King & Spalding has recruited Merrick White, one of the most well-regarded oil and gas lawyers in Asia, as a partner in its energy practice. White joins King & Spalding from Clifford Chance, where he was a partner. White will be based in King & Spalding’s Singapore office.
“Merrick’s broad-based practice representing oil and gas and petrochemical companies in Asia nicely complements our strong Singapore-based liquefied natural gas practice, and it will expand our firm’s offering in important energy markets in the region,” said Ken Culotta, leader of the King & Spalding global transactions practice group. “Merrick’s combination of solid legal skills and experience on the business side of the energy industry makes him a great fit for us. Our firm has a strategic focus on its energy practice and a commitment to grow it further around the world.”
White has spent the last 16 years in Singapore and Indonesia handling a wide range of legal, commercial, business development and engineering matters in the oil, gas and petrochemical industries. He is ranked byChambers and Legal 500 for his projects and energy work in Singapore and Indonesia.
White has extensive in-house commercial experience, having served as a gas marketing manager for Clyde Petroleum, Gulf Indonesia and ConocoPhillips, and as a commercial manager and lead process engineer at British Gas Exploration and Production. Before becoming a lawyer White was a chartered chemical engineer. He is a member of the Institute of Chemical Engineers.
“We are very pleased to welcome Merrick to the firm,” said John Savage, managing partner of King & Spalding’s Singapore office. “He’s an Asia veteran with a high-end oil and gas practice, and he brings additional depth and strength to our busy energy team. We expect to make more lateral partner hires and internal promotions in the short- to medium- term to build all areas of our Asia business.”
White said, “I’m very excited to be joining King & Spalding’s world-class energy team, and to be part of the firm’s growth story in oil and gas.”
King & Spalding’s Singapore office serves as a hub for the firm’s work in energy projects and international arbitration throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
