Mehtap Cevher Conti is an associate in the New York office and concentrates on project finance, aircraft finance and equipment leasing.

Her project finance experience includes assisting with the representation of Australia and New Zealand Banking Group and Bayerische Landesbank as the lead arrangers of a $126 million limited recourse financing of a 300 MW wind energy farm in the States of Washington and Oregon (the largest wind energy farm in operation in the United States).  Mehtap has assisted in representing Credit Suisse First Boston as the lead initial purchaser of $380 million of senior secured Rule 144A bonds issued in connection with the first-of-its-kind limited recourse financing of a portfolio of seven wind-powered electricity generating facilities located in six different states in the United States and owned by FPL Energy American Wind, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of FPL Group, the owner of Florida Power & Light.

Mehtap assisted with the representation of CIT Group Inc. in a $24 million construction financing of a 46 MW gas-fired power generation facility in San Diego, California and a $44 million limited recourse financing of a 20 million gallon/year ethanol project in Mead, Nebraska.  Mehtap assisted in representing Credit Suisse First Boston as the lead initial purchaser of $465 million of senior secured Rule 144A bonds issued by FPL Energy National Wind, LLC and FPL Energy National Wind Portfolio, LLC, wholly owned subsidiaries of FPL Group, to finance a portfolio of nine wind-powered electricity generating facilities located in seven different states in the United States.

Her aircraft finance experience includes assisting with the representation of Aviation Capital Group Corp. in connection with its $2.65 billion acquisition of Boullioun Aviation Services, Inc. from WestLB AG, including a portfolio of 102 aircraft and its $1.86 billion securitization involving a portfolio of 74 aircraft subject to operating leases with 45 different airlines in 29 countries, which was the largest pooled aircraft securitization in a decade and resulted in Aviation Capital Group Corp. receiving the 2005 “Editor's Award” from Airfinance Magazine.  Mehtap assisted with representing Citibank Group Global Markets Inc. and HSH Nordbank AG as lenders to Macquarie Bank Limited, which was one of the final bidders for the sale by Morgan Stanley of the AWAS aircraft portfolio including 150 aircraft.  Mehtap represented Aviation Capital Group Corp. as borrower in connection with a U.S. Ex-Im Bank guaranteed financing of two Boeing 737-700 aircraft and the related SOAR loan facility and a U.S. Ex-Im Bank guaranteed financing of two Boeing 737-800 aircraft and the related SOAR loan facility.  Mehtap also assisted with the representation of numerous American and Japanese lenders in connection with the bankruptcy of Northwest Airlines in the restructuring of existing lease finance transactions.

Her other aircraft finance experience includes assisting with the representation of Citicorp North America, Inc. in connection with the sale of its equity investment in one Boeing 767-300 and one Boeing 737-500 aircraft on lease to Asiana Airlines, Wells Fargo Bank in connection with its exercise of a purchase option for and the sale of its equity investment in six Bombardier CL-600-2B19 aircraft on lease to Comair, Inc., and The Chubb Corporation in connection with the purchase and lease financing of a Bombardier Challenger 604 aircraft.

Mehtap has also assisted in representing Banc of America Leasing & Capital in connection with a $75 million senior secured financing of furniture and equipment for a casino resort to be constructed by an instrumentality of Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, a federally recognized Indian tribe, located in New Buffalo, Michigan, and Aviation Capital Group Corp. in a $270 million unsecured senior debt private placement to ten financial institutions and their affiliates.

In June 2004, the Firm's Pro Bono Committee recognized Mehtap with a Pro Bono Award for her work in researching and preparing a memorandum on confidentiality of immigration status in context of applications for government benefits on behalf of the New York Civil Liberties Union, and in negotiating and drafting a joint scholarship program for the Turkish Education Foundation in conjunction with the French Embassy in Ankara, Turkey.