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Kenneth Wallace-Mueller

He/himCounsel

A real expert with in-depth and up-to-date knowledge of the relevant legal frameworks, regulations and developments in environmental commodities markets. This, combined with his timely and commercial approach has made him a reliable and trusted advisor.

General Counsel, international energy company
About

Kenneth Wallace-Mueller is an energy and climate lawyer, with over 10 years of experience advising market participants along the entire electricity and gas value chains, on renewable electricity and gas project development and trading, and on contractual structuring and regulatory compliance questions.

Kenneth is an English solicitor who specialises on corporate power purchase agreements (CPPAs), the trade of renewable electricity, hydrogen and biomethane, and on the trade of environmental attribute certificates (such as EU GOs, UK REGOs, I-RECs, emissions allowances, emissions reductions and other carbon credits). Of increasing importance in the market, he regularly advises on structuring robust environmental claims by corporate and industrial buyers, as well as on compliance with environmental standards such as the GHG Protocol Corporate Standard, ReGP and RE100.

Kenneth has directly advised on the development of various European market standards, such as the EFET standard Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) and Certificate Master Agreement (CMA), the RECS International EECS single trade agreement, and the CMIA UK ETS & Trade Agreement.

Kenneth also advises on the development of renewable generation projects, including on the negotiation of physically and financially-settled corporate PPAs, financing documentation, as well as on their treatment under financial markets legislation. Kenneth additionally specialises the UK electricity and gas regulatory regime, regularly advising clients (including generators, transmission and distribution system operators, interconnectors, suppliers and consumers) to ensure compliance with statutory requirements, licence conditions and industry codes. He has advised on a number of electricity and gas UK and EU cross-border interconnection projects.

Kenneth particularly enjoys advising on smart and advanced energy technologies, including energy conversions (such as P2X), alternative fuel vehicles and recharging and refuelling systems, the development of energy communities, and the application of blockchain and smart contracts in the energy sector.

Kenneth has both private practice and in-house experience, most recently having been seconded to Shell and Engie and supporting the in-house teams on various electricity, gas, LNG and renewables projects, which has offered him valuable insight into the various demands of business, compliance and in-house legal teams.Prior to entering the law, Kenneth has a background in science, having obtained an honours degree in genetics. His interest in science and technology continues to this day, enabling him to offer addition insights into the energy markets beyond the law.

Professional QualificationsSolicitor of the Senior Courts of England and Wales

EXPERIENCE

  • Advising the EFET Legal Working Group on the standard Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) for utilities and corporates for both physical and financial settlement of power and existing and new-build generators, as well as on an update to the EFET EECS Master Agreement in light of the updated EU regulatory regime.
  • Advising the I-REC Foundation on the creation of a global renewable energy certificate standard and registry, in particular on the structuring of the certificate system and drafting of agreements between the foundation, market participants, issuers and service providers. 
  • Advising SYSTEMIQ on the establishment of the MiQ certificate trading system to evidence the emissions intensity of oil and natural gas production. This involved the drafting and negotiation of the operational agreement suite, including user agreements, certification agreements and a standard MiQ certificate trading agreement. 
  • Advising an international trader on the origination of I-RECS for renewable projects in Latin America and their sale to EU-based corporates for voluntary compliance purposes, including advising on legal risk mitigation and on the impact of the proposed carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM).
  • Advising a large European industrial client on the negotiation of multiple PPAs for the procurement of renewable electricity from North Sea offshore wind, including advising on the transfer of EU GOs between different member states.
  • Advising Caroo Mobility (trading as Eloop) on the development of its electric mobility-as-a-service (MaaS) carsharing business in Vienna, Austria, including on the drafting of its usage terms and on its Initial Coin Offering (ICO) raising just under EUR 1.2 million over two rounds. This was one of the first asset-based ICOs in Europe, which allowed Eloop to expand its fleet of Tesla vehicles.
  • Advising the World Bank on the design of a renewable energy certificate scheme to promote renewables development in Argentina, which included the identification of international best practice and implementation barriers. 
  • Advising Zeigo on the structuring of an online corporate power purchase agreement negotiation platform, based on the EFET PPA model, including on regulatory treatment of financial instruments, OTFs and MTFs, and on the automation of matching parties and execution. 
  • Advising a major corporate on the procurement of carbon reduction units from forestry projects in various developing countries as part of the LEAF project. This involved negotiating with the governments of Latin American countries, drafting project agreements and on risk mitigation, including double counting risk, ensuring additionality, and general project and political risks.
  • Advising a UK farm owner on the sale of an on-site wind turbine and on the application of the GB electricity licensing structure to a private wire PPA for on-site generation supply. This included the structuring of on-site power supply in view of supply and distribution license obligations and applicable class and individual exemptions.
  • Advising Interconnector Greece-Bulgaria (ICGB) AD on the development of a gas pipeline interconnector linking the Bulgarian and Greek national gas networks, including the application of the EU Gas Directive regulated regime, on seeking an infrastructure grant, and on preparing a suite of agreements including the owners engineer contract, EPC contract, and the gas transportation agreement and network code.
     
Languages
  • English
  • German
  • French
Education
  • University of Law, Master of Laws (England & Wales), 2019
  • University of Law, London, Graduate Diploma in Law (England & Wales), 2017
  • Bachelor of Science in Biology with Honours in Genetics, University of Edinburgh - B.Sc. (Hons), 2010

Awards

  • Recommended in the Legal 500 Green Guide: EMEA 2024

Publications

  • Irish Advertising Standards Authority decision on Budweiser’s renewable energy claims: What it means for corporate PPAs, 2024Chapter on the European Union, Lexology Energy Regulation and Markets (formerly Law Reviews Energy Regulation and Markets Review), 2024
  • Chapter on the United Kingdom, Lexology Energy Regulation and Markets (formerly Law Reviews Energy Regulation and Markets Review), 2021-2024
  • Chapter on Austria, Alternative Energy & Power, Chambers and Partners, 2019-2023
  • Chapter on Austria, The Oil and Gas Review, Law Business Research Ltd, London, 2016-2024

Seminars

  • "Introduction to Standard Contracts for EAC Markets", RECS Market Meeting, Amsterdam 2022
  • "EBRD Policy Academy Module: How to do Corporate Power Purchase Agreements (CPPAs in emerging markets)", Webinar 2023
  • "I-REC(E) Standard Single Trade Agreement", I-REC Standard Conference, Bangkok 2022
  • "Direktvermarktungsverträge für den Mittelstand", Organisatorisches Jahreskonferenz Marktoffensive Erneuerbare Energien, Deutsche Industrie- und Handelskammertrag e.V., Berlin 2022
  • "Introduction to Standard Contracts for EAC Markets", RECS Market Meeting, Amsterdam 2022
  • Digitisation in the Energy Sector” 8th Conference on the Regulation of Infrastructure, Florence, 2019
  • Track and Trade: EU Guarantees of Origin” RECS Market Meeting, Amsterdam, 2019
  • The Energy Blockchain and How It Will Shape the Future Energy System”, Smart Energy Systems Week Austria 2018, Vienna, 2018
  • Corporate PPAs workshop” and “Guarantees of Origin under the proposed recast Renewable Energy Directive” RECS Market Meeting, Amsterdam, 2017

Memberships And Affiliations

  • Admitted to the Roll of Solicitors in the Republic of Ireland
  • The Law Society of England and Wales
  • Vienna Bar Association / Europäischer Rechtsanwalt (European attorney-at-law) registered with Rechtsanwaltskammer Wien

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