Folake Elias-Adebowale is a Partner in the firm’s Energy and Natural Resources teams and co-heads its Corporate Advisory team.  Her specialisations include project finance for energy, gas and industrial projects, foreign investment, equity and asset acquisitions, corporate restructuring, private equity, commercial transactions and employment matters.

She advises a variety of local and international lenders, development finance institutions and top tier investors on a diverse range of transactions and legal issues pertinent to parties operating in key economic sectors in Nigeria and its export processing zones, including the oil, gas, electric power, food and beverage, telecommunications, construction and manufacturing sectors.  She also advises various investors and operators in the petroleum sector, including one of the largest extractors of natural gas, in relation to various oil and gas projects and marginal field investments. 

Folake advised the debt providers in what was described as the largest ever non-petroleum syndicated debt facility deal in Africa in 2007 on local legal issues.  She also provided transactional advice on the financing of various projects including a greenfield cement plant which was awarded the 2006 Euromoney Deal of the Year Award, a steel fabrication plant, a regional independent power project and the largest indigenous operator in the petroleum sector.  She was a member of the team that assisted with the review of the downstream gas sector and the preparation of draft legislation for that sector.  She advises petroleum sector operators on restructuring and compliance issues in the context of Nigerian content legislation.

She has presented papers on foreign investment in Nigeria and conducted seminars on employment and labour matters.  She is a contributor to the International Law Office’s Energy and Natural Resources Newsletter and sits on the board of several companies.   Folake is commended by the Nigerian edition of Who’s Who Legal for her project finance and her corporate restructuring and insolvency work. 
 

CAREER

2007 Partner, Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie

2002 Senior Associate, Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie

1995 Attached to G. Elias & Co

1992 Placement, Field Fisher Waterhouse Solicitors, London

1991 Research Assistant, International Legal Department, Midland 

Montagu (later Hong Kong Fir) Bank, London

1991 Research Assistant, the Law Commission of England & Wales

1991 Mini Pupillage, 4, Stone Buildings Chambers, Lincoln’s Inn

1991 Mini Pupillage, 4, Essex Court Chambers, Lincoln’s Inn

QUALIFICATIONS 

1996 BL Nigerian Law School 

1993 LL.M University College, London 

1992 BA (Jurisprudence), Somerville College, Oxford 

University 

BAR ADMISSIONS

1996 Nigeria

PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

Nigerian Bar Association

Nigerian Gas Association

EMAIL

folake.adebowale@uubo.org