CEE Legal Matters
In-depth coverage of the news and newsmakers that shape Europe's emerging markets
CMS has advised Astronergy on the acquisition of the Karlovo and Novi Pazar greenfield solar projects in Bulgaria, with a combined capacity of 120 megawatts. Schoenherr reportedly advised the sellers.
Redcliffe Partners has advised the IFC, EBRD, and DFC on their USD 480 million loan to Ukrainian poultry and grain producer MHP. Avellum advised MHP. CMS and Harneys reportedly advised the DFC and EBRD, with Harneys and Baker Botts reportedly advising the IFC.
CMS has advised Nordic private equity fund Alder Investment III on the acquisition of a majority stake in Austrian food industry optical sorting company Insort. Herbst Kinsky reportedly advised the sellers.
Wolf Theiss has advised the INVL Baltic Sea Growth Fund and Eco Baltia on the financing from mBank for the acquisition of a 70% stake in the Polish PVC window recycler Metal-Plast.
Allen & Overy has advised Bank Pekao and Berlin Hyp on a EUR 125 million financing to G City Europe for the Promenada shopping center in Warsaw. CMS advised G City Europe.
CMS has advised coordinator and facility agent Raiffeisen Banking Group on the EUR 600 million nine-banking-group club multicurrency revolving credit facility for the MOL Group. Baker McKenzie advised the MOL Group on the deal. CMS also acted as transaction counsel on MOL's JPY 14.6 billion bilateral revolving credit facility and its EUR 50 million bilateral EUR/CNY revolving credit facility.
Harrisons, working alongside CMS, has advised the EBRD on a EUR 27.6 million loan to District Center doo Beograd and PKS-LATEX-HLC doo Cacak. Karanovic and Partners advised District Center doo Beograd and PKS-LATEX-HLC doo Cacak.
CMS has advised Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego and Korporacja Ubezpieczen Kredytow Eksportowych on a EUR 23 million direct financing for the Treasury of the Republic of Rwanda for the purchase of a Poland-produced milk cooling system.
Djingov Gouginski Kyutchukov & Velichkov has advised TokWise on its EUR 3 million equity investment round led by Encavis and including Vitosha Venture Partners-Fond I KD, KIC InnoEnergy SE, and Innovation Capital Fund KDA. Georgiev & Kolev advised Vitosha Venture Partners. CMS reportedly advised Encavis.
CMS has advised Naftogaz Slovakia – the local subsidiary of the national gas company of Ukraine – on securing a natural gas trading license in Bulgaria.
In The Debrief, our Practice Leaders across CEE share updates on recent and upcoming legislation, consider the impact of recent court decisions, showcase landmark projects, and keep our readers apprised of the latest developments impacting their respective practice areas.
White & Case and RTPR have advised MidEuropa on its EUR 1.3 billion sale of Romania's Profi supermarket chain to Dutch-Belgian listed retail and wholesale company Ahold Delhaize. CMS and, reportedly, GNP Guia Naghi & Partners advised Ahold Delhaize on the acquisition.
Albania is undergoing transformation, with a burgeoning focus on tourism and renewable energy, according to CMS Managing Partner Mirko Daidone. While the legal frameworks are aligning with EU standards and the IT sector is thriving, affordability is decreasing and the country faces talent drain challenges.
CMS has successfully represented Slovakian renewable energy investors Alpha Solar Group and Alpha Solar Invest in a case against the Bulgarian state regarding the recovery of cut feed-in tariffs for operational photovoltaic plants in Bulgaria.
Did You Know that the ten firms that have worked on the most client matters reported by CEE Legal Matters through Q3 of 2023 are equally divided between international and regional powerhouses? According to the Activity Rankings function of the CEELMDirect website, Magic Circle-member Clifford Chance, which has worked on a remarkable 66 deals reported by CEE Legal Matters in the first nine months of 2023, leads the pack, but Vienna-based Schoenherr is close behind with 64.
Schoenherr has advised the BHS Private Equity Fund on participating in the acquisition of Altran alongside BHS's general partner Versute Investments and Altran managers Petr Havlik, Jaromir Kejval, and Milan Krovina. CMS advised the Capgemini group on the sale. Arrows reportedly advised the managers on the deal.
Dorda, working with Clifford Chance's Frankfurt office, has advised financial advisor Citigroup Global Markets Europe and co-financial advisor Erste Group Bank on the demerger of the telecommunications tower business of listed Telekom Austria Aktiengesellschaft and the subsequent admission of 166 million shares of the newly formed EuroTeleSites to trading on the Official Market of the Vienna Stock Exchange. CMS reportedly advised Telekom Austria.
In The Corner Office, we ask Managing Partners at law firms across Central and Eastern Europe about their backgrounds, strategies, and responsibilities. As the summer is likely to bring a brief lull, this time we asked: How do you tend to use the general downtime during the month of August?
CMS Sofia is a full-service law firm, the largest international law firm in Bulgaria and one of the largest providers of legal services in the local market as a whole. The breadth and depth of our practice means that our lawyers are specialised, with a level of specialisation that few of our competitors can match.
CMS Sofia is the Bulgarian branch of CMS, a top ten global legal and tax services provider with over 5000 lawyers in 43 countries and 78 offices across the world.
CMS entered the Bulgarian market as one of the first internationally active law firms in 2005 and is now among the most respected legal advisors in the country. We have 7 partners, 4 counsel and over 30 lawyers in our office in Sofia.
Our legal experts, who are rooted in Bulgaria’s local culture, can also draw on years of experience in foreign countries and are at home in several legal systems at once. We know the particularities of the local market just as well as the needs of our clients and combine both to achieve optimum solutions. Our lawyers are Bulgarian qualified and we also have English qualified experts – all of them regularly working on cross-border mandates.
In our work, we focus on M&A, Energy, Projects and Construction, Banking and Finance, Real Estate, Media, IP and IT law, Tax, Employment law, Competition, Procurement and any kind of Dispute resolution, including arbitration and mediation. What’s more, we also take care of the entire legal management of our clients’ projects.