Mr. DeSantis concentrates in international, multilender project finance and cross-border corporate transactions. He has extensive experience in representing sponsors, multilateral and commercial lenders, and export credit agencies on enterprises financed on a project basis.

This experience has included:

• Advising Santander Investment Securities Inc., HSBC Securities (USA) Inc. and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. as initial purchasers in a US$700 million Rule 144A/Regulation S offering by QGOG Atlantic/Alaskan Rigs Ltd., a British Virgin Islands affiliate of Queiroz Galvão Óleo e Gás S.A. (QGOG). The proceeds from this project bond offering were used to repay two secured project financings secured by the Atlantic Star and Alaskan Star offshore drilling rigs, and for general corporate purposes of QGOG;
• Representing Citigroup Global Markets and Santander Investment Securities as lead arrangers in the approximately US$575 million financing of the Alpha Star offshore oil drilling rig, which will be chartered to Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras) for oil exploration and production activities off the coast of Brazil;
• Advising HSBC and BNP Paribas as lead arrangers in the approximately US$1 billion financing of the Odebrecht ODN I and ODN II offshore oil drillships. The transaction involved export credit agencies and 18 lenders, and parties and legal issues in Brazil, the UK, the Cayman Islands, South Korea, the US and Europe;
• Representing Banco Santander, HSBC, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. and Banco do Brasil as initial purchasers in a Rule 144A/Regulation S offering of US$1.5 billion of senior secured notes by Odebrecht Drilling Norbe VIII / IX Ltd. (named "2010 Latin America Project Bond Deal of the Year" by Project Finance magazine, as "2010 Latin America Bond of the Year" by International Financing Review magazine, and as "2011 Best Project Financing" by LatinFinance magazine);
• Advising Banco Santander, BNP Paribas and Société Générale as lead arrangers in the financing of the US$1.7 billion Odebrecht Norbe VIII and Norbe IX offshore oil drillships (named as "2009 Latin American Upstream Oil & Gas Deal of the Year" by Project Finance magazine, "2009 Americas Deal of the Year" by Project Finance International magazine, as "2009 South America Shipping Debt Deal of the Year" by Jane's Transport Finance magazine, and as "2010 Best Project Finance Deal" by LatinFinance magazine), to be chartered to Petrobras;
• Representing ING Capital LLC, ING Bank N.V., Banco Santander, S.A., New York Branch, Banco Santander (Brasil) S.A., Grand Cayman Branch, and Banco Itaú BBA S.A., Nassau Branch as lead arrangers in the financing of the FPSO OSX-2 (Floating Production Storage and Offloading) vessel, with a total estimated project cost of US$1.1 billion (named "2011 Americas Oil & Gas Deal of the Year" by Project Finance International magazine and as "2011 Latin American Oil & Gas Deal of the Year" by Project Finance magazine);
• Advising ABN AMRO Bank N.V. as lead arranger for a syndicate of banks in the financing of the Odebrecht Norbe VI offshore oil drilling platform, to be chartered to Petrobras;
• Representing International Finance Corporation (IFC), European Investment Bank, African Development Bank, KfW and Agence Française de Développement in the financing of the Eastern African Submarine Cable System (EASSy), a landmark fiber-optic cable project that will connect 21 African countries to each other and the rest of the world with high-quality Internet and international communications services;
• Advising Jefferies & Company, Inc. as initial purchaser in a Rule 144A/Regulation S issuance of US$270 million of senior secured notes by RDS Ultra-Deepwater, Ltd. The proceeds of the offering were loaned to Rubicon by RDS and then used, together with borrowings under a new senior credit facility, to purchase PetroRig III, a sixth generation ultra-deepwater semi-submersible drilling rig that is expected to operate under a long-term charter contract with PEMEX Exploración y Producción. The financing was unique in that it was a project financing that was done in part with the proceeds from a bond issuance and involved issues relating to eight different jurisdictions (named "2010 Latin American Oil & Gas Deal of the Year" by Project Finance magazine);
• Representing an international consortium led by Empresas ICA Sociedad Controladora, S.A. de C.V. in the financing of the two-unit 750 MW El Cajón hydroelectric generating facility in the state of Nayarit, Mexico (named "2005 Latin America Deal of the Year" by Project Finance International magazine);
• Advising Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in the financing of the Campos Novos 880 MW hydroelectric project located on the Canoas River, in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil (named "2005 Latin American Power Deal of the Year" by Project Finance magazine);
• Representing IFC, the Development Bank of Southern Africa, Finnfund, PROPARCO and Swedfund in a long-term debt facility made available to Celtel International B.V. for expansion and acquisition activities in cellular telecommunications in sub-Saharan Africa;
• Advising Barclays Capital, Crédit Lyonnais, Société Générale and IFC in the US$680 million financing of the EDFI Suez Gulf and Port Said power projects in Egypt;
• Representing the sponsors in connection with the financing of a gold mining project in Uzbekistan;
• Advising Deutsche Bank, Société Générale and IFC in the EDFI Rio Bravo and Saltillo power project financings in Mexico;
• Representing the bank lenders in the Aredor diamond mine in Guinea;
• Advising IDB in the financing of the 484 MW Termobahia gas-fired cogeneration plant in Brazil (named "2001 Latin America Private Power Deal of the Year" by Project Finance magazine);
• Representing the bank arranger in the Kutubu oil pipeline project in Papua New Guinea;
• Advising Société Générale, IFC and Commonwealth Development Corporation in the ABB Azito power project in Côte d'Ivoire;
• Assisting Crédit Lyonnais in the COMSIGUA hot briquetted iron facility financing in Venezuela sponsored by Kobe Steel;
• Representing IFC in the US$292 million financing of the Kladno power project in the Czech Republic sponsored by NRG and El Paso;
• Advising the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) in the financing of a fishing fleet operating in the Sea of Okhotsk;
• Representing IFC, the Export Credits Guarantee Department, HSBC, BNP Paribas, Citibank, Crédit Agricole, the Export-Import Bank of the United States, and other lenders in the financing for the US$1.4 billion Sual power project in the Philippines sponsored by Consolidated Electric Power Asia Limited;
• Advising IFC, Société Générale and OPIC in connection with the Macaé 895 MW gas-fired power plant in Brazil; and
• Representing the lenders in the financing of the US$933 million Hopewell Pagbilao project financing of a 700 MW coal-fired power plant in the Philippines.

Mr. DeSantis has also been involved in numerous cross-border financings, mergers and acquisitions and joint ventures. He assisted in representing Saudi Arabian Oil Company in a US$2.5 billion joint venture with Texaco and counseled the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation in workout negotiations in the Continental Airlines and Western Union bankruptcies.

Since 2002, Mr. DeSantis has consistently received top rankings in Chambers, globally, nationally and in Washington, DC.

Bars and Courts
District of Columbia Bar, 1987
New York State Bar, 1986

Education
JD, Harvard Law School, 1985
BA, Yale University, magna cum laude, 1982

Awards and Recognition
Chambers Global, Project Finance
Chambers USA, Projects (National, DC)
Euromoney's Guide to the World's Leading Project Finance Lawyers
The Legal 500 — United States, Project Finance
IFLR 1000, Project Finance
PLC Which lawyer?, Project Finance
The International Who's Who of Business Lawyers
The Best Lawyers in America

Languages
English

Citizenship
United States