gained insights into best practices, kept abreast of industry trends, and established connections with industry leaders, all of which have proven essential in my day-to-day life as an energy disputes lawyer.”

Rodrigo Jesus Navarro is an attorney and a master’s candidate in International Law at the State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ). He holds a bachelor’s degree in law from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) and is currently pursuing a degree in accounting sciences at Estácio de Sá University (UNESA-RJ).

 

Navarro is an active member of AIEN, participating in the organization’s events held in Brazil, attending webinars and reading articles published by the institution. He is a native speaker of Portuguese, fluent in English and proficient in French.

 

During his master’s program, under the orientation of Professor Marilda Rosado, he has been working as a teaching assistant and co-authored an article titled “Global Environmental Governance and Climate Litigation: New Paradigms”, which was presented at the Brazilian National Council for Research and Postgraduate Studies in Law (CONPEDI).

 

He also represented UERJ’s Institutional Research Group on International Law and Energy at the Workshop on Research Strategies in Private International Law, held at the Pontifical Catholic University (PUC-Rio).

 

As an undergraduate, Rodrigo organized and participated in a research group at the UFRJ Institutional Studies Laboratory (LETACI), where he presented articles at both national and international events.

 

Currently, his master’s research focuses on the legal aspects of energy transition and standard clauses in contracts involving renewable energy, seeking to provide greater legal certainty for foreign direct investment. Navarro’s other areas of interest involve international tax planning and global accounting standards.

Tony has a long history with the AIEN. From 2014 – 2017 he served as the Canada Chapter Regional Director, from 2018 – 2021 as the Board’s Secretary, then as the VP of External Affairs from 2021 to the present. Tony has also spoken at AIEN’s International Petroleum Summit in 2016 and 2017.

 

He has over two decades of international and intercultural experience. His experience encompasses matters in over 54 countries. Tony was the functional head of the international department at Husky Energy as a commercial negotiator. He was also head of the Transactions Department of a major European law firm in Kazakhstan and a seconded lawyer with Kuwait Foreign Exploration Company (KUFPEC).

 

Tony is a co-founder of the CITO Energy Group, a unique boutique that combines legal and non-legal services to companies undertaking energy and energy-adjacent development projects with an emphasis on Energy Transition ventures. In result, Tony and his firm work on projects spanning the Petroleum, CCS, Helium, Lithium and Hydrogen industries and they do that work both domestically in Canada and internationally.

 

Tony speaks French, Italian and Russian. His international and intercultural experience coupled with his upstream, exploration and oil service experience make his expertise unique among energy law lawyers in Canada.

Alan Frederik has practiced law in the energy sector for more than 35 years. He has been, among others, the chief legal counsel of BP Tangguh LNG, BPMIGAS (Indonesia’s Government upstream oil and gas management agency), and PERTAMINA (the Indonesian oil and gas SOE). At present, he is an independent legal consultant to PLN, Indonesia’s Electricity SOE, regarding several of its energy transition projects. Immediately prior to that, he was a partner at Widyawan & Partners, an associate firm of Linklaters in Jakarta. Alan holds a law degree from University of Indonesia and an LLM from Dedman School of Law Southern Methodist University, Dallas.

 

Alan first joined AIEN in 2010. About the value of membership, Alan explains, “AIEN model contracts and courses helped my team to speak the same ‘language’ with the other side in negotiations. I often reach out to my AIEN colleagues if I need advice.”

Norman Nadorff is Special Counsel to the Mayer Brown law firm. He is located in Houston and works closely with the Rio de Janeiro office. His practice centers on energy law and transactions and ethics law compliance.

 

For 30 years, Norman served as in-house counsel for major oil companies with primary focus on Latin America, West Africa and Indonesia. He was Senior Counsel for BP in Angola from 2006 to 2015 as well as Legal Manager for BP Brazil and ARCO Indonesia, where he held two expatriate assignments in the 1990’s. In addition, Norman was worldwide Legal Manager for BP Solar in the early 2000’s.
Norman has dealt with a wide range of commercial documents, including farmout, unitization, joint operating, study and bidding, EPC, drilling and drilling services, gas sales, shareholder, joint venture, and project finance agreements, as well as a wide variety of host government granting instruments. At ARCO, Norman wrote the Company’s policies on Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, US Anti-boycott laws and US Export Regulations. He has participated in corruption, fraud, conflict of interest and hostage-taking investigations and helped resolved various commercial disputes.

 

Norman has been Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Houston Law Center since 2012 and has taught International Petroleum Agreements in several US and foreign law schools. In 2006, he played key roles in the creation of a pioneering international oil and gas master’s program at Angola’s national law school, which is now in its sixteenth year. Norman lectures frequently on petroleum law, anti-corruption laws, contract drafting and negotiations, and development of local talent.

 

Norman is fluent in Portuguese and Spanish, proficient in French, and has experience negotiating in all three languages.

 

Norman first joined AIEN in the late 1980s and since then:

 

• served as Director (2006-2009)
• was given Academic Award (2009)
• was named a Distinguished Negotiator (2022) as part of the US Chapter
• served as Co-Chair, Model Contracts Workshop (2022 and 2023)
• taught in Core Course (South Africa, 2009)
• served on several Model Contract Drafting Committees
• organized several AIEN regional events in Angola
• was Co-Chair of Scholarship Committee
• served as a judge for the Student Writing Competition
• created the (short-lived) Greatest Stories Never Told feature in the former AIPN monthly newsletter
• has served for many years on the Editorial Board of the AIEN/Oxford Press Journal of World Law, Energy and Business (JWLEB)
• co-presented a Mock JOA Negotiation at the AIEN International Energy Summit in Miami (2023)
• has published several articles in the JWLEB
• has lectured, moderated and served as a panelist at various AIEN events, including the AIEN Workshop at NAPE
• serves on the Education Advisory Board (EAB)
• is currently a member of the AIEN US Chapter Organizing Committee
• has presented a course titled, Drafting and Negotiating International Petroleum Agreements, and which is built around the AIEN Model Agreements, at many law schools, government agencies and companies around the world.

When asked to describe a specific way in which the AIEN aided him over these decades, Norman pointed to his nine-year stint in Angola, in particular the creation, at Agostinho Neto University, of an annual post-graduate program in oil and gas law and commerce which exists to this day. (His article about the program can be found in the April 2018 JWELB). He recalls, “Once I had convinced my employer, BP, to support both financially and technically the project, a huge question remained: who will teach these courses? Using contacts made in the AIEN over the years, I reached out to professors and practitioners such as Owen Anderson, Marilda Rosado, John Lowe and Alexandre Chequer, who not only offered courses themselves but arranged for others to do the same. Over the years, the AIEN and its members have been supportive of this unique energy industry education program which has graduated over 700 professionals, many of whom now hold high positions in the industry in Angola and beyond.”

 

Nelia Daniel Dias is a Portuguese/Angolan lawyer with a Law Degree in Civil Law from Lusíada University of Lisbon since 1995 registered with the Portuguese (1995), Angola (2009) and São Tome Bar Associations (2018). Worked as a full time Lawyer in private practice in Lisbon from 1995 to 2007.

 

Since 2019 Nelia is responsible for the Association of International Energy Negotiators (AIEN former AIPN) Angola chapter working closely with the AIEN African Region Chapter. In 16 December 2021 Nelia was nominated one of the 100 Outstanding Female Executives in the African Region in Oil and Gas by African Shapers. In December de 2022 Nelia was appointed co-chair of the Oil & Gas Committee at the International Bar Association (IBA).

 

Nelia started working specifically in Oil & Gas in Chevron in 2009 in Luanda (Angola). Nelia worked first as Senior Counsel and Contracts Advisor for six years until 2015. Nelia then changed and starting working in  GE- GLS, the GE minority Joint Venture, as JV Senior Counsel in 2015 still based in Luanda. Continued as Senior Counsel- Commercial responsible for the Legal Department in Oil and Gas. In BHGE had initially a dual role working as both Senior Counsel Angola (OFE & TPS) responsible for the Legal Operations and Senior Contracts & Commercial Counsel – Southern since the announcement dated October 2017. Currently is Geomarket Legal Counsel in Southern African Region in SSA in Baker Hughes, responsible for 12 countries including Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe operations amongst other countries.

 

Nelia has a post-Graduation in Communications Law, taken at Law School at Coimbra Law Faculty (1998),  an LLM Course in Oil and Gas at Universidade Agostinho Neto in Luanda (2009), and a Master Decree in Civil Law (Contracts) since 2000. She has completed the Supply Chain certificate issued by the Arizona State University (2013). Nelia graduated successfully from Oxford University (Said Business School) in Global Business Diploma (2018). Nelia speaks fluently Portuguese (native language), English and French. She speaks Spanish and German on an elementary level. Nelia is, at night, a teacher at the Catholic University since 2017. Nelia used to be a trainee at the Angolan Bar Association from 2007 to 2015. Nelia is the single author of 23 Legal published books including compilations of Laws and has written a few legal articles published in Legal reviews from Portugal, Angola, UK & US and an very recently Nelia has been an inventor. Nelia is the President of a nonprofit organization, based in Lisbon, created in 1998 called Nuno Xavier Association (following her father’s name Nuno Xavier Daniel Dias- an Santomean African politician that signed the Sao Tome independence Act in 1975).

Uisdean Vass has some forty years’ experience in the international and UK oil and gas business. In North America, his friends often know him as “Hugh”.

 

Uisdean has been on a long and winding law firm journey through the oil patch.

 

Admitted in Scotland and Louisiana, Uisdean graduated with an LLB Honours from the University of Edinburgh (1982) and went on to study for an LLM (1985) specializing in oil and gas law at Louisiana State University. After practicing with Stone Pigman Walther Wittman & Hutchinson of New Orleans for five years (1987-92), he joined London-based Clyde & Co’s new Caracas office as Senior Oil and Gas Associate. This move was neatly timed to catch the great Venezuelan Oil Opening which continued for most of the 1990s. In 1997, Uisdean founded the Caracas office of Calgary-based Macleod Dixon, and in 2001 he went on to open the Rio de Janeiro office of the same law firm.

 

After seventeen years in the Americas, Uisdean returned home to Scotland in 2003, where he promptly became Head of Oil & Gas, in Maclay Murray & Spens LLP (MMS), one of Scotland’s premier law firms. In 2007, Uisdean won the accolade of Scottish Corporate Lawyer of the Year. After nearly ten years leading MMS, Uisdean left to join Bond Dickinson LLP as a partner. He subsequently served as Head of Oil & Gas in Ledingham Chalmers before taking the exciting (and a little scary) decision to form his own legal consultancy, VassPetro Limited, in 2020.

 

Uisdean’s practice is heavily oriented towards upstream oil and gas, licensing, upstream deals including farmouts and asset sale & purchase agreements, joint operating agreements, product sales agreements and commercial agreements between oil companies of every kind. Uisdean has also worked extensively on the financing of upstream transactions, be they debt, equity or capital markets. Uisdean has advised on transactions in some thirty countries. He has also taken a big interest in oil and gas regulatory matters, and in the UK, he is known as a respected commentator on the UK’s “maximizing economic recovery” regulatory regime. Additionally, Uisdean is also active in advising operators on oil service and construction contracting.

 

Uisdean is a prolific writer and commentator on oil industry issues. He is fluent in English, Spanish and Portuguese along with a dash of Scots Gaelic. He is a countryman through and through and a keen gardener.

 

Uisdean has been a member of the AIEN since 1995. He served as Co-Chair for the AIEN’s Model Contracts Seminars in Edinburgh, Scotland (2015) and in Banff, Alberta (2016). Shortly afterwards, he was appointed as one of three Co-Chairs for the drafting of the Asset Sale Purchase Agreement, which is most recent AIEN model form delivered in 2019. Uisdean is a member of AIEN’s Europe Regional Committee.

 

Tara Graneri is an Australian qualified lawyer with a practice deeply aligned with the energy sector. Tara is currently working as a Senior Associate at King & Wood Mallesons, based in Perth, Western Australia. Advising a range of domestic and international clients, Tara has become known for her expertise in the sector with a focus on oil and gas transactions, regulatory advice and LNG marketing. In more recent years, she has also acted for a number of clients in relation to new energy projects including with respect to carbon capture and storage.

 

Tara has been recognised by Legal 500 as a Rising Star since 2019 in the area of Energy (Transactions and Regulatory) and she also lectures on the topic of Energy Law at the University of Western Australia. Tara has been a Committee Member of AIEN’s Australia-Pacific Regional Chapter since 2017.

Kamil Valiyev is a Partner in Dentons’ Baku office. He has an extensive experience in advising private and public organizations in local and cross-border merger/acquisitions and commercial transactions in energy and other sectors of the industry. He focuses his practice in energy law (conventional and renewable energy), project development, corporate law, intellectual property law and technology, competition and trade compliance.

 

Since 2007, Kamil Valiyev has been advising multinational companies on the establishment of joint ventures and strategic alliances with Azerbaijani private and state-owned companies and their exit from such joint ventures and alliances, and acquisition of participation interests therein. He also advises clients on investment related regulatory and legal issues in the areas of energy, technology and telecommunications.

 

Kamil led the Department for the Legal Support of International Projects at State Oil Company of the Republic of Azerbaijan. He teaches Energy Law related courses at the Baku State University.

 

Kamil leads the Legal and Compliance Committee at AMCHAM Azerbaijan. He is an active member of the CIS-FSU Chapter of AIEN and was awarded with the Member of the Year Award by AIEN in 2017.

An expert energy sector lawyer, Saud Al-Motawa spent five years with Kuwait Petroleum Corporation between 2008 and 2013 before moving to its international upstream subsidiary, Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration Company (KUFPEC). As senior legal counsel with KUFPEC Saud takes charge of all M&A, operational and corporate legal matters in North America, UK, Egypt and Yemen among other responsibilities. In this capacity he has been able to oversee some extremely exciting projects, including the successful acquisition of KUFPEC’s assets in Kaybob, Alberta, Canada. Saud has been an active AIEN member since 2012.