Paul Mbuga is a commercial and infrastructure lawyer, and his core practice areas include corporate and commercial law (including M&A and private equity), capital markets (regulation and transactions), projects and infrastructure and regulatory compliance. Paul advises corporate, financial and infrastructure entities on a wide range of legal, regulatory and transactional matters, working with in-house counsel, within the business operation and as local counsel.
Experience has included advising:
- International Finance Corporation, African Development Bank, Proparco, DEG, CDC Group, Absa Bank and Nedbank London for the US$ 403 million project re-financing of the 250 MW Bujagali II hydro power dam.
- Trade and Development Bank for a US$ 20 million corporate financing to the lead investor of Uganda’s US$ 4 billion oil refinery.
- FMO and Renewable Energy Performance Platform for a US$ 16 million corporate financing to the borrower for the establishment of a mini-grid portfolio of projects.
- AMEA Power on the establishment of a 20 MWac solar power plant in Madi-Okollo District, including in drafting and negotiation for the Power Purchase Agreement and the Implementation Agreement and project financing by the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund.
- Building Energy (now succeeded by Red Rocket Energy) on the establishment of a 20 MW solar power plant in Tororo District, including in drafting and negotiation for the Power Purchase Agreement and the Implementation Agreement and project financing by FMO and the Emerging Africa Infrastructure Fund.
- United States International Development Finance Corporation for a US$ 325 million limited recourse facility to finance a nationwide network of deep groundwater wells and associated last mile infrastructure throughout Uganda.
- TotalEnergies Exploration and Production, Tullow Operations and CNOOC Uganda on the performance of a legal feasibility study for the proposed construction of an export pipeline from the Albertine Graben to the East African coast.
Professional Qualifications
- Advocate admitted to the High Court of Uganda.
Education
- University of Birmingham: Master of Laws (International Commercial Law).
- Makerere University: Bachelor of Laws.
- Law Development Centre: Post-Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice (bar qualification).
Memberships
- Member of the East African Law Society.
- Member of the Uganda Law Society.
“ESG” (Environmental, Social, and Governance) has arguably become the most popular acronym in corporate boardrooms around the world: ESG goals; ESG strategies; ESG opportunities. In more advanced jurisdictions, a significant number of companies and organizations already have ESG policies in place and are recruiting ESG compliance and reporting officers to build and manage their ESG profiles. On the other hand, the corporate response to ESG in developing countries is still slow and divided.
The government of Uganda tabled the Competition Bill 2022 before parliament in December 2022, marking what has been a long-awaited initiative by the state to finally translate years of both policy and political positioning on the regulation of competition into actual legislation.
The Companies Act 2012 was recently amended by the Companies (Amendment) Act 2022. The Amendment Act was assented to on 7 September 2022 and commenced on 16 September 2022.