Mary Lovely, Partner, Mergers & Acquisitions

Mary W. Lovely

Partner

Areas of Focus

Mary Lovely, Partner, Mergers & Acquisitions

Mary W. Lovely

Partner

mlovely@akingump.com

Areas of Focus

Save as PDF

Share This Biography

LinkedIn

Biography
  • Advises on acquisitions, divestitures and strategic joint ventures in the energy industry and other sectors, including providing counsel on upstream, midstream, downstream and traditional & renewable power transactions.
  • Works with public companies and their boards of directors regarding strategic transactions and corporate governance, particularly in the energy industry.

Mary represents strategic and financial buyers, sellers and investors across industries, including the oil & gas, traditional power, renewable energy and private equity sectors. Mary advises on a wide range of public and private mergers & acquisitions (M&A) transactions, including mergers, stock and asset acquisitions and dispositions, minority investments, joint ventures (JV), equity & debt financings and other complex business transactions.

Mary assists clients in buying and selling energy projects across the U.S. With a great depth of practice, Mary has significant experience advising on traditional energy projects—including oil, natural gas and other fossil fuels—guiding clients looking to capitalize on the energy transition, including in connection with renewable energy projects such as wind, solar and battery energy storage systems.

Mary’s work includes representing private equity funds in platform acquisitions and investments, as well as assisting portfolio companies as they make acquisitions to increase their geographic footprint and range of services and products.

Mary also advises public companies, their boards of directors and board committees in strategic matters, including mergers, sales of control and conflict situations, as well as with respect to Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) compliance and corporate governance matters.

Representative Work
  • Advised Eagle Bulk Shipping (NASDAQ: EGLE), one of the world’s largest owner-operators within the midsize dry bulk vessel segment, in the completion of its all-stock merger with Star Bulk Carriers Corp
  • Represented Innovex Downhole Solutions, a leading provider of mission-critical technologies and services across the well lifecycle for the oil & gas industry, in its definitive agreement to merge with Dril-Quip (NYSE: DRQ).
  • Represented Tellurian (NYSE: TELL) in its definitive agreement to merge with Woodside Energy in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $900 million.
  • Represented Excelsior Energy Capital, a leading North American renewable energy investor, in the sale of 38 solar energy and solar plus storage projects to BlackRock’s Evergreen Infrastructure Partners Fund.
  • Represented Double Eagle Energy in its strategic partnership with EnCap Investments LP to form Double Eagle Energy Holdings IV and another new investment vehicle, new oil & gas investment entities with over $1.7 billion of equity committed.
  • Represented the conflicts committee of the board of directors of Golar LNG Partners LP in its acquisition by New Fortress Energy Inc., a transaction with an enterprise value of $1.9 billion.
  • Advised CenterPoint Energy Inc. in its agreement to sell Energy Systems Group, its wholly owned subsidiary that specializes in providing energy efficiency and sustainable energy solutions, to ESG Holdings Group LLC, an affiliate of Oaktree Capital Management, for $157 million.
  • Represented Excelsior Energy Capital in the formation of a JV with an approximately $400-million equity commitment to acquire construction-ready battery energy storage projects from a battery energy storage developer’s pipeline within the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) territory.
  • Counseled CenterPoint Energy in the $400-million sale of its natural gas retail business, CenterPoint Energy Services Inc., to Energy Capital Partners LLC.
  • Represented a renewable energy infrastructure fund on the acquisition of an operating wind farm for $124 million.
  • Provided counsel to Louisiana-based Stone Energy Corporation in its merger with Talos Energy, an independent oil & gas company focused on offshore exploration. Guided Stone and its board through the process of negotiating with multiple bidders and structuring a novel and complex transaction. The deal involved a holding company merger, a conversion of debt to equity, the issuance of new debt securities in exchange for multiple existing categories of debt, and a new capital and governance structure.
  • Assisted CenterPoint Energy in its $6-billion acquisition of Vectren Corporation, a power and gas utility operating in Indiana and Ohio.
  • Represented Enterprise Products Partners LP in its JV transaction with Western Gas Partners LP for the formation of Whitethorn Pipeline Company LLC, which owns a majority of the Midland-to-ECHO 1 crude oil pipeline.
  • Represented Amberjack Capital Partners in its acquisition of a new portfolio company, Best Trash, a waste and recycling collection services company.
  • Counseled a renewable energy infrastructure fund on the acquisition of numerous investments in early development-stage wind, solar and energy storage projects throughout the United States.
  • Advised an energy private equity sponsor in connection with the formation of numerous portfolio companies focused on the acquisition, exploration and production of oil and natural gas assets, mineral and royalty acquisition, and low carbon energy solutions.
  • Represented one of the largest U.S. midstream companies in connection with several JVs and the development of new natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs) and crude oil pipelines and other infrastructure.
  • Assisted in the divestiture of a 49% equity interest in a midstream subsidiary by a publicly traded midstream enterprise to an infrastructure fund for aggregate cash consideration of approximately $350 million.
  • Represented a private equity company in the combination of its oilfield services portfolio companies.
  • Advised SAExploration in its acquisition of significant complementary assets from a seismic company in liquidation proceedings and related financing transactions. The matter involved bankruptcy proceedings and an accelerated timeline, all of which required coordination among the restructuring, acquisition and finance teams. Successfully acquiring the assets provided the company with significant expansion opportunities.
  • Assisted in a series of sales of solar enterprises to financial sponsors and overseas investors.
  • Advised an exploration & production (E&P) company in a $181-million sale of Eagle Ford assets.
  • Represented a private equity company in connection with multiple acquisitions of and investments in parts, service, equipment, and manufacturing companies in the waste and recycling industry.

Education
  • J.D., Fordham University School of Law, 2010

  • B.A., University of Virginia, 2007

Bar Admissions
  • Texas

Recognitions
  • The Legal 500 US, M&A: Large Deals ($1bn+), 2023; Energy: Renewable/Alternative Power, 2024.
  • Executive Women, Rising Star Award Finalist, 2016.
Affiliations and Public Service
  • Member, State Bar of Texas.
  • Member, Houston Young Lawyers Association.
  • Member, Houston Chapter, Association for Corporate Growth.
  • Member, UVA Club of Houston.

Insights and Achievements

              Related Content

              People

              Distinguished by our areas of focus, as a cohesive and integrated firm, we are defined by the caliber of our work, the responsiveness of our service and a culture that is rooted in collaboration and forward-thinking.

              We Also Recommend

              Loading...
              Loading...
              Loading...
              Loading...