Kris J. Eimicke
As co-chair of Pierce Atwood’s energy infrastructure group, and a member of Pierce Atwood’s tax and business practice groups, Kris Eimicke has a unique blend of technical expertise and business experience. Kris focuses on complex business transactions, with a particular emphasis on highly structured financing transactions that utilize one or more tax credit and economic development programs, including renewable energy tax credits, the opportunity zone incentive, new markets tax credits, and historic rehabilitation tax credits.
- Renewable Energy: Kris handles all aspects of renewable energy mergers, acquisitions, and finance, including tax equity, back leverage debt, preferred equity, and other creative and unique structures. Kris helped to develop a royalty model for financing renewable energy projects and developers, and has closed $400 million of royalty investments.
- Opportunity Zones: Kris represents investors, developers, fund managers, opportunity funds and lenders in connection with the relatively new opportunity zone program, including one of Forbes OZ 20: Top Opportunity Zone Catalysts.
- Tax Credits: Kris has worked extensively with federal and state new markets tax credit programs, successfully closing transactions involving more than $400 million of tax credit allocation. He has been involved in nearly every transaction to successfully close under Maine's new markets capital investment program, either as counsel to the borrower, the investor, or the community development entity (CDE).
Kris has served as an adjunct professor at the University of Maine School of Law, where he taught corporate income tax. He is also a frequent speaker on federal and state tax issues, including opportunity zones, renewable energy finance, and new markets tax credit financing. Before joining Pierce Atwood, Kris clerked for Judge Harry Haines of the United States Tax Court.
Honors & Distinctions
- Named a New England "Rising Star" by Super Lawyers (2013-2016)
Professional Activities
- Chair, Maine Bar Association, Tax Section (2012-2020)
- Former adjunct professor, University of Maine School of Law (corporate income tax)
- Member, American Bar Association, Section of Taxation, Partnership and LLC Committee, Administrative Practice Committee, Private Equity Committee (2009-present)
Speaking Engagements:
- Mitigating Risks in Opportunity Zone Investments, Novogradac OZ Conference (October 2020)
- Navigating the Paycheck Protection Program, MaineBiz Webinar (June 2020)
- Opportunity Zones & 1031 Transactions, Margolin, Winer & Evans Real Estate Forum (January 2020)
- Qualified Opportunity Zones, Maine Tax Forum (November 2019)
- Putting Rural Opportunity Zones to Work, Georgetown, CEI, MDF (December 2019)
- Portland Press Herald Business Breakfast Forum (March 2018)
- New Markets Tax Credit Coalition Annual Conference (December 2017)
- Pierce Atwood's Energy Infrastructure Symposium (September 2017)
Publications
- Maine Ranked Number One for Low Tax Burden on New Investment and Job Creation, 21 Journal of Multistate Taxation (November/December 2011)
Practice Areas
Representative Experience
- Represented GO Lab, Inc., d/b/a TimberHP in connection with the financing of the first wood-fiber based insulation plant in North America, including $85 million of tax-exempt bond financing, $25 million of new markets tax credit financing, $27 million of traditional equity financing, and various grants and community based financing
- Represented Great Bay Renewables with respect to its $40 million investment in Hodson Energy’s 1.8GW solar plus battery storage development portfolio
- Represented Great Bay Renewables with respect to its $52.5 million investment in a portfolio of Texas wind and solar projects
- Represented Great Bay Renewables with respect to its $35 million investment in Longroad’s 250MW Prospero 2 solar project
- Represented Great Bay Renewables with respect to more than $125 million of investment in the renewable portfolios of Apex Clean Energy Holdings and Tri Global Energy, and the sale of projects by those companies of more than 2GW of projects
- Represented a biomass energy company in the acquisition and financing of more than 150MW of biomass electric facilities in Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, and Maine
- Represented Bright Community Capital in the acquisition and financing (including tax equity) of several solar photovoltaic facilities across New England
- Represented a tax equity investor in investments in numerous projects, including wind facilities in Minnesota, solar projects in Connecticut and Massachusetts, and hydroelectric facilities in Rhode Island
Latest Updates in Energy Infrastructure Project Development & Finance
Representative Experience
Kris has represented project developers in the following recent transactions:
- City Fresh Foods – financing for a minority owned food service company
- Saddleback Ski Resort – financing the re-development of the shuttered ski resort
- ND Paper – financing the restart of a long-shuttered paper mill
- Capitol Center for the Arts – financing the acquisition and historic rehabilitation of a theatre
- Duprey Companies – financing the acquisition and historic rehabilitation of several mixed use properties
- Baxter Academy for Technology and Science – financing the charter school's expansion
- Downeast Institute – financing the marine research institute's expansion
- Capone Iron Corporation – financing the construction of a manufacturing facility
- Farnsworth Art Museum – financing significant capital improvements to the museum
- St. Croix Tissue, Inc. – financing the installation of the first new papermaking facility in Maine in decades
- Numerous NMTC unwinds – represented numerous NMTC borrowers in connection with the unwinds of NMTC financing including minimizing the adverse tax consequences associated with potential cancellation of indebtedness (COD) income
Kris has represented CDEs and investors in the following recent transactions:
- TD Bank – investments in connection with a homeless shelter and resource center
- Bangor Savings Bank – investments in connection with a rural library project utilizing federal and state NMTC allocation
- CEI Capital Management LLC – act as outside general counsel, handling multiple aspects of its business, including NMTC asset management and unwinds of NMTC financings
- Advantage Capital Partners – organized and established a NMTC-based pooled loan fund under the federal and State of Maine new markets tax credit programs. Closed multiple investments on behalf of Advantage, including $10 million of debt, convertible debt, and equity in a veterinary pharmaceutical company, and $27 million in a merchandise display system manufacturer
- Represented tax credit investor in connection with a new markets tax credit financing of a $10 million real estate development
Latest Updates in New Markets Tax Credits
Representative Experience
- Representing CEI-Boulos in connection with the formation of a $100 million qualified opportunity fund, targeting investments eligible for Community Reinvestment Act credits
- Representing CEI-Boulos Capital Management in the formation of a $15 million impact fund with a New England-based bank
- Represented CEI-Boulos Capital Management and its managed fund Woodforest CEI-Boulos Opportunity Fund, which was named as a Forbes OZ 20: Top Opportunity Zone Catalyst, and the winner of the Global Innovation Award by the Bank Administration Institute in the category of “Societal and Community Impact Innovation” in all aspects of fund formation and the making of numerous investments in real estate projects
- Fund formation and general tax advice for numerous qualified opportunity funds under the federal opportunity zone program, totaling more than $150 million of equity raised
- Representing a private foundation in the making of a $15 million program-related investment
- Representing a private foundation in connection with posting marketable securities as collateral for loan as a program-related investment, including receipt of private letter ruling from IRS
- Securing tax exemption and general representation for a § 501(c)(3) public charity involved in documenting the effects of climate change in the Arctic
- Advised various clients on maximizing State of Maine tax and economic development incentives, including sales tax exemption, pine tree development zone (PTZ) benefits, and other state tax credit programs