Samira Afrasiabi

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) has announced the appointment of 27 new partners with effect from 1 May 2022. The new partners are drawn from all of the firm’s market-leading practices and reflect the breadth and depth of Freshfields’ global expertise. The group brings diverse experience, skills and insights to the partnership. Freshfields’ Senior Partner Georgia Dawson said: “We are absolutely delighted to welcome such a talented and diverse group of colleagues to our global partnership. We are excited about what they will bring to Freshfields and our clients, and the contribution they will make to the long-term success of the firm and the communities in which we live and work.” The full list of new partners is set out below: Antitrust, Competition and Trade Tom McGrath, London Merit Olthoff, Brussels Jan Rybnicek, Washington, DC Ermelinda Spinelli, Milan / Rome Dispute Resolution Nina Bayerl, Munich Kate Gough, London Eric Leikin, CE / Vienna Xin Liu, Hong Kong Daniel Travers, Düsseldorf Ricky Versteeg, London Anne-Laure Vincent, Paris Tom Walsh, New York Global Transactions Samira Afrasiabi, London Alon Gordon, London Sami Jebbour, Paris Ziyad Nassif, London Elizabeth Oberholzer, Munich Saloua Ouchan, Amsterdam Philipp Pütz, Düsseldorf Sarah Su, Hong Kong Johannes Vogel, Frankfurt David Yi, Hong Kong Tamara Young, London Zheng (Jonathan) Zhou, New York People & Reward Thomas Granetzny, Düsseldorf Frank Schaer, Frankfurt Tax Kathi Kubik, Vienna

Apr 7

1 min

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) has advised General Atlantic’s BeyondNetZero on its lead investment in Venterra’s fourth fundraising round of £150 million. Venterra is an offshore wind energy services business, formed to champion the industry’s rapid expansion and play a leading role in the energy transition. BeyondNetZero, the climate solutions fund for General Atlantic, invests in growth companies delivering innovative climate solutions that have the potential to meet and exceed net zero emissions targets, with a focus on decarbonization, energy efficiency, resource conservation and emissions management. BeyondNetZero’s investment, subject to certain conditions, will support Venterra in its growth strategy. Upon completion of the current funding round, Lord Browne, Chairman of Climate & Sustainability investing at General Atlantic, will be appointed as Non-Executive Director of Venterra. The Freshfields team advising on the transaction was led by partners Samira Afrasiabi and Victoria Sigeti, counsel Bukunola Alakija, and associates Emily Gidda, Samuel Sun and Simon Valls. They were supported by a team including partners Paul van den Berg, Jill Gatehouse, Andrew Murphy and Andrea Basham.

Aug 4

1 min

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) advises bp on the sale to funds managed by Apollo of a non-controlling stake in bp Pipelines TAP Limited, the bp subsidiary that holds a 20 per cent interest in Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG, in a transaction valued at approximately US$1 billion. The transaction is expected to close in 4Q 2024, subject to customary regulatory and partner approvals. Trans Adriatic Pipeline AG is the owner and operator of a key infrastructure asset for meeting European energy demand - the final 880-kilometre leg of the Southern Gas Corridor pipeline system that transports natural gas from the bp-operated Shah Deniz gas field in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea to markets in Europe such as Greece and Italy. The Freshfields team was led by partners Samira Afrasiabi and Graham Watson, counsel Bukunola Alakija, and senior associate Henry Chau. Tax advice was provided by partner Helen Buchanan, and senior associates David Haughey and Joshua Critchlow. Regulatory advice was provided by partner Alastair Chapman, counsel Giorgio Candeloro and senior associate Rory Jones.

Sep 19

1 min

Freshfields is advising Rolls-Royce SMR Limited (Rolls-Royce SMR) on its partnership with CEZ Group (CEZ), which includes an c.20% equity investment by CEZ and a strategic partnership to enable the development, construction and deployment of small modular reactors (SMRs) in the UK and Czech Republic. The proposed transaction strengthens Rolls-Royce SMR’s ability to deploy SMR technology in Europe and globally, and puts CEZ, Rolls-Royce SMR and its existing shareholders at the forefront of SMR deployment. These efforts further support the UK and Europe to reach their ambitious net zero goals and contribute solutions to address the challenges of climate change. Subject to customary regulatory clearances and security assessments, the proposed transaction is expected to close during 2025. The Freshfields team is being led by partners Samira Afrasiabi, Vanessa Jakovich and Nick Jones and senior associate Marc McCaughey. Regulatory advice is being provided by partner Thomas McGrath and senior associate Daniel Wylde. Intellectual property advice is being provided by partner David Brooks and senior associate Ben Cohen. Tax advice is being provided by partner David Haworth

Nov 6

1 min

Global law firm Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer (‘Freshfields’) has advised BASF on the merger between Wintershall Dea AG (‘Wintershall Dea’) and Harbour Energy plc (“Habour”). The merger agreement provides for the transfer of Wintershall Dea's E&P business to Harbour. This includes production and development assets as well as exploration rights in Norway, Argentina, Germany, Mexico, Algeria, Libya (excluding Wintershall AG), Egypt and Denmark (excluding Ravn) as well as Wintershall Dea's carbon capture and storage (CCS) licences. In return, the shareholders of Wintershall Dea - BASF (72.7%) and LetterOne (27.3%) - will receive a total cash payment of USD 2.15 billion (BASF share: USD 1.56 billion) plus new Harbour shares to be issued by Harbour, representing a total shareholding in the enlarged Harbour of 54.5% (BASF share: 39.6%) upon completion of the transaction. The agreed enterprise value for the target assets of Wintershall Dea is USD 11.2 billion. This amount includes Wintershall Dea's outstanding bonds with a nominal value of approximately 4.9 billion US dollars, which will be transferred to Harbour upon completion of the transaction. The transaction is subject to, among other conditions, the approval of merger control and foreign investment authorities in several countries. Pending these regulatory approvals, the transaction is expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2024. The Freshfields team comprised partners Rick van Aerssen, Sabrina Kulenkamp (both Corporate/M&A, Frankfurt), Graham Watson, Samira Afrasiabi (both Corporate/M&A, London), Maria Dreher-Lorjé (Vienna), Thomas McGrath (London), Rafique Bachour (Brussels), Frank Röhling (Berlin, all Antitrust & Competition), Norbert Schneider (Tax, Düsseldorf), Frank Schaer (People & Reward, Frankfurt) and Philipp Dohnke (Commercial, Hamburg), Counsel Bukunola Alakija (Corporate/M&A, London) and Sarah Jensen, Principal Associates Susannah Prichard (both London), Florian Reiter-Werzin (Vienna), all Antitrust & Competition). Florian Reiter-Werzin (Vienna, all Antitrust & Competition), Thomas Richter (Tax, Düsseldorf), Nikolaus Bunting (Capital Markets, Frankfurt) and Elisabeth Wulf (Commercial, Hamburg) as well as associates Thomas Kelm (Corporate/M&A, Frankfurt), Martha Davis, Chloe Coleman, Dominic Armstrong (all Corporate/M&A, London), Nicholas English (London), Victoria Baert (Brussels, both Antitrust & Competition), Valentin Lang (People & Reward, Frankfurt) and Linus Cathomas (Capital Markets, Frankfurt). The BASF team comprised Stefan Rothweiler (Vice President Legal Corporate), Holger Pattberg (Director Legal Corporate) (both lead), Stephan Purps (Director Corporate Legal), Lars Reichmann (Vice President HR), Dr Michael Reichle (Director HR), Jochen Beyer (International Tax).

Dec 27

2 min