Biography

William Roberts practices as Of Counsel from the firm's Boston office. His practice, national in scope, involves advising energy clients on matters involving commercialization, regulation, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) compliance, mergers and acquisitions, wholesale power market design, energy project development, state and federal regulatory commissions, legislative initiatives and other transactional and contractual work.

Prior to joining Preti Flaherty, William served as in-house counsel for over 14 years for a Fortune 500 company in its Independent Power Producer Division. He has advised CEOs, executives, board members and business units on deal execution, suitability, compliance, and development issues in the energy field.

Commercialization and Regulation of Wind Energy Projects

As Associate General Counsel and Chief Regulatory Counsel at First Wind Energy in Boston, William oversaw regulatory and compliance matters for the development and operations of utility-scale wind facilities. He has also served as Director, Senior Counsel for Edison Mission Energy where he was responsible for FERC and NERC compliance, trading and transactional legal matters.

While at First Wind Energy and Edison Mission Energy, William worked on 28 wind energy projects in Maine, New York, Iowa, Minnesota, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wyoming, totaling over 1,800 MW. Through joint development agreements, he worked with partners to advance wind farm development with transmission projects in 10 additional states, with a 5,000+ MW pipeline of development-stage projects.

Specific representative matters include:

  • SUPPLY – INTERCONNECTION – COMMERCIAL AGREEMENTS. Analysis, structuring, drafting, negotiating and filing of complex Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs); interconnection agreements and tariffs; bilateral contracts; guarantees; credit support documents; confidentiality agreements; off-take and supply agreements for wind energy projects.
  • OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE AGREEMENTS. Structuring, drafting, negotiating and defending of Operation and Maintenance Agreements on behalf of First Wind Energy and Edison Mission Energy with wind turbine manufacturers. Advising on financial monitoring, termination/suspension, operator's obligations, expiry of agreements, payments and incentives, Force Majeure, liability and liquidated damages, sub-contracting, exclusivity, insurances, warranties, intellectual property and confidentiality, dispute resolution, employees, reporting and performance security.  Monitoring of performance and compliance with NERC and RTO operational rules.
  • RENEWABLE ENERGY CREDITS. Provide legal and business analyses and registration of more than 300 MW of wind energy projects for Renewable Energy Credits (RECs). Perform registrations for dozens of facilities and corporations with leading REC certification, as well as tracking of organizations, including M-RETS, WREGIS, and GATS.
  • TRANSMISSION UTILITIES. Represent wind energy companies with transmission utilities. Advocating, negotiating, defending, drafting and filings for renewable energy projects for Interconnection Agreements, Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) and Qualifying Faculty status.

Regulatory Compliance and Enforcement

William has extensive experience with FERC and NERC regulations, compliance and enforcement procedures. His experience spans from before FERC Order 2000 created open access transmission for generator interconnections through the birth of the competitive power industry and its subsequent development into the present market structure.

As a founding member of the Members’ Committees of the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) and New England Independent System Operator (ISO-NE), William helped develop governance and stakeholder policy and assisted in the policy development and design of regional electric wholesale market rules and regulations.

    William is a native of St. Louis and currently lives near Boston, MA.  His hobby is fine woodworking, and he enjoys building furniture and keepsake boxes for friends and family.

    Professional Activities

    • American Bar Association
    • Massachusetts Bar Association
    • Boston Bar Association
    • Energy Bar Association
    • American Association of Blacks in Energy

    Firm Highlights

    Press Coverage

    Maine Media Organizations Oppose Foreign Electioneering Ban

    Question 2 on Maine’s November ballot asserts that corporations owned or controlled by foreign governments do not have the same rights to political speech as companies here in the U.S. and that foreign governments should be prohibited...

    Publication

    Maine Workers’ Compensation Update - November 2023

    The following is an overview of developments with respect to proposed legislation as well as new procedures on independent contractor determinations, medical fee schedule updates, and the use of updated Board forms, including medical...

    Press Coverage

    Bangor Releases Unredacted Files on Effort to Close Homeless Encampment

    Following a five-month effort by local media, represented by attorney Sigmund Schutz, chair of Preti Flaherty's Media Law Practice Group, the City of Bangor finally released unredacted records related to its attempts to close a...

    News

    Remembering Preti Flaherty Founder Robert F. Preti

    We at Preti Flaherty are deeply saddened by the passing of one of our founding partners and longtime friend, Robert Preti. Bob was not just a part of our firm; he was a part...

    Event

    Eric Osterberg Presents Webinar on IP Rights and Infringement With Podcasts and Livestreaming

    Eric Osterberg joins a panel of industry experts to present “IP Rights and Infringement With Podcasts and Livestreaming.” The panel focuses on guiding intellectual property counsel on the IP issues that arise when creating...

    Press Coverage

    Maine Center for Public Interest Reporting Wins Public Records Dispute with York County Jail

    Publication

    FRBP 9006 Doesn't Take Vacations

    Bodie Colwell of Preti Flaherty’s Creditors' Rights & Bankruptcy Group, has authored the article "FRBP 9006 Doesn't Take Vacations," appearing in the October 2023 issue of the American Bankruptcy Institute's Young & New Members Committee newsletter...

    Publication

    November 7, 2023 Election Results

    Maine’s November 2023 statewide elections were exclusively referendum questions, four were citizen initiatives, and four were proposed amendments to the Maine Constitution. Of these, Questions 5, 7 and 8 were placed on the ballot...

    News

    David Van Slyke Reappointed by Governor Mills to New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission

    Van Slyke is one of five Commissioners from the state of Maine overseeing NEIWPCC PORTLAND—Preti Flaherty’s Managing Partner, David Van Slyke, has been reappointed by Governor Janet T. Mills to the New England Interstate...

    News

    Preti Flaherty Welcomes Employment Law Attorney Brooke K. Haley to the Firm

    Preti Flaherty is pleased to announce that attorney Brooke K. Haley has joined the firm’s Employment Law Practice Group as a Partner. Brooke will work primarily from the firm’s Portland office. Brooke’s practice centers...