Nicholas Gladd
Overview
Nic Gladd is a corporate Of Counsel in the Washington, D.C., office of Kirkland & Ellis LLP. Nic represents clients in complex regulatory, transactional, and litigation matters involving the energy industry, with a particular focus on power markets and infrastructure.
Nic served at the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for more than six years, where he held several high-level positions. He served as legal advisor to two FERC Commissioners—Chairman Kevin J. McIntyre and Commissioner Tony Clark—whom he counseled on matters involving organized wholesale electricity markets, natural gas and oil pipeline rates and infrastructure, North American Electric Reliability Corporation standards, and electric transmission rates and interconnection rules.
Prior to joining Chairman McIntyre’s staff in 2017, Nic was a litigation attorney in the FERC Solicitor's Office, where he defended FERC in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit and U.S. District Courts. In that role, he litigated numerous high-profile cases concerning forward capacity markets, power generation and interconnection, interregional transmission planning, natural gas pipeline certificates and rates, and hydropower facility licensing. Nic began his service at FERC in the Office of the General Counsel’s Energy Markets Division, where he drafted agency orders on a range of matters, including RTO/ISO tariffs and public utilities’ return on equity.
Experience
Representative Matters
Since joining Kirkland, Nic has been involved in the following:
- Counseled The Rise Fund, a global impact investing platform managed by TPG Global, on its acquisition of a majority stake in Element Markets, LLC , the leading independent marketer of renewable natural gas and environmental commodities in North America.
- Represented Vistra Corp. in a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission proceeding involving the recovery of costs to comply with certain Critical Infrastructure Protection reliability standards.
- Counseled Pike Corporation, one of the largest providers of infrastructure solutions to utilities in the United States, in connection with a majority investment by Lindsay Goldberg
- Counseled Longview Power, LLC in connection with its prepackaged Chapter 11 case involving the restructuring of approximately $355 million in funded debt, and represented Longview Power, LLC before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in obtaining regulatory approval of the restructuring transaction pursuant to section 203 of the Federal Power Act.
- Represented Brookfield Asset Management, LLC in its agreement with Blackstone Infrastructure Partners to acquire Blackstone Group’s approximately 42 percent share of Cheniere Energy Partners, which operates the Sabine Pass LNG terminal and related assets, including the Creole Trail Pipeline, for a total purchase price of approximately $7 billion.
- Represented the Special Committee of the Board of Directors of TerraForm Power, Inc., in TerraForm Power’s merger agreement with Brookfield Renewable Partners.
- Represented Blackstone Energy Partners in its acquisition of NRStor, a North American battery-storage developer.
- Represented TRC Companies in its acquisition of Lockheed Martin Energy's Distributed Energy Solutions group.
- Represented Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners, an infrastructure fund managed by Brookfield Asset Management Inc., in its approximately $2 billion acquisition of a 25 percent equity interest in Dominion Energy, Inc.’s Cove Point LNG LP.
- Represented Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners, an infrastructure fund managed by Brookfield Asset Management Inc., on an issuance by its acquisition vehicle, Bowie Acquisitions LLC, of $1.325 billion of Senior Secured Notes pursuant to a private placement under the Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933 and a $110 million revolving credit facility provided by Mizuho Bank, Ltd. and MUFG Bank, Ltd.
- Represented lenders in the approximately $1.27 billion refinancing for Train 2 of the Freeport LNG facility.
- Represents Hilcorp Alaska in its $5.6 billion acquisition of BP’s upstream and midstream business in Alaska.
- Advises a range of solar, energy storage, LNG, and gas-fired generation developers, sponsors, financiers, and investors on the federal and state energy regulatory aspects of transactions.
- Serves as counsel to a working group (Advancing Contracts in Energy Storage) focused on standardization of energy storage contracts and related materials with respect to financing.
- Represents energy companies in FERC non-public enforcement investigations.
- Advises a major technology company on FERC and CFTC compliance and commercial matters.
- Represented the lenders, led by Credit Agricole and Investec Bank, in connection with the financing of the 644MW Bayonne Energy Center gas-fired power project in New Jersey.
- Represented BlackRock, GSO Capital Partners and Magnetar Capital as lead purchasers of $1.1 billion of newly issued Series A Convertible Preferred Units of EQM Midstream Partners, LP.
- Represents SemGroup Corp. in its approximately $5.1 billion sale to Energy Transfer LP.
- Represents TPG in its preferred equity investment of up to $140 million to fund capital contributions to Double E Pipeline LLC, a joint venture between Summit Midstream Partners LP and Exxon Mobil Corporation, to construct a FERC-regulated interstate natural gas pipeline in the Delaware Basin.
Prior to joining Kirkland, Nic was involved in the following:
- Defended FERC in numerous matters in the D.C. Circuit, including:
- Orders involving ISO New England’s and PJM Interconnection’s forward capacity market rules, including PJM’s approximately $10 billion per year performance-based capacity market construct.
- Order addressing the Midcontinent Independent System Operator's compliance with Order No. 1000.
- Orders concerning cost allocation rules for electric generators, including liability for transmission network upgrades and operations necessary to maintain bulk power system reliability.
- Orders on natural gas pipeline certificates and associated NEPA reviews.
- Petition for writ of mandamus concerning the relicensing of a hydropower facility.
- Groundbreaking agency rulemaking concerning participation of electric storage resources and aggregated distributed energy resources in RTO/ISO markets.
- Reforms to the ISO New England and PJM Interconnection capacity markets to address the impact of state subsidies.
- Certification of natural gas pipelines under the Natural Gas Act and associated obligations under the National Environmental Policy Act, with particular emphasis on climate change considerations.
- Issues related to the resilience of the bulk power system, including ISO New England’s first-of-its-kind proposal to compensate resources for their fuel security value.
- Tax-related matters involving the electric, natural gas, and oil industries, including regulatory changes in response to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act
- Commission policies concerning electric infrastructure investment, including public utilities' return on equity and transmission incentives.
- Represented Chairman in discussions with the Office of the U.S. Solicitor General regarding certiorari petitions.
- Directed FERC staff team and outside counsel from the U.S. Department of Justice in litigation concerning a high-profile public utility bankruptcy proceeding.
- Multiple reliability-related rulemakings, including standards for supply chain risk management and reactive power requirements for non-synchronous generators.
- Corporate merger applications filed at FERC pursuant to FPA Section 203, and related inter-agency communications with U.S. Department of Justice.
- Lead attorney on ISO New England's pay-for-performance capacity market proceeding, Nation’s first performance-based capacity market construct.
- Counseled the Commission in a proceeding concerning $1.27 billion of out-of-market compensation for a nuclear generation facility needed to maintain the reliability of the bulk power system.
- Led staff team responsible for establishing FERC’s policies on public utilities’ return on equity.
- Secured dismissal of two separate complaints, filed in U.S. District Courts, which sought to enjoin FERC from reviewing applications for natural gas pipeline certificates.
Prior Experience
U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
- Legal Advisor to Chairman Kevin J. McIntyre
- Attorney, Office of General Counsel, Solicitor's Office
- Legal & Policy Advisor to Commissioner Tony Clark
- Attorney-Advisor, Office of General Counsel, Energy Markets Division
More
Thought Leadership
Seminars
Moderator, “Jurisdictional Blurred Lines,” Energy Bar Association Panel Discussion
Moderator, “Electricity and Natural Gas Coordination: As Winter Approaches, Regulators and the Energy Industry Respond,” Energy Bar Association Panel Discussion
Recognition
Memberships & Affiliations
Energy Bar Association
- Chair, Energy Bar Association Demand-Side Resources/Smart Grid Subcommittee, 2017–2018
- Chair, Energy Bar Association Electricity Committee, 2015–2016
- Vice Chair, Energy Bar Association Electricity Committee, 2014–2015
Credentials
Admissions & Qualifications
- District of Columbia
- Massachusetts
Courts
- Supreme Court of the United States
- United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
Education
- Vermont Law SchoolJ.D.magna cum laude2012
American Jurisprudence awards in Administrative Law and Advanced Energy Seminar
Dean's List
- Bowdoin CollegeA.B., International Environmental Policy2003