About Ashurst - myAshurst

ABU DHABI BRUSSELS DUBAI FRANKFURT HONG KONG LONDON MADRID MILAN 

MUNICH NEW DELHI NEW YORK PARIS SINGAPORE STOCKHOLM TOKYO WASHINGTON DC 

About Ashurst

About Ashurst 

Contents 

1. Firm overview 1 

2. Belgium 3 

3. France 6 

4. Germany 8 

5. Hong Kong (in association with Jackson Woo & Associates) 10 

6. India 12 

7. Italy 14 

8. Japan 16 

9. Singapore 18 

10. Spain 20 

11. Sweden 22 

12. United Arab Emirates 24 

13. United Kingdom 26 

14. United States 30 

June 2009

www.ashurst.com 

Ashurst LLP and its affiliated undertakings trade under the name Ashurst. Ashurst LLP is a limited liability partnership registered in England and 

Wales under number OC330252. It is regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority of England and Wales. The term "partner" is used to refer to a 

member of Ashurst LLP or to an employee or consultant with equivalent standing and qualifications or to an individual with equivalent status in one 

of Ashurst LLP's affiliated undertakings. Further details about Ashurst LLP and its affiliated undertakings can be found at www.ashurst.com. 

© Ashurst LLP 2009 Ref:9458146

1. Firm overview 

Senior partner: Charlie Geffen 

Managing partner: Simon Bromwich 


Ashurst is an elite law firm advising corporates, financial institutions and governments, with 

core businesses in mergers and acquisitions, corporate and finance. Our strong and growing 

international presence is built on extensive experience in working with our clients on the 

complex legal and regulatory issues relating to cross-border transactions. With a team of 

over 200 partners and some 800 lawyers worldwide, we provide advice of the highest quality 

to organisations around the world. 

Services 

We have designed our business to meet our clients' needs around the world, where the 

changing corporate and regulatory environment is increasing the complexity of the business 

landscape and the need for timely and well-judged responses. With our focus on M&A and 

corporate and finance, we provide a comprehensive range of complementary integrated 

practices in areas including antitrust, real estate, tax, litigation, energy, transport and 

infrastructure. Since January 2000, we have advised on several hundred M&A deals, across 

jurisdictions, with a total worth of over €400bn. We thrive on the diversity of our expertise 

and the range of jurisdictions in which we operate, while maintaining a strong culture of 

enterprise and client focus. 

Key facts 

• Offices in Abu Dhabi, Brussels, Dubai, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, London, Madrid, Milan, 

Munich, New York, Paris, Singapore, Stockholm, Tokyo and Washington DC, and a 

liaison office in New Delhi. 

• Over 200 partners, more than 800 lawyers and some 1,800 people worldwide. 

• Competition Team of the Year – Legal Business Awards 2009. 

• Capital Markets Team of the Year – British Legal Awards 2008. 

• Senior Partner of the Year (Geoffrey Green) – British Legal Awards 2008. 

• Corporate and M&A Team of the Year – Financial News Legal Awards 2008. 

• Tax Team of the Year – Legal Business Awards 2008. 

• Management Partner of the Year (Geoffrey Green) – Legal Business Awards 2008. 

• Law Firm of the Year – Legal Business Awards 2007. 

• Private Equity Team of the Year – Legal Business Awards 2007. 

• Competition Team of the Year (in conjunction with two other law firms) – Legal 

Business Awards 2007. 

• Real Estate Team of the Year – The Lawyer Awards 2007. 

Page 1


International clients 

Ashurst's clients include: 

• 3i • IntesaBCI 

• ABN Amro • Japan Bank for International Cooperation 

• Apax Partners • Johnson & Johnson 

• Aventis • J P Morgan 

• Banca Commerciale Italiana • Koninklijke Vopak 

• Bank of Scotland • Legal & General Ventures 

• Barclays Bank • Marriott Hotels 

• Bayerische Hypo- und Vereinsbank • Marubeni Corporation 

• BNP Paribas • Merrill Lynch 

• British Telecommunications • Mitsubishi Corporation 

• Celsa • Mitsui & Co., Ltd 

• Centrica • Morgan Stanley 

• Cinven • Motorola 

• Calyon • NM Rothschild & Sons 

• CSFB • Nomura 

• Deutsche Bank • Oranje-Nassau Energie 

• Deutsche Telekom • Repsol 

• Dresdner Kleinwort • Rusal 

• Electricité de France • SEB Merchant Banking 

• Finmeccanica • Siemens 

• Ford • SK Telecom 

• GE Capital • Skanska 

• Gilde Investment Management • Smith & Nephew 

• Goldman Sachs • STADA Group 

• Hitachi • Sumitomo Corporation 

• Hyundai Motors • The Royal Bank of Scotland 

• Imerys • Thomson Reuters 

• Imperial Tobacco • UBS 

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2. Belgium 

Address: Avenue Louise 489, 1050 Brussels 

T: +32 (0)2 626 1900 F: +32 (0)2 626 1901 

Managing partner: Carl Meyntjens 

Overview 


Ashurst Brussels opened in 1989 and provides both specialist advice on EU law as well as on 

Belgian law to international clients across a wide range of business sectors. There are 

currently over 30 lawyers in our Brussels office including nine partners. 

Our EU law department is one of the leading practices in Europe and we advise on 

competition law, trade and regulatory law and legal aspects of the internal market. We work 

with the European Commission, the European Parliament and national competition 

authorities to provide a high level of strategic advice to our clients. In addition, we have 

extensive experience of advocacy and the conduct of cases before the Courts of First 

Instance and Justice in Luxembourg. The Belgian law department provides high-end 

specialised advice in M&A, private equity, banking and finance, capital markets, corporate 

restructuring, commercial law, intellectual property, employment law and real estate. Our 

Belgian lawyers ("advocaten/avocats") are all members of the Brussels bar. We have 

represented clients in a number of major deals in Belgium over the last few years including, 

most recently, in the first public to private transaction and the largest buy-out in Belgian 

financial history. We are involved in complex cross-border transactions working with teams in 

our other European offices and elsewhere, and among our clients are Belgian and 

international companies, investment funds, investment banks and financial institutions. 

Recent highlights 

Our recent experience includes advising: 

Belgian law 

• Ontex on the €908m refinancing and capitalisation of the Ontex Group, comprising a 

refinancing of its senior and second lien facilities, an issue of equity underwritten by 

Candover and an issue of preferred equity underwritten by Merrill Lynch. 

• Candover in relation to the acquisition of Ontex NV through the first €1.1bn leveraged 

take-private transaction in Belgium, in what constitutes the largest buy-out transaction 

ever in Belgian financial history. 

• Lukoil on the Belgian law aspects of its acquisition of a chain of petrol stations in 

Belgium, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland, Hungary and Finland. 

• The European Investment Bank on the financing of the R&D activities of a leading 

international pharmaceutical company headquartered in Belgium and specialised in 

chemicals, plastics and pharmaceuticals. 

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• Credit Suisse and Lehman Brothers, financial advisers to Carlsberg AS and 

Heineken NV in connection with a £7.8bn offer for Scottish & Newcastle plc. 

• Lloyds TSB on the financing of the acquisition of the AS Adventure Group, a specialty 

retailer of outdoor equipment and clothing in Belgium, the United Kingdom and the 

Netherlands by Lion Capital LLP, a London-based private equity firm. 

• Rabobank International, London branch in relation to the €440m and US$357m 

refinancing of the Taminco group of companies. 

• The Industrial Securities group on the €940m refinancing of its semi-industrial real 

estate portfolio. 

• Park Lane Investments on the portfolio sale of 14 Belgian properties (mainly offices 

and semi-industrial properties) to Hansteen PLC, an English real estate fund. 

• The Industrial Securities group on (a) its acquisition from a Belgian holding 

company of a portfolio of semi-industrial sites located across Belgium and (b) on the 

acquisition of a Belgian-Dutch portfolio of office buildings, semi-industrial sites and 

commercial properties across Belgium and the Netherlands through a combined share 

and asset purchase structure. 

• A leading catering equipment manufacturer in a multi-million euro dispute 

relating to the termination of a distributorship. 

• A leading coffee machine manufacturer in a dispute related to alleged metal 

migration levels in its machines. 

EU law 

• Total in an appeal against the European Commission decision in the wax producers 

cartel. 

• The Royal Bank of Scotland in relation to the European Commission decision 

prohibiting MasterCard's intra-EEA Multilateral Interchange Fees. 

• Enodis in relation to the competing takeover bid and the acquisition of Enodis by The 

Manitowoc Company, the winning bidder, for ₤1.154m, which was approved under the 

EC Merger Regulation. 

• Mittal Arcelor in relation to a renewed Article 81 EC Treaty procedure following the 

annulment by the European Court of Justice of the fine in the steel beams cartel case. 

• European public service broadcasting in relation to the European Commission 

decision in the CISAC case against 24 European collecting societies active in the music 

industry. 

• Petrochemical Industrial Company in setting up a joint venture with Dow 

Chemicals, and obtaining an unconditional clearance under the EC Merger Regulation. 

• Arsenal Capital Partners in relation to its acquisition of DSM Special Products B. V., 

which was approved under the EC Merger Regulation subject to commitments following 

an in-depth investigation. 

Page 4


• CBI Asbl and ABISP Asbl in an action for annulment of a European Commission 

decision rejecting a complaint regarding State aid to public hospitals in the Brussels 

region of Belgium. 

• The European Commission before the European Court of Justice in the Lombard 

Club cartel case in relation to the appeal brought by four Austrian banks against the 

European Commission decision. 

• WISAG in relation to the acquisition of GlobeGround Gmbh. 

• Elefsis Shipyards in relation to its complaint to the European Commission regarding 

State aid granted by Greece to Hellenic Shipyards. 

• INEOS in relation to its acquisition of BASF's acrylonitrile, adiponitrile and 

hexamethylenediamine operations, which was cleared unconditionally under the EC 

Merger Regulation. 

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3. France 

Address: Ashurst LLP, Avocats au Barreau de Paris, 18, square Edouard VII, 75009 Paris 

T: +33 (0)1 53 53 53 53 F: +33 (0)1 53 53 53 54 

Managing partner: Frédéric Pinet 

Overview 

Ashurst Paris opened in 1991 and there are currently over 75 lawyers including 18 partners. 

Most of the lawyers are Avocats at the Paris Bar and some also have dual qualifications as 

solicitors or members of the New York Bar. 

A pioneer of private equity transactions and a specialist in mergers and acquisitions and 

finance, the Paris office has since expanded its fields of expertise and enjoys a first-rate 

reputation in each of its other practice areas: real estate, energy, transport and 

infrastructure (ETI), litigation and arbitration, restructuring, competition and EU law, tax, 

fund formation and employment. 

Our clients in Paris include French and multinational companies, investment funds, banks and 

international financial institutions, as well as governments and public authorities. We are 

frequently involved in complex cross-border transactions working with teams in our other 

offices across Europe, Asia, North America and the Middle East. 



• Veolia Eau on the creation of a joint venture with Mubadala. The joint venture 

company will focus on water production and waste water collection and treatment in 

the Middle East and North. 

• Bain Capital on the €2.2bn sale of the SigmaKalon Group to PPG Industries. 

• Mediobanca on the financing of the €1.8bn acquisition by Santé Développement 

Europe SAS of blocks of shares in Générale de Santé and of a subsequent takeover bid 

for Générale de Santé. 

• Charterhouse on the €3.5bn acquisition from PAI Partners of Vivarte, one of France's 

leading clothing and footwear retailers. We have since advised Vivarte on the 

acquisitions of retailers Super Sport, Défi Mode and Beryl, and Naf Naf, French readyto-wear 

clothing brand present in more than 50 countries. 

• Morgan Stanley & Co. International Limited on the acquisition by Colony Capital 

SAS, Butler Capital Partners and Morgan Stanley & Co. International Limited of Holding 

Sports Evénements, owner of Paris Saint-Germain football club from CANAL+, and on 

the subsequent acquisition by Colony Capital SAS of Butler Capital Partners' stake. 

• Citigroup on the acquisition and financing of two real estate portfolios worth over 

€300m. 

• Stone Point Capital and Paris Re Holdings Limited on the US$1.6bn acquisition of 

French reinsurer AXA RE from AXA. 

Page 6


• Charterhouse in relation to the €4.9bn sale to Texas Pacific Group and Axa Private 

Equity of Tower Participations SAS, holding company of TDF SA. Ashurst also advised 

the investors on the original €1.085bn acquisition of TDF in 2002, and on the 

acquisition of France Telecom's remaining 36 per cent stake in TDF in 2005. Ashurst 

advised TDF on the refinancing of TDF's debt, consisting of new €2.22bn syndicated 

senior facilities. 

• The Royal Bank of Scotland plc on the financing of the €740m acquisition of Médica 

by funds advised by BC Partners from Bridgepoint. 

• Gate Gourmet on the joint venture between Gate Gourmet and LSG Sky Chefs at 

Paris Charles de Gaulle airport. 

• The French REIT Société Foncière Lyonnaise on the acquisition of an office building 

of 22,000m² in central Paris to be converted into a four-star hotel including the 

redevelopment of the building and the lease to the hotel operator. 

• Aquiris, the concessionaire formed by Veolia Eau, on the financing of the €260m 

Brussels-North wastewater treatment plant, in Belgium. 

• Charterhouse and Chequers Capital on HBI's €1.8bn bid for French catering 

company Elior, listed on the Paris stock exchange. 

• Charterhouse on the €1.1bn acquisition of Cegelec by LBO France from Charterhouse 

Development Capital Ltd and CDC Equity Capital. 

• The Royal Bank of Scotland plc and Calyon on the €880m refinancing facilities for 

Picard Surgelés Group. 

• The Royal Bank of Scotland plc on the financing of the €900m acquisition of Frans 

Bonhomme by private equity firm Cinven from Apax Partners. 

• A'liénor, the concession company established by Eiffage and Sanef, which has been 

selected as preferred bidder for the A65 motorway concession between Pau and 

Langon, on the structuring and financing of the project (value: €1bn). 

• The French Ministry of Transport on the structuring of the "Motorway of the Sea" 

PPP project between France and Spain. 

• The Royal Bank of Scotland plc on the financing of the upgrade renovation and 

operation of the Antibes waste-to-energy plant (South of France). 

• TP Ferro, ACS Dragados and Eiffage on the €1.15bn financing of the concession of 

the international section of the new high speed railway link between France 

(Perpignan) and Spain (Figueras). 

• BNP Paribas on the financing of the acquisition of Saur by PAI Partners from 

Bouygues, a deal valued at €1.037bn. 

• The different auditors and one of the main creditors on the €9bn debt restructuring of 

Eurotunnel. 

Page 7


4. Germany 

Frankfurt: Oberlindau 54-56, 60323 Frankfurt am Main 

T: +49 (0)69 97 11 26 F: +49 (0)69 97 20 52 20 

Munich: Prinzregentenstraße 18, 80538 Munich 

T: +49 (0)89 24 44 21 100 F: +49 (0)89 24 44 21 101 

Head of Ashurst Germany: Reinhard Eyring 

Managing partner Germany: Peter Junghänel 

Overview 

Ashurst has two offices in Germany in Frankfurt and Munich. Our Frankfurt office opened in 

1997 and our Munich office was established in 2001. We currently have 23 partners and over 

80 Rechtsanwalt, associates, tax consultants and solicitors across both offices. 

Our offices in Germany specialise in providing advice on corporate law, private equity, 

corporate finance, M&A, restructuring and insolvency, international finance, structured 

finance, real estate, employment law, commercial, intellectual property, media and film, IT, 

healthcare, competition and antitrust, public procurement law, energy, projects, tax, 

litigation/arbitration, cross-border judicial and arbitration proceedings as well as product 

liability 

Ashurst Germany has extensive experience in working with clients on the complex legal and 

regulatory issues relating to domestic and cross-border transactions. 



• Dresdner Bank and Bank of Ireland on the financing of the acquisition of Deutz 

Power Systems Group by private equity investor 3i. The total transaction value 

amounted to €360m. 

• Commerzbank AG, Frankfurt, on its bid for Berlin based Landesbank Berlin Holding 

AG (LBB) as part of an auction by the federal state of Berlin. 

• STADA Arzneimittel AG as bidder in a bidding process for the generic branch of 

Merck. It was finally sold for €4.9bn to the US pharmaceutical company. 

• Dubai International Capital on the acquisition of the packaging manufacturer 

Mauser AG. The value of the transaction was €850m. 

• Kiekert AG on the refinancing of its financial obligations. 

• Merlin Entertainment Group and Blackstone with regards to the merger of Merlin 

and Tussauds. 

• Hikma Pharmaceuticals PLC on the acquisition of Ratiopharm GmbH's subsidiary for 

oncological pharmaceuticals. The transaction value was €34.7m. 

Page 8


• Casa Reha and Advent International on the acquisition of the Sozialkonzept- 

Gruppe. 

• Cazenove AG and West LB with regard to the negotiations on an underwriting 

agreement for the IPO of Estavis AG. The transaction value was €92m. 

• Advent International on the €865m sale of Sportfive Group to Lagardère SCA. 

• Apollo Management LP on its €1.5bn acquisition of the Dutch TNT group's logistics 

branch. 

• Candover Partners on the sale of its stake in German PVC manufacturer Vestolit 

GmbH & Co. KG. 

• Merrill Lynch International on the assessment of the takeover of Allgemeine 

Hypothekenbank Rheinboden AG. 

• Ventizz Capital Fund III Holding Company LL.C. on a private equity investment in 

CardFactory AG. 

• The joint creditors of Deutsche Nickel/DNICK Ltd., including Bear Stearns, Morgan 

Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Varde Partners, in connection with the restructuring of 

bonds and loans in the amount of more than €350m as well as the takeover of the 

debtor through the use of a cross-border insolvency proceeding. 

• Bain Capital in connection with its sale of the Jack Wolfskin Group to Quadriga 

Capital. 

• Deutsche Bank AG on the issue of Credit and Equity Linked Notes. 

• Apollo Management LP on the German law aspects of the financing of Apollo's 

acquisition of the worldwide businesses of GE Bayer Silicones and Quartz for 

approximately US$4bn. 

• RWE Trading GmbH in respect of their global trading in energy derivatives. 

• Merrill Lynch International on a €514m CLO issued through Harvest CLO I S.A., the 

first European CLO of leveraged loans by a Japanese Bank. 

• ALNO AG on the acquisition of Gustav Wellmann GmbH & Co. KG and Casawell 

Service GmbH and the subsequent capital increase of ALNO AG and listing of new 

shares. 

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5. Hong Kong 

(in association with Jackson Woo & Associates) 

Address: Suites 1601-6, 16/F ICBC Tower, 3 Garden Road, Central, Hong Kong 

T: +852 2846 8989 F: +852 2868 0898 

Managing partner: Robert Ogilvy Watson 

Overview 

Ashurst Hong Kong, in association with Jackson Woo & Associates, opened in November 

2008. 

Working closely with our offices in Singapore and Tokyo, Ashurst Hong Kong builds on our 

long association with Asia. Our presence in Hong Kong demonstrates our commitment to 

grow our service to our clients in Asia, including the expansion of our existing offices in the 

region. 



• ANZ in connection with a Sinosure covered receivable purchase financing for a Chinese 

power cable and transmission line manufacturer. 

• ABN AMRO Bank N.V. in connection with a US$100m Sinosure covered receivable 

purchase financing for Huawei Telecommunications. 

• China Development Bank in relation to a US$750m ECB financing for Reliance 

Telecom and Reliance Communications in relation to Chinese telecoms equipment. 

• Balfour Beatty as constructor and consultant on a transmission line project in Hong 

Kong and the securitisation of Hong Kong residential mortgage receivables through the 

issue by Dragon MBS Limited of US$49,600,000 and HK$200,350,000 multi-tranche 

mortgage-backed floating rate notes. 

• China Eastern Airlines on two combined ECA/JLL Airbus financings. 

• China Real Estate Opportunities on its admission to AIM. 

• The Hong Kong Government on the development of the HK$13bn "cyber-port" to be 

developed by Pacific Century Group. 

• The Hong Kong Office of the Telecommunications Authority on licensing, 

regulatory and competition law matters. 

• Hutchison Corporate Access on VSAT regulation in India, Hong Kong and 

Singapore. 

• Investec Bank in relation to a cash placing in Singapore, Hong Kong and the UK by 

RC Group (Holdings). 

Page 10


• KazMunayGaz of Kazakhstan on the CPC pipeline project and its proposed Western 

Kazakhstan to China pipeline project. 

• Kvaerner plc in connection with the syndicated bonding facility for the Tsing Ma 

Bridge. 

• Marubeni Corporation on all legal aspects of bidding for the US$106.5m Chengdu 

No. 6 water plant B BOT project in Sichuan Province. 

• A US refile operator on the regulatory environment pertaining to the provision of 

refile services in selected Asian markets, including Hong Kong. 

• Chengtian Entertainment Group (International) Holding Company Limited on 

its acquisition of shares and convertible notes in Golden Harvest Entertainment 

(Holdings) Limited. 

• Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited on its joint venture with Hutchison Whampoa 

Limited and the acquisition of real estate assets in Shanghai, China at a total 

investment of approximately US$250m. 

• China Mining Resources Group Limited on its acquisition of an interest in a 

company engaged in exploration and exploitation of natural rutile and production of 

related products in China at an aggregate consideration of approximately US$100m. 

• Dynamic Holdings Limited on its disposal of a commercial property in Hong Kong 

and its acquisition of a commercial property in Shanghai, China for an aggregate 

consideration of approximately US$180m. 

• Enerchina Holdings Limited on its disposal of shares in Towngas China Company 

Limited. 

• Enric Energy Equipment Holdings Limited on its listing on The Stock Exchange of 

Hong Kong Limited by way of introduction. 

• Kailey Enterprises Limited on its disposal of interests in Ritz Carlton Hotel, Hong 

Kong. 

• Shougang Holding (Hong Kong) Limited on its acquisition of shares in a company 

listed in Hong Kong at an aggregate purchase price of approximately US$300m for the 

purpose of funding the acquisition of coal mining projects and coal preparation facilities 

in China for an aggregate consideration of approximately US$1.3bn. 

• Smart Rich Energy Finance (Holdings) Limited on its acquisition of a majority 

stake in a coal mine in Mongolia. 

Page 11


6. India 

Address: 6 Aurangzeb Road, D-1, New Delhi 110011 

All enquiries: Geoffrey Picton-Turbervill or Richard Gubbins in the London office 

Overview 

Ashurst is the only English law firm with an office in India. The liaison office was opened in 

New Delhi in 1994 and supports the firm's India practice by assisting in the provision of a 

wide range of information, research, fact finding and recommendation and follow-up on the 

instruction of local lawyers and other professionals. 

All India-related work is handled by Ashurst's experienced India team operating from 

London, Frankfurt, Milan, Paris, Singapore and Tokyo. Our India team includes over 30 

Indian and English qualified lawyers and advises on the handling and negotiation of bids, 

mergers and acquisitions, joint ventures, projects and commercial transactions in a wide 

range of sectors, and on understanding strategy and policy in India. 



• Rural Electrification Corporation on its US$400m (£196.80m) flotation on India's 

Bombay and National stock exchanges, handling the US securities law aspects of the 

float. 

• Nicholas Piramal India Limited on its successful acquisition of a manufacturing 

facility in the UK from Pfizer Inc, and on subsequent manufacturing and supply 

arrangements between the companies. 

• Mitsui & Co. on its successful acquisition of a 51 per cent stake in the Sesa Goa 

Group, one of India's largest iron ore mining companies. 

• Vedanta Resources plc on ongoing projects worldwide including advising on the 

issue of its US$725m 4.60 per cent Guaranteed Convertible Bonds due 2026. 

• Vedanta Resources plc in relation to bridge facilities used to acquire Finsider 

International Resources Limited, the majority shareholder of Sesa Goa Limited, a 

company listed on the Mumbai stock exchange and to fund the subsequent public offer 

for Sesa Goa shares. 

• ICICI Bank on ongoing projects worldwide including advising on total return swaps 

entered into by Aban Lloyd over shares in Sinvest SA. 

• Bharti Airtel on ongoing projects worldwide. 

• iC2 Capital, a UK and Dubai based fund, on its India investment strategy and on 

ongoing investments. 

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• Perseus LLC, a US based fund, on its India investment strategy and on ongoing 

investments. 

• FI Group PLC on its acquisition of ISS Infotech Limited and related matters, which 

was one of the first takeovers of an Indian listed company by an overseas company 

under the new Indian Takeover Regulations. 

• PowerGen on its participation in the 655 MW Gujarat Torrent Pagathan thermal power 

project at Gujarat State, one of the first privately financed power projects in India to 

reach financial close. 

• The Oil and Natural Gas Corporation of India on farm-in deals in Egypt, Tunisia 

and Yemen. 

• ONGC Videsh Limited and Mittal Steel on their joint bid, valued at approximately 

US$4bn, to acquire PetroKazakhstan Inc. 

• Unocal International Corporation on its sale to Burren Energy plc of a 26 per cent 

interest in the listed upstream oil and gas company Hindustan Oil Exploration 

Company Limited (through the sale of Unocal Bharat Limited). 

• Kuwait Petroleum Corporation on its bid to acquire IBP Limited, the Government of 

India's downstream retail petroleum company, as part of India's privatisation 

programme. 

• Reliance Industries Limited on a range of upstream and downstream gas matters 

including the development of its KG Block discoveries off the East Coast of India and 

the sales, transportation and marketing arrangements for that gas. 

• Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Securities Limited in relation to capital market and 

brokerage operations in India. 

• Domino Printing Sciences Ltd in relation to the purchase of a 100 per cent 

shareholding in Domino Printech India Private Limited, an Indian company in the 

business of inkjet and laser code printing systems and equipment. 

• British Telecommunications in relation to its Indian joint venture (Mahindra British 

Telecom), proposed IPO and offer for sale of BT's stake in the Indian joint venture. 

• Cinven Limited in relation to its acquisition of a 60 per cent stake in Medimedia 

Health Private Limited, an Indian company based in Bangalore. 

• Mitsubishi Corporation, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation and Korea Rolling 

Stock Corporation in relation to the procurement by Delhi Metro Corporation of 

rolling stock for the US$200m New Delhi Metro Project. 

• Abbey National on the outsourcing to an Indian service provider in Bangalore of 

certain call centre and business process functions. Connected with this project we have 

also assisted the client to establish its own Indian operations. 

• A major UK call centre operator on a joint venture with an Indian call centre 

operator for the outsourcing of certain of its operations including all corporate, 

regulatory and services provision advice and for the construction and operation of a 

2,000 seat call centre near Mumbai. 

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7. Italy 

Address: Via Sant'Orsola, 3, 20123 Milan 

T: +39 02 85 42 31 F: +39 02 85 42 34 44 

Head of Milan office: Daniele Raynaud 

Managing partner: Riccardo Agostinelli 

Overview 

Ashurst Milan (Studio Legale Associato ad Ashurst LLP) opened in April 2000 and is a 

separate entity affiliated with Ashurst LLP. There are currently over 30 lawyers in Milan 

including seven partners. The office specialises principally in company and commercial law, 

banking and leveraged, international law, tax, employment, intellectual property, insolvency, 

administrative and regulatory law, competition/antitrust, telecommunications, environmental 

law and both civil and commercial litigation. 

Ashurst Milan is particularly active in the fields of M&A, private equity, company 

restructuring, corporate and acquisition finance, joint ventures, public company work (both 

equity and debt, as well as convertible/exchangeable bonds) and in domestic and 

international tax planning. 

Clients include investment banks, domestic and international financial institutions, insurance 

companies, investment trusts, including overseas investment trusts, and domestic and 

multinational industrial and commercial companies. 



• Blackstone Capital Partners and Merlin Entertainments on the acquisition of 

Gardaland by Merlin Entertainments, the leisure group majority-owned by Blackstone, 

from Investindustrial and Aletti Merchant. 

• Banca Italease S.p.A. on the €266.5m financing made available by Banca Italease 

S.p.A., Unicredit Banca d'Impresa S.p.A. and Banca di Roma S.p.A. to certain closedend 

real estate hedge funds managed by Pirelli & C. Real Estate Opportunities - 

Società di Gestione del Risparmio S.p.A. 

• Banco Popolare di Verona e Novara S.c.r.l., as agent on the €400m long-term loan 

granted to Marcegaglia Industrial group. 

• Chemring Group plc on the acquisition of the entire issued share capital of Simmel 

Difesa S.p.A. 

• SG Capital Europe Ltd on the acquisition of Modo & Modo S.p.A. Modo & Modo is the 

current manufacturer of Moleskine notebooks, renowned historically as the preferred 

notebooks of intellectuals, artists and travellers in Europe. 

• Fondiaria-SAI S.p.A. on the joint venture with Banca Italease to develop their 

respective core businesses through the acquisition of a part of Fondiaria-SAI's banking, 

Page 14


consumer credit and fund management activities, as well as the execution of an 

agreement for the distribution of life insurance products through BancaSAI and Banca 

Italease. 

• Fondiaria-SAI S.p.A. on the acquisition of 51 per cent of the share capital of 

FinecoAssicurazioni S.p.A., a non-life insurance company owned by Capitalia S.p.A. 

• Milano Assicurazioni S.p.A. on the joint venture with US real estate company, the 

Hines Group, to invest in Milan's €600m "City of Fashion" project. 

• ING Bank NV, as arranger and global co-ordinator, and BNP Paribas and Banca 

Intesa S.p.A. in their capacity as joint mandated lead arrangers, on the €400m 

acquisition financing granted to Bridgepoint in relation to the acquisition of the Limoni 

group. 

• GE Real Estate Italia S.r.l on the acquisition of a 70 per cent stake in the Redwood 

closed-end real estate investment fund. The fund, which is open to qualified investors, 

owns a real estate portfolio with a total value of €130m and is managed by Valore 

Reale SGR. The outstanding 30 per cent stake was acquired by Lehman Brothers. 

• GE Real Estate Italia S.r.l. in relation to its first investment in the retail market in 

Italy. GE Real Estate Italia has acquired the gallery and medium surfaces of the 

Belvedere shopping centre in Melilli, Siracusa, Italy from Auchan S.p.A. and Minoter 

S.p.A., and Minoter S.p.A. respectively. The shopping centre is anchored by Auchan. 

• Mediobanca - Banca di Credito Finanziario S.p.A. on the financing of part of the 

cash consideration, up to around €3.3bn, payable under the mandatory and voluntary 

tender offers respectively for ordinary shares and warrants issued by Edison S.p.A. 

launched by Transalpina di Energia S.r.l. (indirectly jointly controlled by Aem S.p.A. 

and Electricité de France S.A.) in connection with its approximately €7.3bn acquisition 

of 100 per cent of the share capital of Edison S.p.A. 

• Banco Popolare di Verona e Novara S.c.r.l. on the senior mezzanine financing of 

the €300m acquisition of Gardaland S.p.A. by Aletti Marchant, Invest Industrial and J. 

Hirsch & Co. 

• Terra Firma Capital Partners on the acquisition of two cinema chains, Odeon and 

UCI, each for an undisclosed amount. 

• Fondiaria-SAI S.p.A. on the launch of a six-year bond issue for approximately 

€180m, mandatorily exchangeable into and redeemable by Banca Intesa S.p.A. 

ordinary shares. 

• BNP Paribas, Barclays Capital, CSFB and The Royal Bank of Scotland on the 

leveraged buy-out in relation to the acquisition, by an investors' consortium, of Seat 

Pagine Gialle from Telecom Italia for a total of €5.6bn. 

• The Royal Bank of Scotland plc as senior lender, The Royal Bank of Scotland plc 

and CIBC World Markets PLC, as joint lead mezzanine arrangers, and RBS 

Mezzanine Limited and CIBC World Markets PLC, as joint lead PIK arrangers, on 

€580m debt facilities in connection with the secondary buy-out of Global Garden from 

UBS Capital. 

Page 15


8. Japan 

Address: Shiroyama Trust Tower, 30th Floor, 4-3-1 Toranomon, Minato-Ku, 

Tokyo 105-6030, Japan 

T: +81 3 5405 6200 F: +81 3 5405 6222 

Managing partner: John McClenahan 

Overview 

Ashurst Tokyo opened in 1990 (a joint enterprise between Ashurst Gaikokuho Jimu Bengoshi 

Jimusho and Ashurst Tokyo Law Office) and is a separate entity associated with Ashurst LLP. 

Our Tokyo office has built up a high profile to become one of the leading international law 

firms in Japan. Ashurst Tokyo provides our clients with both Japanese and English law 

capability, further strengthening our practice in both the domestic and international markets. 

Ashurst Tokyo has over 25 lawyers including five partners. The team has substantial 

experience in advising banks, sponsors and contractors on major projects throughout Asia 

and the Middle East, particularly in the fields of power, telecommunications, transport 

infrastructure, mining, oil and gas and water projects. We also have significant banking and 

project finance expertise, having advised on financings throughout Asia. Our Asian offices 

work closely together on a wide variety of transactions, not only in their host jurisdiction but 

throughout the Asia-Pacific region and the Middle East. 



• Laird Technologies Limited in relation to the merger of Laird Technologies Japan 

K.K. (Laird Japan) with Nippon RFI Shielding K.K. (Nippon RFI) and the consolidation 

of the businesses of Laird Japan, Nippon RFI and RFI Shielding (Japan) Limited. 

• Virgin Holdings SA on the sale of Virgin Cinemas Japan K.K. to Toho Co., Ltd. This 

takeover transaction involved the purchase by Virgin Holdings SA of the entire 

shareholding of the Virgin Group's cinema business in Japan and subsequent resale. 

The value of the transaction remains confidential. 

• V2 Music Group Ltd. on the structuring of its Japan music distribution business. 

• Virgin Entertainment Japan Ltd. on the investment by Antfactory Japan K.K. and 

other institutional investors and related transactions in its Japanese cinemas business, 

Virgin Cinemas Japan K.K. 

• Japan Leisure Hotels Limited on a placing of its issued and to be issued ordinary 

shares, issue of warrants and admission to trading on AIM. 

• Brunei Methanol Company Sdn Bhd and its shareholders on the US$360m limited 

recourse financing of an 850,000 tonne per year methanol production facility at the 

Sungai Liang Industrial Park in Brunei. 

Page 16


• Marubeni Corporation and Vivendi for the purpose of establishing a new joint 

venture company in Japan to access infrastructure development opportunities 

specifically in the water and waste water industries. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) on the proposed financing of the 

new international passenger terminal III at Ninoy Aquino International Airport, 

Philippines. 

• Mitsui & Co., Ltd on its US$2.3bn acquisition, in a partnership with International 

Power plc, of the international generation portfolio of Edison Mission Energy. This deal 

was voted Project Finance Deal of the Year 2005 (Japan) by Asian Legal Business 

magazine. 

• Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Co. Ltd in relation to its successful tender and 

negotiation (together with consortium members Mitsubishi Corporation, Obayashi, 

Kajima and Yapi) for the US$3.4bn EPC contract to supply the Dubai Light Rail System 

to the Dubai Municipality. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) in relation to its proposed 

participation in the limited recourse financing of the 1400 MW coal-fired Kaeng Khoi II 

power plant in Thailand. 

• Sumitomo Corporation as contractor in relation to its successful tenders for the EPC 

contracts for the 2100 MW (3 x 700 MW) coal-fired power plant at Tanjung Bin, Johor, 

and the 1400 MW coal-fired Jimah power plant in Port Dickson and the 750 MW gasfired 

Port Dickson Phase II power plant at Port Dickson, all in Malaysia. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), BNP Paribas and The Bank 

of Tokyo-Mitsubishi on the buyer's credit financing of two container vessels for the 

Evergreen Group. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) on the financing for the 

construction of the US$412m 716.8 MW Phu My 3 combined gas turbine facility in 

Vietnam. 

• Asian Development Bank as lead investor for a number of private equity investment 

funds with an aggregate value in excess of US$1.2bn including the Actis China Fund II 

and the Baring India Private Equity Fund II. 

• Mitsui & Co., Ltd and MODEC in relation to the development and financing of the 

Baobab FPSO to be located off the Ivory Coast, and the Exeter Mutineer FPSO to be 

located off Western Australia. 

• Shinsei Bank and Aozora Bank on a number of leveraged finance deals ranging in 

value from JPY2bn-5bn. 

• The Mitsubishi Trust and Banking Corporation on its proposed investments in a 

number of investment funds. 

• Aozora Bank as investor in Carlyle Asian Real Estate Partners, L.P. and Union Capital 

Partners II, L.P. 

• Mitsui, Mitsubishi, Daicel Chemicals and Iino Kauin on the development of a 

US$350m greenfield methanol production facility in Saudi Arabia. 

• SK Telecom on a unique satellite co-ownership project. 

Page 17


9. Singapore 

Address: 55 Market Street, #07-01, Singapore 048941 

T: +65 6221 2214 F: +65 6221 5484 

Managing partner: Matthew Bubb 

Overview 

Ashurst Singapore opened in 1996 and advises on projects throughout Asia in the banking 

and finance, project development, energy and natural resources, infrastructure, dispute 

resolution, restructuring and distressed investments, M&A and corporate sectors. Our 25 

lawyers in Singapore, including 5 partners, are involved in transactions throughout Asia and 

the Middle East, as well as other parts of the world and work with sponsors, lenders, large 

regional and international corporates and governments. 

Our lawyers are qualified in England, Scotland, Australia, Singapore, New York and India 

and speak several languages including Mandarin and Hindi. In particular, the team works 

closely with our Hong Kong, Tokyo, New Delhi and Middle Eastern offices to ensure that 

specialist skills are available as and where our clients require them. 

Ashurst Singapore does not currently provide local law advice, rather we work with a number 

of local law firms to provide a seamless service to our clients. 



• Hong Kong Shanghai Banking Corporation, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking 

Corporation, The Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd, Dexia Banque 

Internationale à Luxembourg S.A. Singapore Branch and DZ BANK AG on the 

project financing of the new ITE College West campus in Singapore. ("Asia Counsel 

Deal of the Year 2008" and "PPP Deal of the Year (Asia Pacific) 2008" - Project Finance 

International Magazine). 

• DBS Bank in relation to a $140 million project financing for district cooling facilities to 

the Singapore Integrated Resort and other Singapore developments. 

• Mitsui and Pertamina and SMBC on the development and financing of a billion dollar 

expansion of the Cilacap refinery in Java, Indonesia. 

• PowerGas in relation to the development and financing of the Singapore LNG 

Terminal (the first LNG receiving terminal in South East Asia) (on-going). 

• PowerSeraya Limited, one of Singapore's largest power generators, on a SG$450m 

term and revolving credit facility. 

• Singapore Sports Hub Consortium (SSHC) lenders on the SG$800m Singapore 

Sports Hub project, the largest PPP project to be procured in Asia to date. 

Page 18


• Brunei Methanol Company Sdn Bhd and its shareholders on the US$360m limited 

recourse financing of an 850,000 tonne per year methanol production facility at the 

Sungai Liang Industrial Park in Brunei. 

• DBS Bank in relation to its financing of a bid for the new Changi NEWater Project. 

• Mitsui & Co., Ltd. as bidder, sponsor and preferred equity financier on the US$6bn 

acquisition and financing of 13 power stations from Edison Mission Energy. 

• The Government of Hong Kong in connection with the HK$16bn "Cyberport" project 

being developed by Pacific Century CyberWorks in Hong Kong. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) on the financing of the Kaeng 

Khoi II gas-fired power project in Thailand. 

• Singapore Mass Rapid Transit on its maiden S$500m non-secured bond issue. 

• SOCO International plc on the disposal of its oil and gas assets in Mongolia to a 

Chinese state-owned enterprise. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and 16 other commercial banks 

on a US$810m financing of six LNG tankers for six Malaysian borrowers. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) as the largest lender on the Phu 

My III Power Project in Vietnam. 

• A subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation on the US$3bn development and 

financing of four associated petrochemical projects in Kuwait. 

• An Indonesian investment company in its acquisition of two power stations in 

Indonesia and China from Singapore Power International. 

• ANZ Bank on the financing of the new multi-use terminal at Adelaide Airport. 

• The Combined Steering Committee in the US$12bn debt restructuring of Asia Pulp & 

Paper. 

• The Government of Cambodia on oil and gas development in maritime territory the 

subject of dispute with Thailand and the establishment of a hydrocarbon joint 

development zone. 

• Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) as lender to the Mindanao IPP in 

the Philippines. 

• Marubeni Corporation on the US$1.2bn restructuring of the Chandra Asri 

Petrochemical Project in Indonesia. 

• International Finance Corporation and ING Bank as financiers to the Gul Ahmed 

IPP in Pakistan, including consideration of possible Islamic financing structures. 

• Kuwait Petroleum Corporation on the import of gas from Qatar and Iran and the 

associated development of undersea pipelines. 

• ONGC–Videsh on the acquisition of an interest in the Kurmangazy field located within 

the Russia/Kazakhstan joint development area in the Caspian Sea. 

Page 19


10. Spain 

Address: Alcalá, 44, 28014 Madrid 

T: +34 91 364 9800 F: +34 91 364 9801/02 

Managing partner: Gonzalo Jiménez-Blanco 

Overview 

Ashurst Madrid opened in January 2001 and currently has around 58 lawyers, including 

seven partners, and a senior economist who is Director of Competition. The office specialises 

in company law, M&A and private equity, leveraged, structured and acquisition finance, 

project finance, capital markets, tax, real estate, competition law, employment, insolvency 

and restructuring, litigation and arbitration across a variety of sectors including 

telecommunications, media and technology and energy, transport and infrastructure. 

Ashurst Madrid has advised national and international clients in the main industry sectors 

and has a strong and active domestic client base of corporates, banks and institutions. 

Our team comes from a diversity of backgrounds, complementing each other in their skills 

and experience base. The majority come from leading Spanish and international law firms, 

but a number of them also have specialist experience from having worked for public 

administrations, government bodies, banks and corporates. 



• Sun Capital Partners and Pearl Group on the acquisition of 1,152 freeholds 

comprising substantially all the bank branch network of Banco Santander for a cash 

consideration in excess of €2bn. 

• National Express on its €659m acquisition of Continental Auto. 

• Aviva International Holdings Limited on the establishment of a joint venture with 

Caja de Ahorros de Murcia to provide life assurance services to Spanish customers. 

• Inmobiliaria Chamartín, S.A. on the €520m acquisition financing of the Portuguese 

group Amorim, a leading real estate company in Portugal. 

• Telefónica Publicidad e Información, the Spanish telephone directories listed 

company, in relation to the €1.838bn acquisition by Yell Group Plc, the UK-based 

international directory, of 59.9 per cent of the share capital. 

• Barclays Capital and The Royal Bank of Scotland on the acquisition of USP 

Hospitales by CINVEN. 

• TA Associates on the €153m leveraged buy-out of eDreams, the fastest growing 

online travel company in Southern Europe. This is the largest e-commerce LBO in 

Southern Europe to date. 

Page 20


• Vista Capital on the financing and certain corporate aspects of the acquisition of 

Indas. 

• Barclays Bank in relation to the €1.215bn financing of the bid by Constructora San 

José for Parquesol Inmobiliaria, S.A. 

• Royal Bank of Scotland, Caja Madrid and BBVA in relation to the €138m project to 

design, construct, operate, maintain and finance the Plaza Castilla interchange station 

in Madrid. 

• Hines Group and CalPERS in relation to the structuring, financing and setting up of a 

joint venture to invest US$1bn in residential holiday projects on the Spanish sunbelt. 

• Apax Partners España, S.A. in relation to the acquisition and financing aspects of 

the €900m management buy-out of the Spanish food company, Panrico, S.A. 

• J.P. Morgan plc, ING Bank N.V. London Branch and The Royal Bank of Scotland 

plc in relation to the €1.36bn financing of the acquisition by Permira and PAI of 

Spanish listed company Cortefiel, S.A. 

• Crédit Suisse First Boston, Barclays Capital, Merrill Lynch International, J.P. 

Morgan Plc and The Royal Bank of Scotland plc in relation to the €4bn-plus 

financing of the acquisition by BC Partners and Cinven of Spanish-based Amadeus 

Global Travel Distribution, a listed company. 

• Sevilla FC and Santa Mónica Sports before the Commercial Courts and the 

Competition Authorities in relation to an abuse of dominance and an anticompetitive 

agreement in the market for football television rights in Spain, and a related merger 

filing. 

• The TP Ferro Consortium, comprising the ACS, Dragados and Eiffage groups, on the 

second Perpignan to Figueras high speed rail link project between France and Spain, 

valued at €1.15bn. 

Page 21


11. Sweden 

Address: Birger Jarlsgatan 6B, Box 55564, 102 04 Stockholm 

T: +46 (0)8 407 24 00 F: +46 (0)8 407 24 40 

Head of Stockholm office: Jonas Bergh 

Managing partner: Katarina Goulet 

Overview 

Ashurst Stockholm (Ashurst Advokatbyrå AB) opened in January 2007 and is a separate 

entity affiliated with Ashurst LLP. There are currently 35 lawyers in Stockholm including four 

partners. The office specialises in all aspects of M&A and private equity transactions, capital 

markets, general corporate and company/commercial law matters, international finance and 

real estate. 

In addition, our lawyers have expertise in litigation, EC and competition law, employment 

law as well as in information technology, intellectual property and commercial contracts. 

Ashurst Stockholm advises both national clients and international clients with interests in the 

Nordic region. 



• The Royal Bank of Scotland plc on the £237m financing of the acquisition of 

Tunstall Group Holdings Limited by Charterhouse Capital Partners. 

• EQT and Investor on the privatisation of Vin & Sprit for a value of SEK55bn 

(unsuccessful bid). 

• Kungsleden AB on its acquisition of a portfolio of real properties for a deal value of 

SEK955m. 

• Bank of America and JPMorgan Chase Bank on the financing of Nasdaq's bid on 

OMX AB. 

• Kungsleden AB on their acquisition of a portfolio of real properties for the deal value 

of SEK180m. 

• Valad Properties on its acquisition of a portfolio of real properties for a deal value of 

SEK2.4bn. 

• Arvid Nordquist H.A.B. on its sale of real estate for a deal value of SEK225m. 


SEK152m. 


SEK125m. 

Page 22



SEK175m. 

• The shareholders of Malå Geoscience Förvaltnings AB on their SEK100m sale to 

Guideline Oil Drilling Technology. 

• ICA Fastigheter Sverige AB on the sale of a portfolio of real properties for a value of 

SEK199m. 

• Cinven on the €540m secondary buy-out of Coor Service Management Group. 

• ICA Fastigheter Sverige AB on the disposal of 28 store properties located around 

Sweden for a value of SEK601m. 

• Deutsche Bank on the planned IPO of a Danish Healthcare company on the 

Copenhagen Stock Exchange. 

• Société Général as senior lender and ICG as mezzanine lender in connection with the 

financing of 3i's acquisition of Inspecta. 

• SEB and Swedbank as senior lenders, ICG as mezzanine lender and ICG as junior 

mezzanine lender in connection with the financing of Altor Equity Partner's acquisition 

of the Q-MATIC/QM-group. 

• ICA Fastigheter Sverige AB on the sale of two real properties to Standard Life 

Investments European Property Growth Fund for a value of SEK237m. 

• Prudential Property Investment Managers on the SEK380m purchase of building 

on behalf of M&G European Property Fund. 

• Kungsleden AB on the SEK532m acquisition of eight logistics properties. 

• TeliaSonera against Tele2 regarding compensation for co-ordinated traffic of 

telecommunication. Tele2 has been ordered to compensate TeliaSonera with 

approximately SEK600m, including interest. 

• Deutsche Bank and UBS on the €2.1bn accelerated bookbuild for the Kingdom of 

Sweden's shares in TeliaSonera AB. 

• Kaye Scholer (US law firm) in connection with Jarden Corporation's US$400m 

acquisition of Pure Fishing Inc. 

• Holiday Club Sweden AB on the SEK1.5bn establishment of a hotel resort in 

Västervik, Sweden. 

• SEB, DnB/NoR and Nykredit as senior lenders and SEB and ICG as mezzanine 

lenders in relation to the separation of Duni and deSter and subsequent refinancing. 

• Kungsleden on the SEK232m acquisition of two real properties. 

• Fred Olsen Production ASA on its US$190m private placement. 

• Apax Partners on the €2.85bn sale of Mölnlycke Health Care to Investor AB and 

Morgan Stanley. 

• Northern European Properties on the €162m IPO on AIM. 

Page 23


12. United Arab Emirates 

Abu Dhabi: Regus Al Bateen Business Centre, PO Box 113100, Building C6, 

Bainunah (34th) Street, Abu Dhabi 

T: +971 (0)2 406 9866 F: +971 (0)2 406 9840 

Managing partner: David Wadham 

Dubai: Level 5, Gate Precinct Building 3, Dubai International Financial Centre, 

PO Box 119974, Dubai 

T: +971 (0)4 365 2000 F: +971 (0)4 365 2050 

Managing partner: Nick Bryans 

Overview 

Ashurst has two offices in the United Arab Emirates. One in Abu Dhabi and the other in 

Dubai. Ashurst Abu Dhabi opened in June 2008 and Ashurst Dubai in September 2005 and, 

working closely together, they represent the firm's interests in the Middle East. 

Ashurst has a long association with the Middle East, spanning nearly 100 years of the firm's 

history. The Middle East is a key market for many businesses, and our presence in Abu Dhabi 

and Dubai is a reflection of our commitment to the region. 

Across the firm we have a team of experienced lawyers who have worked extensively on 

deals involving the Middle East and who can offer a wealth of practical advice to clients in a 

wide range of business sectors. 

With a team of lawyers including six partners, the focus of Ashurst in the UAE is on energy, 

transport and infrastructure projects, corporate finance and international structured finance. 

As a leading full service international legal practice, we are able to offer a full range of legal 

services to our clients, including (in addition to those above), real estate, litigation and 

arbitration, trade finance, regulatory, commercial and tax. 


Our recent experience in the Middle East includes advising: 

• Serco plc as the preferred bidder to operate and maintain the first two lines of Dubai's 

new Metro system. 

• Calyon, Citigroup and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation as structuring 

banks and Japan Bank for International Cooperation on the successful financing 

of the Fujairah F3 independent water and power project in the Emirate of Fujairah, 

United Arab Emirates. 

• Dubai International Capital LLC (DIC) on the €850m acquisition of the packaging 

manufacturer Mauser AG from One Equity Partner. 

• Airport International Group P.S.C. on the financing of the Queen Alia International 

Airport in Amman, valued at US$680m. 

Page 24


• Dubai International Capital LLC (DIC) through to the last round of the bidding 

process for ista International GmbH. 

• Arab Banking Corporation on its bids to acquire Sahara Bank and Al Wahda Bank. 

• JP Morgan Cazenove in respect of the AIM IPO of Lamprell and Lamprell's move to 

the Official List. 

• Hikma Pharmaceuticals Plc, the multinational pharmaceuticals group, on its 

acquisition of Arab Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Company (APM) for a total cash 

consideration of US$163.6m. 

• Calyon, Citigroup and Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation as structuring 

banks and Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) on the successful 

financing of the Fujairah F2 independent water and power project in the Emirate of 

Fujairah, United Arab Emirates. 

• Mitsubishi Heavy Industries as preferred bidder in relation to the US$3.4bn Dubai 

Metro project. 

• Petrochemical Industries Company (K.S.C.) (PIC) of Kuwait, a wholly-owned 

subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, on the formation of two significant new joint 

ventures in the petrochemicals sector. PIC and The Dow Chemical Company (Dow) have 

formed two 50/50 global joint ventures in Canada and Europe through the sale by Dow 

to PIC of a 50 per cent interest in its Canadian ethylene glycol assets, and a 50 per cent 

interest in its PET/PTA business which includes assets in Germany and Italy. 

• PIC in relation to the US$2.5bn expansion of the Equate petrochemical project in 

Kuwait and new styrene monomer production facility, also undertaken as a joint 

venture between PIC and Dow. Ashurst has also been advising on the US$1bn 

aromatics project being developed by PIC in Kuwait. Together, this is one of the 

largest combined petrochemical projects underway in the Middle East (involving, in 

fact, five interrelated projects). 

• Kuwait Petroleum Corporation on a major project to import gas from Iran through 

a sub-sea pipeline across the Gulf. We have been closely involved in this project since 

its inception, and this work follows our extensive involvement in the project to import 

pipeline gas from Qatar. 

• Sumitomo Chemical Co., Ltd. in relation to joint venture and supply contract 

negotiations with Saudi Aramco, project development and financial structuring of the 

refurbishment, expansion and development of a US$5bn refined product and 

petrochemical facility in Saudi Arabia. 

• The Japanese consortium JAMC (owned by Mitsui & Co., Ltd, Mitsubishi 

Corporation, Daicel Chemical Industries and Iino Kauin) on their investment in 

and the limited recourse financing of a US$380m methanol production facility in Al 

Jubail, Saudi Arabia. 

• The State of Kuwait on the inter-governmental agreement and associated 

international law issues underlying its offshore joint development area arrangements 

with Saudi Arabia as part of a renegotiation of Kuwait's concession contracts. We also 

advised as part of this project on the development of a framework between the States 

for co-operation and facilitation of projects developed within the same area and scope 

of the inter-governmental agreement and on a US$750m financing sourced from a 

syndicate of Japanese banks. 

Page 25


13. United Kingdom 

Address: Broadwalk House, 5 Appold Street, London EC2A 2HA 

T: +44 (0)20 7638 1111 F: +44 (0)20 7638 1112 

Senior partner: Charlie Geffen 

Managing partner: Simon Bromwich 

Overview 

Ashurst London has over 100 partners and around 500 other lawyers. Our areas of expertise 

include: 

• Competition and EU law 

− anti-competitive practices, abuse of 

dominance and monopoly abuse 

− brand and intellectual property rights 

− business strategies and compliance 

programmes 

− cartel investigations 

− commercial agreements 

− litigation and dispute resolution 

− lobbying 

− mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures 

− public procurement 

− state aid 

− trade law 

− utilities regulation 

• Corporate 

− corporate advice 

− corporate derivatives 

− equity capital markets 

− financial institutions 

− hedge funds 

− investment funds 

− M&A and corporate finance 

− prime brokerage 

− private equity and buy-outs 

− restructuring and special situations 

− sport 

− US securities and M&A 

• Employment, incentives and pensions 

− employee benefits and incentives 

− employment 

− pensions 

• Energy, transport and infrastructure 

− energy 

− environmental and health & safety 

Page 26 

− PFI/PPP 

− public international law 

− transport 

• International finance 

− leveraged finance 

− project finance 

− real estate finance 

− securities and structured finance 

• Litigation 

− banking and finance 

− commercial 

− contentious construction 

− energy, transport and infrastructure 

− Competition and EU 

− financial regulatory 

− insolvency 

− intellectual property and information 

technology 

− international arbitration 

− product liability and environmental 

− real estate 

− tax 

• Real estate 

− construction 

− development 

− investment sales and purchases 

− leasing 

− planning and public sector 

− portfolio management 

− real estate finance and funds 

− real estate partnerships 

− urban regeneration

• Tax 

− acquisition structuring 

− international holding and financing 

structures 

− private equity 

− stamp duty 

− structured products 

− VAT 



• Technology and commercial 

− commercial contracts 

− communications 

− healthcare 

− information technology 

− intellectual property 

− outsourcing 


• Apax Partners on the £1bn offer by Eden Bidco, a newly incorporated company 

formed by funds advised by Apax and Guardian Media Group for the entire issued and 

to be issued share capital of Emap plc. 

• The underwriters on Imperial Tobacco Group PLC's proposed £5.4bn rights issue to 

fund its recommended cash offer for Altadis. 

• Ambac, FSA and EIB as funders, Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley as the lead 

underwriters as well as the security trustee on the Barts and The Royal London 

Hospitals PFI Project valued at approximately £1bn. 

• Goldman Sachs consortium on its £10bn bid for BAA plc. 

• Goldman Sachs & Co., which acted as financial adviser to NTL Incorporated (ntl), in 

connection with ntl's recommended cash offer with share or share and cash alternative 

offers, for the issued and to be issued share capital of Virgin Mobile Holdings (UK) plc 

(Virgin Mobile). 

• Gala on its £2.18bn acquisition of bookmaking chain Coral Eurobet, creating a £4bnplus 

gambling group. 

• Credit Suisse First Boston International, Barclays Capital, Merrill Lynch 

International, J.P. Morgan plc, and The Royal Bank of Scotland on the €4.3bn 

financing of the acquisition of Amadeus in Spain's largest leveraged buy-out. 

• Citigroup Global Markets and Goldman Sachs International on Telefónica's 

agreed £17.7 bn takeover of O2 plc. 

• Barclays Capital on its provision of £1.35bn of debt financing for the buy-out of the 

Automobile Association (AA). 

• RR Donnelley & Sons Company on its US$990m acquisition of The Astron Group. 

• US drinks company Constellation Brands in relation to its preliminary approach to 

Allied Domecq plc. 

• Deutsche Börse on its proposed offer for the London Stock Exchange. 

• Revival Acquisitions Limited in relation to its £9bn offer for Marks and Spencer plc. 

• Catlin Group Limited on its IPO and London Stock Exchange listing. 

Page 27


• Weetabix in relation to the agreed sale of the British breakfast cereal company to 

Latimer Acquisitions, for approximately £642m. 

• Debenhams Plc in connection with offers for the company, including the accepted 

offer of £1.72bn from CVC Capital Partners, Texas Pacific Group and Merrill Lynch 

Global Private Equity. 

• Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc in relation to its £2.9bn recommended offer for 

Safeway plc. 

• BNP Paribas, Barclays Capital, CSFB and The Royal Bank of Scotland in relation 

to a private equity consortium's agreed purchase of yellow pages business Seat Pagine 

Gialle from Telecom Italia. This is one of Europe's largest ever buy-outs. 

• Railtrack Group on the sale of Railtrack Plc and the return of capital to shareholders. 

• 3i Group, Providence Equity Partners and David Elstein on the US$242m 

acquisition of Crown Media Holdings' international business. The acquisition includes 

the international versions of the Hallmark Channel distributed outside the United 

States to 152 countries, the international rights to the Crown Media library and a 

state-of-the-art broadcast facility in Denver, Colorado, which continues to distribute 

the channels across the world. 

• Terra Firma Capital Partners in relation to its acquisition of two of the UK's largest 

cinema chains, Odeon and UCI, for an undisclosed amount. 

• Blackstone Group International on the acquisition of the Southern Cross care 

homes group from West Private Equity for £162m. 

• State Street in relation to contracts to provide investment operations services to AXA 

Investment Managers for more than €300bn assets under management. 

• Deutsche Bank AG London as the arranger of Jazz CDO II B.V., the second cutting 

edge hybrid funded and synthetic collateralised debt obligation (CDO) for asset 

manager AXA Investment Managers Paris S.A. 

• A consortium comprising Sodexho Alliance S.A., Interserve plc and The Royal 

Bank of Scotland, in connection with a major private finance initiative (PFI) prison 

project in Ashford, Middlesex. 

• The banks in connection with TLLC Limited's £712m acquisition of Travelodge and 

Little Chef from Compass Group, the world's largest food service company. 

• The arranger of and investors in Tottenham Hotspur Football Club's £75m 

securitisation. This is the largest ever privately placed bond issue by a football club in 

Europe. 

• Westfield Shoppingtowns Limited on the £2bn development of the 150 acre 

Stratford City and the Olympic Village site and the £2bn development of Westfield 

London, a shopping centre development at White City. 

• The IO Group on the structuring and establishment of EHI Fund, a high income fund 

investing in industrial real estate in Holland, Denmark, France and Germany, worth 

approximately €700m. 

Page 28


• Centrica plc on the acquisition of a 60 per cent interest in Humber Power Limited 

which owns and operates the 1260 MW gas fuelled Humber Power Plant in 

Stallingborough, North-East Lincolnshire. 

• Debswana Diamond Company (Proprietary) Limited, a joint venture between De 

Beers and the Government of Botswana, on the US$18.4bn take private of De Beers. 

• United News & Media (now United Business Media) on the sale of Express 

Newspapers to Northern & Shell. 

• Barclays Capital, Merrill Lynch International and UBS Warburg on their provision 

of finance to the Ineos Group for the purposes of a cross-jurisdictional corporate 

reorganisation, refinancing of existing debt (including funding a tender for a bond) and 

acquisition of businesses in Germany and the US. 

• Reuters on a £50m p.a. global outsourcing of IS&T functions to Fujitsu Services 

Group. 

• Silence Therapeutics on its collaboration with AstraZeneca, generating up to 

US$400m. 

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14. United States 

New York: 1 Penn Plaza, 36th Floor, New York, NY 10119 

T: +1 212 245 4540 F: +1 212 245 4335 

Office head: William Gray 

Washington DC: 1725 I St NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20006 

T: +1 202 349 1111 F: +1 202 349 3838 

Office head: Scott Faga 

Overview 

Ashurst New York opened in January 2000 in midtown Manhattan. The office provides a US 

base for the firm's worldwide clients, giving them easy access to lawyers in our European 

and Asian offices and providing more immediate "face to face" advice and assistance on 

English and European matters during US hours. The office enables Ashurst to build on our 

existing relationships and to work closely with local law firms as required. 

In March 2009 Ashurst expanded its offering to include US structured finance capabilities. An 

expert team of specialists provide advice in a wide variety of structured products, including 

credit and equity derivatives, distressed debt, municipal bonds, structured lending, funds, 

CLOs/CDOs, general US securities advice, tax issues and ERISA. 

Ashurst Washington DC opened in March 2009 with a team of lawyers providing corporate 

finance and structured finance advice. The office advises on a wide variety of structured 

products including credit, equity and other derivatives, distressed debt, municipal bonds 

(including gas prepay transactions), structured lending, funds, CLOs/CDOs, tender option 

bond programmes, liquidity facilities and credit enhancement, general US securities advice 

and tax issues. In addition, the office advises on a wide range of lending transactions 

(including acquisition, senior syndicated, mezzanine, asset-based financings and repo 

financings) and corporate finance transactions (involving both equity and debt). 

Page 30

About Ashurst - myAshurst

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