Latham Advises the Sponsors on Project Financing for FSO Chalchi

Latham & Watkins has advised SBM Offshore and the other sponsor on the US$465 million project financing for FSO Chalchi. The project financing is provided by a consortium of international banks and institutional investors and includes partial insurance cover from China Export & Credit Insurance Corporation (Sinosure), marking SBM Offshore’s first transaction which combines commercial banks, institutional investors, and an export credit agency.

FSO Chalchi is currently under construction and will be operated under 20-year lease and operate contracts with Woodside Energy through its affiliate in Mexico, Woodside Petróleo Operaciones de México, S. de R.L. de C.V. (Woodside). The FSO will be deployed at the Trion field, located 180 km off the Mexican coastline and 30 km south of the US/Mexico maritime border.

The Latham team was led by London finance partner Tom Bartlett, with associate Daniel Chen.