Xavier Andrade Cadena

Meet Xavier:

Xavier leads the Dispute Resolution Department and co-heads the Mining Department of AVL Abogados.

In 2006 he joined Holland & Knight’s International Transactions Department in Washington D.C., where he worked on M&A transactions and financing.

In 2009 and 2010 he worked in the International Arbitration Department at Dechert’s Paris office, where he participated in several arbitrations under the ICSID, ICC and UNCITRAL rules.

He has participated in more than 80 arbitrations in various industries as party counsel or as arbitrator under UNCITRAL, ICSID, ICC, Madrid International Arbitration Center (CIAM) rules and the main arbitration centers in Ecuador.

He has advised several of the main copper and gold mining projects in Ecuador on regulatory, contractual, corporate and financing matters.

Xavier chaired the Ecuadorian Institute of Arbitration, has taught International Arbitration and Economic Analysis of Law at leading universities in Ecuador; and serves as legal counsel to the Ecuador Chamber of Mining. 

Arbitration Experience:

• ICSID arbitration initiated by Occidental Petroleum Corporation v. Republic of Ecuador, for US $ 3500 million related to violations of the Ecuador-United States of America Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) in petroleum matters.
  
  
• ICSID Arbitration initiated by Burlington Resources Inc. v. Republic of Ecuador for US $ 1515 million related to violations of the Ecuador-United States of America BIT in petroleum matters.
  
  
• ICSID arbitration initiated by Perenco Ecuador Ltd. v. Republic of Ecuador, for US $ 1400 million related to violations of the Ecuador-France Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) in petroleum matters.
  
  
• Ad hoc arbitration under UNCITRAL rules initiated by Únete Telecomunicaciones S.A. and Clay Pacific SRL v. Republic of Ecuador, for US $ 35.5 million related to violations of the Ecuador-Bolivia Bilateral Investment Treaty (BIT) in the telecommunications industry.
  
  
• ICC arbitration initiated by a group of French military artillerymen against a Spanish company, for US $ 650 million related to contracts for the construction of war submarines.
  
  
• ICC arbitration based in New York for US $ 10 million related to the sale of an Ecuadorian logistics company by a US investment fund.
  
  
• ICC arbitration initiated by a Spanish consortium against an Ecuadorian municipality, for US $ 30.5 million related to a tramway project.
  
  
• ICC arbitration initiated by a group of French auditors against an Ecuadorian municipality, for US $ 5.5 million related to a tramway project.
  
  
• Ad hoc arbitration under UNCITRAL rules initiated by a Spanish consortium against an Ecuadorian ministry, for US $ 19 million related to a computer systems contract.
  
  
• Arbitration initiated by Ecuador TLC S.A. v. Public Company of Hydrocarbons of Ecuador EP Petroecuador [Empresa Pública de Hidrocarburos del Ecuador EP Petroecuador], for US $ 120 million related to an oil transportation contract.
  
  
• Ad hoc arbitration under UNCITRAL rules initiated by a consortium against an Ecuadorian Ministry, for US $70 million related to an infrastructure contract.
  
  

Mining Experience:

• Advising Osisko Bermuda Ltd in the structuring of a stream transaction on the Cascabel Mining Project under which, together with another company, US $ 750 million financing will be provided to SolGold for the Cascabel Copper-Gold Project in Ecuador.
  
  
• Advising Adventus Mining Corp. in the negotiation and execution of an earn-in agreement. In addition, we assisted in a transaction with Wheaton Precious Metals and Trafigura for a US $ 235 million financing to build the Curipamba Copper Project. We also advised Adventus Mining Corp. on the Arrangement Agreement with Silvercorp Metals Inc.
  
  
• Advising Southern Copper Corporation (Grupo México) in the purchase of a mining project in southern Ecuador. Since this transaction in 2011, we have advised Southern Copper Corporation in Ecuador on all legal aspects of the Ruta de Cobre Project.
  
  
• Advising First Quantum Minerals on its arrival in Ecuador. We support the negotiation of three joint venture agreements and earn-in agreements.
  
  
• Advising Cornerstone Capital Resources Inc. (now SolGold) on all legal aspects of its operation in three mining projects, including the sale of projects and the negotiation of earn-in, farm-in, and joint venture agreements.
  
  
• Advising Shandong Gold on the potential acquisition of a gold project in Ecuador.
  
  
• Advising Nemesia S.à.r.l. in the structuring of contracts and guarantees for a US $ 75 million credit facility for Lundin Gold’s Fruta del Norte project.
  
  
• Advising Osisko Gold Royalties Ltd. on a US $50 million royalty financing to SolGold, for the Cascabel Copper-Gold Project in Ecuador.
  
  

Formation

• Lawyer and Doctor of Jurisprudence. Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador (PUCE), Ecuador.
  
  
• M.A., King’s College London, England.
  
  
• Master of Laws (LL. M), McGill University, Canada.
  
  

Memberships

• Co-chair of the IBA Investment Arbitration Committee (2023-current).
  
  
• Member and Track Coordinator of the ICC Task Force on Addressing Allegations of Corruption in Arbitration (2021-present).
  
  
• Member of the Drafting Committee of the New Arbitration Rules of the Inter-American Commercial Arbitration Commission (CIAC) (2023-current).
  
  
• Member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee of the Latin American Arbitration Association (ALARB) (2023-current).
  
  
• Member of the International Commission of the International Arbitration Centre of Madrid (CIAM) (2020-2022).
  
  
• President of the Ecuadorian Institute of Arbitration (2018-2022).
  
  
• Board Member of the Governing Body of the Quito Stock Exchange (2014-2016).
  
  
• Co-director for Ecuador of the American Bar Association (2013-2016).
  
  

Publications

• “El análisis costo beneficio como antídoto contra la promulgación errática de normas “, Law Monitoring and Evaluation Manual, National Assembly of Ecuador, 2021, pp. 187-194.
  
  
• “Psicología de un tribunal arbitral colegiado: ¿más mentes, más sesgos?“, Psychological Analysis of Law, Ed. Alfredo Bullard and José María de la Jara, Themis, Lima, 2018.
  
  
• “Sesgos cognitivos y conjuros arbitrales”, Ecuadorian Journal of Arbitration, Vol. 8, 2017.
  
  
• “Inducing network effects via on/off-net price discrimination in mobile telecommunications: issues and measures”. Master’s thesis, King’s College London, 2014.
  
  
• Essentials of Merger Review, Ecuador chapter, American Bar Association, 2012.
  
  
• “Renuncia al arbitraje previsto en un tratado: el caso ecuatoriano“, Arbitration Law Treaty, Volume I, Ed. Ibañez, Bogotá, 2011.
  
  
• “El Arbitraje Comercial Internacional en Iberoamérica. Marco Legal y Jurisprudencial“, co-author of the Ecuador Chapter, La Ley, Wolters Kluwer, Madrid, 2009.
  
  
• “Breves reflexiones sobre el arbitraje en la nueva constitución ecuatoriana “, Revista de Arbitragem e Mediaçao, Sao Paulo, 2009.