Elena Rubinov

Elena Rubinov is Corporate Partner in Linklaters’ Corporate M&A team in New York.

She advises clients on mergers, acquisitions and private equity transactions across a variety of sectors, with a special focus on transactions in the energy, renewables and infrastructure sectors.

She advises public and private companies, including private equity and infrastructure funds and other investors, on corporate and business combination transactions such as mergers, acquisitions, divestitures, investments, co-investments, joint ventures, recapitalizations, restructurings, and bankruptcy sales.

She also advises clients on debt and corporate restructurings in connection with equity recapitalizations, rights offerings, and 363 sales and acquisitions.

Work highlights

Elena’s recent deal highlights include:

• Caisse de Dépôt et Placement du Québec (CDPQ): advising on
  - the  acquisition of a 30% indirect equity interest in AES Ohio, for approximately US$546m.
  - a US$1.5bn multifaceted transaction in which an investment vehicle composed of CDPQ, Invenergy and funds managed by private equity firm Blackstone Infrastructure Partners acquired from American Electric Power a 1,365MW renewables portfolio comprised of 14 projects representing 1,200MW of wind and 165MW of solar in 11 states.
  - the negotiation of joint venture arrangements with DigitalBridge in connection with the latter’s preferred equity investment in Vertical Bridge to fund Vertical Bridge’s US$3.3bn transaction with Verizon to lease, operate and manage 6,339 wireless communications towers across all 50 states and Washington, D.C. from Verizon.
  - the acquisition through a joint venture with GE Energy Financial Services of Southern Star Central Gas Pipeline, a 5,800-mile U.S. natural gas pipeline, from Morgan Stanley Infrastructure.
  - the acquisition by FiBrasil, a neutral wholesale fiber network operator in Brazil, structured as a joint venture between CDPQ, Telefônica Brasil, and Telefónica Infra, of fiber company Fiberty 1.
• Global Atlantic Financial Group, an affiliate of KKR & Co., Inc.: advising on:
  - the sale of 100% of the cash equity interests in a 1.171 MW operating solar portfolio, through its affiliates, to Onward Energy, Inc., a U.S.-based energy company. The solar portfolio includes a total of 11 projects located across eight different U.S. states.
  - the sale of its membership interests in Origis Energy USA, Inc., a major vertically integrated renewable energy platform in the United States, to private equity firm Antin Infrastructure Partners SA.
  - the sale of U.S. solar and storage developer Clenera and development projects developed by a joint venture between Clenera and KKR known as Parasol Renewable Energy LLC to Enlight Renewable Energy LTD.
• Argo Infrastructure Partners: advising on:
  - the US$150m acquisition of Corning Natural Gas Holding Corporation, a provider of natural gas and electric service to customers in New York and Pennsylvania.
  - the approximately US$514m acquisition, by merger, of Macquarie Infrastructure Corporation's MIC Hawaii businesses, which comprise a combined regulated gas utility and unregulated distributor of propane and several smaller businesses, including controlling interests in two solar facilities.

Elena is ranked Band 2 in the Energy: Electricity (Transactional) category by both Chambers USA and Chambers Global, Next Generation Partner for Energy Transactions: Electric Power by Legal 500 US, Rising Star Partner for M&A by IFLR1000 Financial & Corporate Guide and Rising Star for New York Metro by Super Lawyers (Thomson Reuters).

She is also an Advisory Board Member of Kupona Foundation – a U.S. fundraising and awareness raising arm of Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania.

Elena holds a bachelor’s in business administration and JD from Hofstra University where she graduated magna cum laude.

She is fluent in Russian.