Paul Hastings Retained by Bulgarian State-Owned Entities in Development and Financing of a Historic Crude Oil Pipeline Project

August 28, 2007

Paul Hastings Retained by Bulgarian State-Owned Entities in Development and Financing of a Historic Crude Oil Pipeline Project

London (August 28, 2007) -- Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker LLP, a leading international law firm, announced today that the firm has been retained by the Bulgarian state-owned entities in the negotiation and financing of the historic Burgas Alexandroupolis Pipeline Project. Being jointly developed by the Republic of Bulgaria, the Russian Federation and the Hellenic Republic, the crude oil pipeline will transport Russian and Caspian Sea-sourced oil from the Bulgarian Black Sea port of Burgas to the Greek Aegean port of Alexandroupolis. The pipeline will provide an alternative to tanker traffic through the Bosphorous Straights, and will enable Russian and Kazakh crude oil to reach world markets.

Under the agreement, the project participants will form an International Project Company whose shares will be owned 51% by the Russian Participant, 24.5% by the Bulgarian Participant and 24.5% by the Greek Participants. Paul Hastings Global Projects Group will assist namely with negotiation and drafting of the Shareholders Agreement, core Project Agreements and financing-related matters.

Global Projects partners Jon Simpson, Mark Lewis and Liubomir Roglev are leading the Paul Hastings team.

About Paul Hastings Global Projects Group: The Paul Hastings Global Projects Group is internationally recognized for the breadth and depth of its project finance capabilities. With more than 25 years of experience, Paul Hastings has one of the most experienced teams of project lawyers in the world. In the last few years, the Global Projects Group has represented clients in more than $40 billion of project transactions globally.

Paul Hastings Janofsky & Walker LLP, founded in 1951, is a leading international law firm with over 1,200 attorneys in 18 offices. The firm serves a diverse client base including many of the leading global financial institutions and Fortune 500 companies and offers deep capabilities in banking and finance, capital markets, corporate/M&A, litigation and dispute resolution, intellectual property, project finance, investment management, real estate, labor and employment and tax advisory services. For additional information, please visit our website at www.paulhastings.com