Xiaowan Mao focuses her practice on advancing energy and infrastructure through strategic, business-oriented solutions. She advises project owners, developers, investors, and lenders across the full project lifecycle, including development, mergers and acquisitions, financing, and monetization of tax credits.

Xiaowan has extensive experience negotiating and drafting critical project development agreements, such as engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts, operation and maintenance (O&M) agreements, equipment supply contracts, power purchase agreements (PPAs) and other forms of offtake agreements for solar and battery storage projects, sometimes incorporating data center and carbon sequestration components.  She has led a wide range of high-value transactions, including project-based mergers and acquisitions, sponsor-side tax credit transfers, tax equity investments and debt financings, involving projects at development, construction and operating stages. She also oversees lender and investor diligence for construction-phase and operational-phase utility-scale and commercial & industrial (C&I) solar, battery storage, and wind projects in respect of EPC, O&M and equipment supply contracts.

Recognized for her ability to identify critical issues and drive them to resolution, Xiaowan adeptly coordinates large, multi-party negotiations and diligence efforts across multiple workstreams. She leverages her deep understanding of sponsor, investor, and lender perspectives to deliver strategic insight and adaptability, ensuring complex projects progress efficiently and successfully.

Fluent in Mandarin Chinese and immersed in both U.S. and Chinese business cultures, Xiaowan draws on her bilingual background and formative years in China to deliver distinctive value in cross-border energy and infrastructure matters. She helps U.S. companies turn opportunities with Chinese counterparties into successful partnerships by navigating regulatory nuances, negotiation dynamics, and relationship protocols in China. Conversely, she assists Chinese developers, investors, and lenders in understanding and operating within the U.S. energy sector’s complex legal and regulatory regime. By bridging cultural, legal, and business perspectives, she enables clients to move efficiently from deal concept to successful project execution.

Beyond her client work, Xiaowan actively contributes to the firm’s pro bono initiatives, applying her corporate and transactional expertise to benefit underserved communities. She is also involved in local community engagement efforts, including volunteer work with organizations such as the Helen Woodward Animal Center and the Boys & Girls Club.