Profile

Aneesa Agha is an Advocate of the High Courts of Pakistan with over a decade of experience spanning litigation and transactions. She provides a broad spectrum of legal services, from corporate transactions to complex dispute resolution, with a strong focus on regulatory matters, banking cases, tax litigation, white-collar crime, and constitutional challenges.

She has significant expertise in the banking, finance, energy, and infrastructure sectors, particularly in relation to greenfield projects. Aneesa regularly advises clients on various aspects of the project life cycle, from initial project development to the negotiation and execution of project agreements, as well as addressing operational challenges and disputes. She has represented clients in complex transactions, including power purchase agreements, transmission services agreements, government concession documents, EPC contracts, operation services contracts, shareholders’ agreements, and
financing agreements.

Aneesa has acted for a range of corporate clients in proceedings at the Competition Commission of Pakistan (CCP), NEPRA, and other regulatory authorities and tax tribunals. She has also advised on corporate structuring, financing agreements, and regulatory compliance in the banking and energy sectors. In addition to her transactional experience, Aneesa is a strong advocate for women’s rights and climate justice. She is frequently invited to conferences, podcasts, and panel discussions to speak on legal issues, particularly with regard to women’s representation, the right to clean air, and climate action. Aneesa has contributed to various publications on climate, renewable energy, and international arbitration. She is the co-author of the Pakistan Chapter of Lexology’s Guide to Renewable Energy and the Pakistan Chapter for the Global Arbitration Places Guide by Delos Dispute Resolution.

Experience

• Represented clients in a case challenging the constitutionality of higher rates of dividend tax on renewable energy companies.
• Acting in a public interest litigation challenging state inaction on climate change in relation to mitigation measures under the UNFCCC Paris Agreement framework (ongoing).
• Represented a fertilizer company in a petition relating to the wheeling of electricity (IESCO v NEPRA 2021 Islamabad High Court).
• Represented sugar mill owners in a case challenging the investigation process (Al-Arabia Sugar Mills v FIA 2020 Lahore High Court).
• Represented a fertilizer company in a case regarding the regulatory framework for the control and utilization of water resources by the provincial government.
• Represented property owners in a constitutional challenge to the luxury tax imposed through the Punjab Finance Act 2014 (Muhammad Khalid Qureshi v Province of Punjab 2017 PTD 805 Lahore).
• Represented civil society members in a successful constitutional challenge to the construction of the signal-free corridor in Lahore (Imrana Tiwana v Province of Punjab 2015 PLD 522 Lahore).
• Assisted in a public interest litigation involving procedures for rape trials and the admission of DNA evidence (Salman Akram Raja v Government of Punjab 2013 SCMR 203).
• Assisted in the 18th Amendment case concerning the judicial appointments process (Nadeem Ahmed Advocate v Federation of Pakistan 2010 Supreme Court).
• Advised companies on shareholders’ agreements, EPC contracts, and security documents for establishing an automotive assembly plant in Pakistan.
• Represented the national grid operator in negotiations related to a transmission services agreement, land lease agreement, and O&M services agreement for setting up the 4000 MW Matiari-Lahore Transmission Line Project worth over $1.5 billion.
• Represented a large textile conglomerate in the acquisition of equity stakes in two IPPs, conducting due diligence, project financing document reviews, and post-transaction compliance.
• Represented local equity investors in the project finance of solar IPPs.
  Advised a bank on an amalgamation agreement and its approval from the State Bank of Pakistan under Section 48 of the Banking Companies Ordinance 1962.
• Represented an American private equity investment firm, conducting due diligence on a Pakistani mining company for potential acquisition.
• Represented and advised small hydropower IPPs in negotiations with PPIB concerning standardized energy purchase agreements, water use agreements, and implementation agreements for small hydro projects in Azad Jammu & Kashmir.