Carlos J. Fernández-Lugo

McConnell Valdés LLC
Capital Member and Chairman, Environmental, Energy & Land Use Practice Group


Carlos J. Fernández-Lugo is a Capital Member of McConnell Valdés LLC and Chair of its Environmental, Energy and Land Use Practice Group. He has acted as environmental counsel for lenders and equity investors in the financing of energy facilities. In addition, he has represented renewable energy developers in the negotiation of power purchase agreements, renewable energy certificate contracts, land agreements and financing related matters, as well as in the land use, environmental impact review and permitting processes related to the construction of such facilities. His energy experience includes work on coal, natural gas, wind, solar, waste to energy, anaerobic digestion, and landfill gas to energy projects.

Mr. Fernández-Lugo successfully represented the largest renewable energy project to date in Puerto Rico and the Caribbean through site selection, land acquisition, negotiation of the power purchase agreement, environmental impact review, land use approval, permitting and financing. He has also represented several owners and developers of grid-scale solar photovoltaic projects; industrial off-takers in the negotiation of power purchase agreements for multi-megawatt behind-the-meter solar photovoltaic projects; and the largest residential solar company in Puerto Rico with respect to interconnection, contractual, and regulatory issues before PREPA and the Energy Commission.

Mr. Fernández-Lugo participated in the drafting process of Acts 82 and 83 of July 19, 2010, which created the Puerto Rico renewable energy portfolio standard, and the renewable energy incentives regime, respectively. He also worked on the net metering chapter of the Energy Transformation and RELIEF Act, Act 57 of May 27, 2014, and on distributed generation and renewable energy aspects of the Puerto Rico Energy Public Policy Act, Act 17 of April 11, 2019.

He is ranked as one of Puerto Rico’s Leading Attorneys in the Environmental & Energy fields by the international publication Chambers & Partners in its Latin America Guide. He is also ranked as a leading Environmental attorney by Best Lawyers® in its Puerto Rico guide.