Harriet Mdala

Practice Areas

-Energy, Infrastructure and Extractives

-Mergers and Acquisitions

Career

Harriet has extensive experience in corporate and commercial law in Zambia, particularly in the energy, infrastructure, and extractive sectors. Harriet offers strategic guidance on regulatory compliance, projects, and contracts in the energy and infrastructure sectors, drawing on her deep understanding of Zambia’s extractive industry to help clients optimize their operations within the Zambian context. She also serves as the key relationship partner for the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM) and is the President of the French Business Circle.

Professional Memberships

-French Business Circle

-Law Association of Zambia

-Member of the Local Government Elections Tribunal

-Member of the Zambia Institute of Advanced Legal Education.

Publications

-Review of the Minerals Regulation Commission Bill

-Operationalisation of the Open Access Regulations

-Declaration of dividends under the New Zambian Companies Act

-Zambia Real Estate Comparative Guide

-Zambia: Mining Comparative Guide

Languages Spoken

English

Work Highlights

-Harriet acted as lead Zambian counsel in the joint venture between Qatar Investments Authority and Enel Green Power for Ngonye Power Company Limited, which operates a 34MW solar plant in Zambia. Her work involved conducting due diligence, reviewing the legal standing and compliance of Ngonye, and assessing key project agreements.

-Harriet is currently representing a confidential client involved in a proposed infrastructure development project in Zambia. If implemented, this project is expected to be structured as a Build Operate and Transfer – Public Private Partnership (BOT-PPP) with the Road Development Agency of Zambia. The project will include significant upgrades, new construction, and the development of essential facilities, such as toll infrastructure and weighbridges.

-Harriet served as the Zambian law advisor for GED Africa Ltd on the Kasomeno-Mwenda Toll Road and Border Post Project, a cross-border PPP between Zambia and the DRC. This 25-year Build Operate Transfer (BOT) project includes the modernization and construction of a 184km highway, a cable-stayed bridge, border facilities, and a tolling system. The project is still ongoing.

-Currently assisting Viabahn Africa Limited, the lead promoter, as counsel on a public-private partnership project for the construction and development of a road from Mutanda to Kasempa and from Kasempa to Kaoma in Zambia. This role includes reviewing, negotiation and drafting the concession agreement, traffic guarantees, EPC, O&M and all other project documents and advising on local permits, licenses, and regulatory compliance. The project is on-going.

-Harriet advised Power Construction Corporation of China and General Electric on a 2,400MW power station at the Zambia-Zimbabwe border, focusing on public procurement laws and drafting a regulatory framework.

-Harriet advised the Zambia Association of Manufacturers (ZAM) and the Private Partnership Dialogue Forum (PPDF) on the impacts of proposed changes to Zambian labor law, highlighting how these changes would affect the business community. She also recommended reforms to the existing regulatory framework and outlined a methodology for the government to adopt in amending the relevant labour laws.

Experience

2023 - Present: Partner, MAY and Company

2022 – Public Private Partnerships and Infrastructure – ALSF

2022 – Bankable Power Purchase Agreements – Hogan Lovell’s

2022 – Power – ALSF

2021 – Public Private Partnerships and Power Projects – Anjawalla & Khanna

2021 – Present: President of the French Business Circle.

2020 – 2023: Partner, Musa Dudhia & Co.

2016 – 2020: Senior Associate, Musa Dudhia & Co.

2011- 2016: Board and company secretary of Barclays Life Zambia

2012 – 2016: Associate, Musa Dudhia & Co.

2015: Placement at Slaughter & May London, England

2014: Secondment, Anjarwalla & Khanna, Nairobi, Kenya

2011 – 2012: Legal Assistant, Musa Dudhia & Co.

Education

Awards