Welcome back to Ashurst, Jin Ong

The latest edition of Powering Change provides in-depth insights into how the energy sector is evolving. To complement those insights, we were keen to hear from Kok Jin Ong. Jin started his career as a trainee in the Ashurst London office in 2012 and re-joined the firm in 2024 as a partner in the Singapore Corporate Transactions practice.

Can you tell us about your career journey?

From 2012 to 2014, I worked as an Ashurst trainee in the London office, where my last rotation was in Energy, Resources and Infrastructure. After my traineeship, I moved back to Asia. I then spent a decade at various firms in Singapore working on many energy and infrastructure M&As and joint venture transactions in the Asia-Pacific region.

Re-joining Ashurst in 2024 was an easy decision given the firm’s culture, its desire to outpace change and its global focus on energy and projects.

Why energy and infrastructure M&A transactions?

I’ve always enjoyed working on sophisticated, complex transactions in energy and infrastructure: in particular, drafting contracts that clearly and concisely convey complex ideas. My interest can probably be traced back to my teenage ambition of becoming a fiction author (at least the writing element of that ambition has remained). I’ve also always been very interested in the tangible technical nature of the assets involved.

Another highly rewarding aspect of my work is being able to help parties reach a common understanding in complex transactions. In fact, one of those experiences remains a career highlight for me.

As a newly minted Senior Associate, I was working on a joint venture in the power industry in South East Asia. The JV involved parties from two countries, a technically complex structure and cultural differences between the negotiating teams. Negotiations had been going very slowly, when I suggested using a diagram to explain the concepts. That diagram made the parties realise they were not that far apart, and the JV that followed is a success to this day.

Over the past five years, our Powering Change reports have provided in-depth insights into how the global energy sector is evolving. What significant trends do you see in the Asia-Pacific region?

There has been a rapid surge of investment in green assets, including from investors new to the sector. That activity has now cooled, and the energy transition and renewable energy markets are entering a period of consolidation and consideration. Although this trend does mean that investment is less easy to come by, it should be a positive development in the long run as it ensures that further development and growth in the sector is gradual and sustainable.

Are geopolitical tensions a factor in M&A in the region?

There’s currently a limited buyer pool for those wanting to sell down assets in certain parts of Asia. Transactions are still occurring; however, typically, the buyers and bidders in those transactions are comfortable with the local (as opposed to the global) geopolitical situation.

Meanwhile, the global geopolitical landscape is rapidly changing and the extent of its impact on the Asia-Pacific energy M&A market remains to be seen. So far, we have seen a generally cautious approach from investors.

Our report also reveals that Power-to-X (P2X) technologies are generating interest, with 80% of respondents planning to increase their investment over the next five years. How do you see P2X technologies influencing M&A transactions?

For many Asia-Pacific countries, the prospect of converting green energy into carbon-free hydrogen or ammonia for stable storage and transportation is a highly attractive one. Although such power-to-hydrogen or power-to-ammonia technologies are capital-intensive and have long lead times, we are already working on M&A transactions in this emerging market. We expect that such technologies and projects will be critically important in managing the energy transition and in transporting green energy from producers to consumers.

What advice would you give to young lawyers interested in energy and infrastructure M&A?

It’s an incredible privilege to be practising in this space now, at a time of rapid evolution and innovation. That's not always the case in the energy and infrastructure world.

If younger lawyers are interested in this area, it’s critical that they invest time in understanding an asset or project so that they can get a good grasp of their client’s objectives and concerns. Over time, this investment matures into a solid technical understanding that can lead to highly valuable transactional insights (such as converting technical DD findings into appropriate protection or structuring provisions in the transactional documents).

To find out more, download Powering Change and follow Jin on LinkedIn for future updates.