Practice Areas & Industries: Holme Roberts & Owen LLP

Practice/Industry Group Overview

For more than 100 years, HRO has been an industry leader in natural resources acquisition, financing and project development transactions. HRO’s natural resources practice has expanded and evolved into an interdisciplinary team of lawyers with expertise ranging from conventional oil and gas and mineral transactions to power production and renewable energy project development.

Services Available

HRO’s natural resources and energy lawyers work closely with HRO’s environmental, tax and litigation attorneys representing a variety of large and small companies, project developers and investors. HRO assists clients in navigating contractual and financing issues, environmental issues, public land issues and surface owner issues. Most recently, HRO has developed an active practice to assist clients with emerging energy technologies to create opportunities from recent public policies relating to climate change and the promotion of renewable sources of energy.
 
Oil and Gas
Our lawyers assist clients with the structuring of acquisitions, joint ventures and other arrangements for oil and gas exploration and development, title work, administrative appeals and civil litigation involving federal land and royalty issues, natural gas contract issues, and other oil and gas disputes.
 
Mining
Our mining group has worldwide experience with a wide range of commercial minerals, including coal, gold, uranium and other industrial metals, base metals and precious metals. We provide counsel in all phases of mining operations from exploration agreements through feasibility studies, mine construction and refining and service agreements. We also assist with land acquisition, due diligence investigation and title work, General Mining Law of 1872 issues, permitting and licensing issues, and a wide range of federal and state land management and mineral issues.
 
Renewable Energy, Power Production and Energy Credits
HRO assists clients in all aspects of renewable energy project development, financing and operations including conventional power, wind, biomass, geothermal and solar power generation projects, and the production of fuels including synthetic fuel from coal, coal gasification, ethanol, biodiesel, and coalbed methane. We also have one of the nation’s leading practices involving the structuring and restructuring of projects to monetize federal and state tax credits and renewable energy credits.
 
Energy and Natural Resources Financing and Hedging
We counsel both lenders and borrowers on energy and related natural resources financing arrangements, lender requirements and security issues.
 
Environmental Matters
Clients face increasing environmental liabilities and permitting issues in the natural resources industry. Our environmental lawyers work closely with our natural resources and energy transactional lawyers to assess and address environmental risks and issues.
 
Natural Resources Litigation and Dispute Resolution
We represent clients in administrative and civil proceedings before state and federal courts. Our administrative law experience includes numerous proceedings before the Interior Board of Land Appeals on permitting and mineral leasing issues, the Minerals Management Service involving federal royalty disputes, drainage disputes and other federal lease and federal unit issues. We provide negotiation or litigation solutions in civil matters, including pipeline litigation, gas contract disputes, gas balancing issues, royalty and other landowner disputes, disputes under operating and unit agreements and quiet title actions. In addition, several of our attorneys are experienced arbitrators in natural resources disputes.
 
Water
Our water group provides counsel in all aspects of water use as it relates to energy and mining development, including water rights acquisition, transfer and maintenance, changes in beneficial use, due diligence, environmental mitigation and water for energy generation, permitting and compliance. We represent a wide range of clients, including electric utilities, water conservancy districts, developers and water companies, before state and federal administrative agencies and courts.
 
Climate Change and Cleantech
HRO attorneys advise on climate change regulatory issues in the United States and around the world, including the EU’s Emissions Trading Scheme and global climate regulations. Our attorneys work with clients in their venture formation, financing of renewables and development efforts to create technology that stores, distributes, senses, controls, monitors, manages, and produces energy.