The Red Rocket Transactions and Legal Affairs teams have been shortlisted in the IFLR Awards – In-House Teams: Energy category, a remarkable achievement that recognises the teams strong focus and commitment to taking ambitious projects to financial close.
The IFLR Awards honour excellence across the legal and investment transactions, celebrating outstanding project finance work, top-tier legal teams, and transformative deals shaping the industry.
The past year has been particularly significant for both the Transactions team, led by Investments Director Pamela Papapetrou, and Red Rocket as a whole, marked by major milestones including the financial close of Overberg Wind Farm, South Africa’s largest single commercially developed wind project. This achievement was made possible through close collaboration with multiple internal teams, including Corporate and Project Finance, Legal Affairs, Project and Construction Management, as well as our trusted external Sponsor Counsel Norton Rose Fulbright and ENS, and our lenders Standard Bank, ABSA, and DBSA.
As a first-of-its-kind project, Overberg Wind Farm demanded creative problem-solving, industry-leading expertise, and sustained tenacity. Each team member brought a unique skill set, with professional backgrounds spanning economics, project finance, law, and more. Together, they have built a resilient and agile team that continues to grow in capability and impact.
The legal team, led by Head of Legal Affairs Nichola Walker-Woodard, played a central role, negotiating, drafting, and advising on the full suite of agreements required to align all stakeholders on this unprecedented transaction. This included managing the complexity of two off-takers – Richards Bay Minerals, part of the Rio Tinto Group, and Discovery Green.
The Transactions team, led by Seema Lalloo on the legals, and supported by various members of the Legal Affairs team, led the legal and commercial negotiations of the PPAs and financing documents (including senior debt and equity debt) as well as the oversight of managing the legal complexities and appropriate pass through of commercial risks of the full suite of contracts.
The teams ensured the project was financed in a way that achieved Red Rocket’s internal rate of return while effectively managing legal and commercial risk. As a result, Overberg Wind Farm, originally developed in two phases, was successfully structured into a single 400MW licensed facility with one grid connection point.
The project stands as a landmark achievement in South Africa’s renewable energy sector and remains the country’s largest commercially developed wind project to reach financial close. It is a powerful reflection of Red Rocket’s bold spirit, the strength of its teams, and the value of true collaboration.
The IFLR Awards ceremony takes place on 17 March in Cape Town.
