Renault, Credit: Ramon Costa/pxhere.com

Clifford Chance has advised on two multibillion-euro financing deals in France, designed to help shore up the ability of French companies to withstand the economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis.

The firm advised Renault on the establishment of a €5 billion credit facility with a pool of French banks consisting of BNP Paribas, Crédit Agricole, HSBC France, Natixis et Société Générale. The French state will guarantee up to 90% of the total borrowing.

The opening of the credit line, which can be used in whole or in part, ensures that the automaker can finance "its liquidity needs in the context of this unprecedented crisis," Clifford Chance said in a statement.

Renault has announced an emergency cost-cutting plan, with job cuts amounting to about 8% of its global workforce, as auto sales have ground to a halt during the coronavirus crisis. Its sales in the European Union, the company's most important market, fell almost 80% in April.

The European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, approved the state aid under a temporary framework adopted on March 19 and amended on April 3 to help European companies combat the economic effects of the lockdown measures to limit the spread of COVID-19.

"Renault is an important European car manufacturer, employing directly more than 73,000 workers in Europe," the EU's commissioner for competition, Margrethe Vestager, said in a statement.

The company is also engaged in the development of the next generation of electric vehicles, "the rollout of which is essential for meeting the EU's climate goals," Vestager added.

"We have cooperated closely with France to ensure this support could be put in place as quickly and effectively as possible, in line with EU rules."

The Clifford Chance team advising Renault was led by finance partner Thierry Arachtingi and included counsel Mary Serhal on finance, partner David Préat on public law, partner David Tayar on European community law and state aid, partner Fabrice Cohen on corporate law and partner Eric Davoudet on tax.

White & Case advised the banks with a team including partners Raphaël Richard and Samir Berlat on banking and finance, Jean-Luc Champy on public law, and Yann Utzschneider on state aid, as well as counsels Orion Berg on state aid and Jean Paszkudzki on corporate law.

In its second major mandate, Clifford Chance advised Bpifrance, a French investment bank owned by two state entities, on a €4.2 billion investment fund to help stabilize the finances of major French companies.

The fund, called LAC I, comprises more than €3.2 billion raised from more than 20 investors and €1 billion in debt. The investors include international and French banks, large corporations and family offices, and the sovereign wealth fund of Abu Dhabi, according to Bpifrance.

LAC I follows on a French government financing project launched to shore up French companies in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis.

The Clifford Chance team advising Bpifrance included private funds partner Xavier Comaills and counsel Marie Préat.

These are the latest multi-billion Euro deals that CC has picked up in recent years. Last year, the firm advised French technology company Daussault Systemes on its $5.8 billion acquisition of U.S. clinical trial data company Medidata Solutions.

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