Ruadhán
Kenny
Partner
Ruadhán is a partner in Matheson’s Disputes and Investigations Group, with a broad commercial litigation, arbitration and permitting and environmental / ESG practice.
He advises clients on the avoidance, management and resolution of a wide variety of disputes including in connection with commercial, real estate, construction, tax and competition matters. For permitting and environmental matters he supports clients in bringing projects through the entire life-cycle, from concept through to operation and disposal (including advising on surrender / closure requirements or sales as appropriate). He has also advised on permitting and environmental issues in some of the largest transactions in Ireland in recent years.
Experience and Education
Ruadhán’s experience includes representing:
- a gas supply company on all aspects of its proposed LNG and CHP facility including obtaining planning permissions and operating permits and defending a High Court judicial review challenge to the extension of a planning permission which was referred to the CJEU;
- an international waste management company on its successful application for planning permission for a waste to energy facility. Representing the company in the defence of a High Court judicial review challenge to that grant of permission. Advising the company on the application for its operating permit;
- various data centre operators on successful applications for data centre developments;
- residential developers on a number of successful applications under the Strategic Housing Development and Large-scale Residential Development schemes;
- various renewable energy developers on applications for planning permission, including legal stress-testing of environmental reports;
- an international aquaculture operator on all aspects of licensing and regulatory compliance, including successful defences of a number of enforcement actions for alleged licence breaches and bringing judicial review proceedings to challenge an attempt to revoke an operating licence;
- Irving Oil on its acquisition of Top Oil. Environmental due diligence of more than 150 sites and advising on Seveso and COMAH;
- Ardian Infrastructure on its acquisition of leading energy utility Energia Group from I Squared Capital;
- Macquarie Asset Management on its acquisition of the Beauparc Group, Ireland’s largest recycling and processing led waste-to-resource business, and the Beacon Hospital, one of Ireland’s largest private healthcare providers;
- Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners on its acquisition of Elgin Energy and Ørsted’s European onshore business;
- Rabobank as lender to Ib Vogt / Highfield on the development and financing of four Irish solar farms (Rathnaskilloge, Gaskinstown, Clonin North and North Arklow) with a combined generating capacity of around 280MW;
- Kanadevia Inova, on the agreement to acquire the operator of the Dublin Waste to Energy Facility (Encyclis Ireland Operations Limited) and on its major upgrade of this state of the art WtE facility;
- Bord na Móna on the development of various wind farms and energy storage facilities throughout Ireland;
- Novo Nordisk on the acquisition of its first manufacturing facility in Ireland, through the acquisition of a pharmaceutical manufacturing facility (and its related business) in County Westmeath from Alkermes plc;
- Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, a specialist global investment manager focused exclusively on the infrastructure needed for the energy transition, on its acquisition of the Wexford Synchronous Condenser Project, a proposed 963 MVA.s. facility in Co Wexford;
- Shrieve Chemical Company (a portfolio company of Gemspring Capital) on its acquisition of Carbon Chemicals Group Limited;
- Octopus Renewables on its acquisition, development and project financing of the Ballymacarney and Harlockstown solar projects (aggregate capacity of 250 MW);
- a multinational plastics manufacturer in the successful defence of a prosecution by the EPA for alleged breaches of an operating licence;
- an agri-food producer in defending a criminal prosecution by the HSA;
- a drinks producer in defending a criminal prosecution by the HSA;
- a number of public bodies and private organisations in respect of requests made under the Freedom of Information Act and the Access to Information on the Environment Regulations;
- an international engineering firm in the successful defence of a dispute arising from an EPC contract with a value of approximately €500 million;
- a global technology company in respect of construction defects in a €300 million office and residential campus development;
- a third level educational institution in a number of claims, including for delay and liquidated damages arising from the construction of €62 million student accommodation development;
- a property developer in a High Court dispute arising from the contract to purchase a development site worth approximately €20 million; and
- an international company in a successful appeal to the Tax Appeals Commission against the imposition of stamp duty on a corporate acquisition – one of highest-value disputes ever heard in the Irish State.
- University College Dublin, Bachelor of Business & Law
- Admitted as a Solicitor, Law Society of Ireland
- Admitted as a solicitor in England and Wales (non-practising)
