Annual Review 2009 - Watson, Farley & Williams

PALM OIL PRODUCER DISPUTE
Our Bangkok team is acting for
one of Thailand’s leading palm oil
producers in a US$12 million
arbitration against a Malaysia-based
industrial boiler manufacturer.
The case focuses on the defects of
the boiler and the boiler company’s
failure to meet its contractual
obligations, causing significant
loss to our long-standing client.
This high-value case, which requires
in-depth technical expertise, also
underlines WFW Bangkok’s reputation
in the dispute resolution field.
METALS MERGER
When mining exploration company
Jubilee Platinum sought to acquire
platinum and nickel producer
Braemore Resources in a share offer,
our London office advised Braemore
on the corporate, tax and employment
aspects of the takeover. Braemore’s
listing on both AIM and the
Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE)
meant the scheme of arrangement
had to be conducted under the South
African Takeover Code – unusual for a
UK plc. The multi-jurisdictional merger
enabled the combined entity to raise
significant funds.
NATURAL RESOURCES 11
AEGEAN OIL FINANCING
Our Athens and London offices
together advised Standard Chartered
Bank on a US$50 million reserve-based
reducing senior facility and a US$10
million junior facility to fund new
drilling in oilfields offshore north-east
Greece. The Epsilon well is the deepest
and longest ever drilled in the area.
Borrower Aegean Energy is the only
oil and gas operator in Greece.
This large-scale transaction combined
English and Greek law, drawing on
our cross-border structured finance
skills in the natural resources sector.
Watson, Farley & Williams Annual Review 2009