Ashurst and HSF lead on A$16.2bn sale of Australian state-owned energy company
Clayton Utz and Allens also advise on sale of 50.4% Ausgrid stake
October 23, 2016 at 06:51 PM
2 minute read
Herbert Smith Freehills (HSF) and Ashurst have taken lead roles on the on the long-awaited A$16.2bn (£10.1bn) sale of Australian electricity infrastructure company Ausgrid.
Linklaters' Australian ally Allens and Clayton Utz also advised on the deal, which has seen an Australian investment consortium take a 50.4% stake in the state owned-company.
The deal comes after a Chinese-Hong Kong bid was rejected by the Australian government earlier this year over security concerns.
HSF and Ashurst advised the buyers – AustralianSuper and IFM Investors – on the transaction. The HSF team was led by corporate partners David Ryan in Sydney and Baden Furphy in Melbourne, alongside Melbourne infrastructure and energy partner Nick Baker.
Ashurst's team was led by corporate partner Murray Wheater alongside banking partner David Mason. Murray also advised State Grid Corporation of China on its rejected bid earlier this year.
Deutsche Bank and UBS acted as financial advisers to the state government. Macquaire advised the consortium. Clayton Utz advised the banks with a team led by Melbourne corporate partner Dan Fitts, while Allens was mandated by the New South Wales state government.
This is the second significant piece of Australian investment work HSF has acted on in recent months. In September, the Anglo-Australian firm advised investors on the A$9.7bn (£5.6bn) sale of the Port of Melbourne to a consortium including China Investment Corp.
However, the firm has recently lost a 10-partner team to White & Case, which is set to launch in Australia. The HSF team includes eight partners in Australia and two in Asia, with the Australia team including lawyers in Sydney and Melbourne.
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