Chad T. Marriott

Chad Marriott leads the firm’s wind energy subgroup and serves as counsel to sponsors, owners, and investors in the development, sale, acquisition, and financing of renewable generation projects throughout the United States. Representing project developers and sponsors across the renewable energy landscape, Chad’s practice focuses on equity transactions including both buy- and sell-side project M&A, joint ventures, cash equity investments and sell-downs, and tax equity. Chad has led teams advising on the acquisition of historic wind assets for repowering and served as lead counsel on transactions for both operational and development-stage wind, solar, hydro, and battery energy storage projects in the United States and Canada.

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Education

University of Oregon School of Law, J.D., 2009; Certificate in Sustainable Business Law; Program Fellow, Environment & Natural Resources Law Center; Fredric R. Merrill Award, Oregon Law Review, 2009

Indiana University-Bloomington, M.S., 2005

University of Utah, B.A., 2001

Admissions

Oregon

Wind Project Finance and M&A

• Represented Enel Green Power North America, Inc. and its affiliates, as sponsor, in connection with tax equity investments by JPM Capital Corporation, Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Wells Fargo, Bankers Commercial Corporation (an affiliate of MUFG Union Bank), Special Situations Investing Group II, LLC (an affiliate of Goldman Sachs & Co.), EFS Renewables Holdings, MetLife, Bank of New York Mellon, Northwestern Mutual, and Antrim Corporation (an affiliate of State Street Bank and Trust), in various wind projects across the United States, including:
  • 200 MW Cimarron III Wind Project in Kansas
  • 300 MW Aurora Wind Project in North Dakota
  • 500 MW High Lonesome Wind Project in Texas
  • 236 MW White Cloud Wind Project in Missouri
  • 66 MW Whitney Hill Wind Project in Illinois
  • 300 MW Diamond Vista Wind Project in Kansas
  • 320 MW Rattlesnake Creek Wind Project in Nebraska
  • 185 MW HillTopper Wind Project in Illinois
  • 298 MW Thunder Ranch Wind Project in Oklahoma
  • 400 MW Cimarron I and II Projects in Kansas
  • 108 MW Drift Sand Wind Project in Oklahoma
  • 65 MW Chisholm View II Wind Project in Oklahoma
  • 150 MW Lindahl Wind Project in North Dakota
  • 74 MW Little Elk Wind Project in Oklahoma
  • 150 MW Origin Wind Project in Oklahoma
  • 200 MW Goodwell Wind Project in Oklahoma and Texas
  • 249 MW Buffalo Dunes Wind Project in Kansas
  • 235 MW Chisholm View Wind Project in Oklahoma
  • 200 MW Prairie Rose Wind Project in Minnesota
• Led negotiations on behalf of Eolus Vind AB subsidiary, Eolus North America, Inc., for (1) the acquisition of a 60% interest in Wind Wall Development LLC, (2) the simultaneous execution of an asset purchase agreement for the repowering of an existing, operational wind project in Tehachapi, California and (3) the subsequent sale of Wind Wall 1 LLC to Cubico Sustainable Investments.
• Represented affiliate of Longroad Energy Holdings, LLC in its acquisition of two operational wind projects in Minnesota with a combined capacity of 80 MW from NRG Energy, Inc.
• Represented Enel Green Power North America, Inc. (acting through its subsidiary EGPNA Development Holdings, LLC) in the acquisition of a 25% equity interest in the 249.75 MW Buffalo Dunes wind project in Kansas from EFS Buffalo Dunes, LLC, a subsidiary of General Electric Capital Corporation.
• Represented sponsor in the negotiation of a cash equity investment by GE Capital subsidiary EFS Buffalo Dunes, LLC, for the acquisition of a 51% stake in the 249 MW Buffalo Dunes wind project in Kansas.
• Represented sponsor in the negotiation of a cash equity investment by GE Capital subsidiary EFS Chisholm View, LLC, for the acquisition of a 51% stake in the 235 MW Chisholm View wind project in Oklahoma.
• Represented sponsor in the negotiation of a cash equity partnership agreement with GE Capital subsidiary EFS Prairie Rose, LLC, for the acquisition of a 51% stake in the 200 MW Prairie Rose wind project in Minnesota.
• Represented Puget Sound Energy, Inc. in the sale of development assets from the 276 MW Lower Snake River complex (now the Tucannon River Wind Farm) to Portland General Electric.

Solar Project Finance and M&A

• Represented EDF Renewables North America in its sale of a 50% stake in the Maverick 6 solar-plus-storage project (131 MWdc coupled with a 50 MW/200 MWh BESS) and the Maverick 7 solar project (179 MWdc) in California to MEAG/Munich Re.
• Represented subsidiaries of Enel Green Power North America, Inc. in the separate tax equity financings of Phases 1 & 2 of the 500 MWdc Roadrunner Solar project in Texas.
• Sale of a portfolio of development-stage solar assets and negotiation of master development services agreement.
• Represented affiliate of Geronimo Energy, LLC in the tax equity financing of its (1) Nordic Solar portfolio, consisting of nine community solar garden (CSG) projects totaling approximately 40 MWac and its (2) Nordic Solar Phase 2 portfolio, consisting of sixteen CSG projects totaling approximately 16 MWac, in Minnesota.
• Represented Enel Green Power North America, Inc., as sponsor, in the tax equity investment by Antrim Corporation, an affiliate of State Street Bank and Trust, in the Aurora portfolio of sixteen (16) solar projects in Minnesota totaling 100 MWac.
• Represented ImMODO International Corporation in the sale of a portfolio of 15 small solar photovoltaic projects in Tulare County, California totaling approximately 22 MWac, to an institutional investor.

Energy Storage M&A

• Represented joint venture between National Grid Renewables and Rye Development in the sale to Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners of an almost 1.6 GW portfolio of closed-loop pumped storage hydropower projects, including the 393 MW Swan Lake North project in Oregon and the 1,200 MW Goldendale asset in Washington.
• Represented Powin Energy Corp. in the negotiation of cross-border acquisition and development service agreements with Hecate Energy for 12.8 MW/52.8 MWh of energy storage assets in Ontario, Canada.

Other Energy M&A

• Represented Tenaska Washington Partners, L.P. in the sale of its partnership interest in the Ferndale Cogeneration Station, a 270-MW gas-fired power plant in Washington, to Puget Sound Energy.
• Assistance with corporate restructuring of German renewable energy company’s project entities in the United States.

Energy Regulatory

• Represented Capital Dynamics with respect to FERC regulatory matters in connection with its tax equity and back-leverage debt financing for the Cal Flats 130 and Cal Flats 150 solar projects in California.
• Represented FTP Power Inc. subsidiary Sustainable Power Group, LLC (sPower) in FERC matters related to the development and tax equity and back-leverage debt financing of more than 350 MWac of solar PV projects in California, North Carolina, Massachusetts, New York, and Arizona.
• Represented Integrated Asset Management, a Canadian fund, through its subsidiary IAM Infrastructure Private Debt Fund LP, in FERC regulatory matters related to its term loan to a Canadian borrower that was used to refinance the debt of its US-based project company and secured by a hydroelectric facility located in Oregon.
• Represented coalition of large industrial customers in 2013 Black Hills Power, Inc. rate case before the South Dakota Public Utilities Commission, including appeals to circuit court and Supreme Court of South Dakota.
• Represented coalition of large industrial customers in Certificate of Need proceeding for Great Northern Transmission Line before Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.
• Represented large technology company on FERC, PPA, and interconnection matters related to the acquisition of two small hydroelectric generating facilities in Oregon.
• Represented coalition of large industrial users in 2013 Minnesota Power Integrated Resource Plan docket before the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission.

Hydroelectric and Hydrokinetic

• Represented joint venture between National Grid Renewables and Rye Development in the sale to Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners of an almost 1.6 GW portfolio of closed-loop pumped storage hydropower projects, including the 393 MW Swan Lake North project in Oregon and the 1,200 MW Goldendale asset in Washington.
• Advise clients on new hydroelectric development, including municipal preference issues and the surrender, refiling, and sufficiency of preliminary permit applications under Part I of the Federal Power Act.
• Advise clients in due diligence related to existing and development-stage small, conduit, and pumped storage hydroelectric facilities in Washington, California, and Oregon.
• Represented Ocean Power Technologies, Inc. in matters related to the first FERC-licensed wave energy project in the United States.
• Represented client in dispute before the FERC involving competing preliminary permit applications for a tidal energy project site.
• Advised client on FERC licensing exemption process for conduit hydroelectric facilities.

Insights & Presentations

• “Offshore Wind in the United States” (co-author), Chapter 4, The Law of Wind: A Guide to Business and Legal Issues, Stoel Rives LLP, Ninth Edition, 2022
• “Project Finance for Wind Power Projects” (co-author), Chapter 9, The Law of Wind: A Guide to Business and Legal Issues, Stoel Rives LLP, Ninth Edition, 2022
• Presenter, “Offshore Wind: Today’s Challenges and Tomorrow’s Opportunities,” Resources for the Future (RFF) webinar, December 2021
• “Oregon’s Community Solar Program is Underway” (co-author), Portland Business Journal, August 2021
• “Can West Coast states help achieve 30 GW of offshore wind by 2030?” (co-author), Utility Dive, June 2021
• “Offshore Wind 101: Outlook and Opportunities—Finance,” EUCI webinar, November 5, 2020
• “Onshore Permitting Requirements for Offshore Wind Projects in California” (co-author), Windpower Engineering & Development, July 27, 2020
• Presenter, “Market Overview: The State of Offshore Wind in the US,” Wind Power Finance & Investment Summit, San Diego, CA, February 5, 2020
• “Offshore wind’s westward expansion” (co-author), Wind Systems, September 15, 2019
• “Is California next in line for offshore wind?” (co-author), Windpower Engineering & Development, July 31, 2019
• Executive Briefing Chair, Wind Power Finance & Investment Summit, San Diego, CA, February 5, 2019
• Presenter, “Technological Advancement and Business Opportunities,” Charging Forward: The Future of Energy in Oregon, Portland, OR, April 13, 2018
• Moderator, “Structuring, Contracting and Financing Solar + Storage Projects,” Storage Week, San Francisco, CA, February 27, 2018
• Presenter, “Impacts of the Tax Law Change on the Wind Industry,” Infocast webinar, January 10, 2018
• Presenter, “Key Provisions: Revisions to Oregon’s Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS),” Law Seminars International: Oregon’s Clean Electricity and Coal Transition Plan, Portland, OR, July 28, 2016
• “Financing Wind Projects—Equity and Tax Equity Structures,” Women of Wind Energy, San Diego, CA, March 30, 2016

• Selected as one of “America’s Leading Lawyers for Business” (USA) by Chambers Global for Projects: Renewables & Alternative Energy, 2022–present; and (USA—Nationwide) by Chambers USA for Projects: Renewables & Alternative Energy, 2021–present
• Included in The Best Lawyers in America^® (Energy Law), 2023–present
• Named to A Word About Wind’s Top 100 Legal Power List 2020
• Listed among Rising Stars (Energy & Natural Resources), Oregon Super Lawyers^®, 2013–2019

Professional

• AWEA Emerging Leaders Program, former Member
• Energy Bar Association, Member
• Oregon State Bar Energy, Telecom & Utility Law Section, Member

Civic

• Camp Fire Columbia, former Board of Directors; former Chairman
• Camp Namanu, Board of Directors, 2022-Present