Hamburg – Vattenfall has sold 49% of its shares in the Nordlicht 1 and Nordlicht 2 wind farm projects to BASF. The wind farm zone consists of two separate sites and is located in the German section of the North Sea, around 85 kilometres north of the island of Borkum. The two sites, Nordlicht 1 and Nordlicht 2, have planned capacities of approximately 980 MW and 630 MW, respectively. Full commissioning is scheduled for 2028, when a total of around six terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity is expected to be generated per year, enough to power 1.6 million German households. This makes the Nordlicht wind project the biggest offshore wind farm project that Vattenfall has realised to date. Construction is expected to start in 2026, subject to the final investment decision. Vattenfall is acting as developer and builder of both Nordlicht sites.A CMS team headed by partners Dr Holger Kraft and Dr Jacob Siebert advised Vattenfall on all legal aspects of the transaction. Vattenfall and BASF signed a Memorandum of Understanding with regard to the joint project in December of last year, when the CMS team likewise advised Vattenfall. CMS Germany Dr Holger Kraft, Lead Partner Dr Jacob Siebert, Lead Part­ner Dorothée Janzen, Partner, Com­mer­cial Mat­thi­as Sethmann, Principal Counsel Dr Christoph Löffler, Counsel Dr Stefan Kühl, Senior Associate Dr Christian Seeburger, Associate, all Corporate/M&A Dr Niklas Ganssauge, Partner Mathias Cordero, Senior Associate, both Real Estate & Public Christoff Soltau, Partner Dr Denis Schlimpert, Counsel Dr Robert Bodewig, Senior Associate, all Antitrust, Competition & Trade Dr Kerstin Block, Partner, Banking & Finance Prof. Malte Grützmacher, Partner, TMC Dr Nikolas Gregor, Partner, Intellectual Prop­erty Se­basti­an Belz, Counsel Katja Meisel, Senior Associate Knut Göring-Tisch, Associate, all Public Dr Arne Burmester, Principal Counsel  Birgit Wagner, Legal Manager Shae Lynn Washington, Legal Co­ordin­at­or  Sarah Przybylski, Senior Legal Specialist Edris Trabzadah, Senior Legal Specialist Jule Marie Holz, Legal Specialist, all Smart OperationsPress Con­tact presse@cms-hs. com

Hamburg – Hanseatic Energy Hub GmbH (HEH) has achieved financial close for the project financing to develop and realise the planned terminal for liquefied gases in Stade. Total investment is some EUR 1.6 billion. Achieving financial close represents a major milestone for Hanseatic Energy Hub GmbH’s land-based terminal.A multi-dis­cip­lin­ary and multi-location CMS team headed by Dr Hilke Herchen and Dr Holger Kraft advised Hanseatic Energy Hub GmbH on developing the project and on preparations to secure the project financing. This included corporate law advice with a particular focus on developing and optimising corporate governance, and on the associated links to the project financing. This advice marks a continuation of the existing close cooperation between HEH and CMS. The CMS team has been providing advice on an ongoing basis since the start of the project, with support for project development around corporate, operation & maintenance and real estate matters in particular. This has included advising on various shareholders joining the project, with a recent example being Enagás S.A. as industrial partner in June 2023. The CMS team conducted a comprehensive due diligence check to put the project financing on a solid footing. The first expansion phase of the project will see an emission-free terminal begin operating in 2027. Its infrastructure is also approved for bio-LNG and synthetic natural gas (SNG). At a later stage, the project will be switched over to hydrogen-based energy carriers such as ammonia. The planned regasification capacity is 13.3 billion cubic metres per year and the send-out capacity is 21.7 gigawatt. From March 2024 until the onshore terminal becomes operational, Hanseatic Energy Hub GmbH will also accommodate one of the five FSRUs (Floating Storage and Regasification Units) chartered by the German federal government. CMS Germany Dr Hilke Herchen, Lead Partner Dr Holger Kraft, Lead Partner Matthias Sethmann, Principal Counsel Dr Luise Pelzer, Counsel Dr Stefan Kühl, Senior Associate Dr Carl-Friedrich Thoma, Senior Associate Dr Josephine Doll, As­so­ci­ate Domin­ic Zimmer, Associate Dr Christian Seeburger, Associate, all Corporate/M&A Dr Fritz von Hammerstein, Partner Katja Meisel, Senior Associate Jan Gröschel, Senior Associate, all Per­mit­ting Mar­tin Krause, Partner Dr Sebastian Orthmann, Partner Dr Hans Fabian Kiderlen, Principal Coun­sel Chris­toph­er Schmeckel, Senior Associate Wiebke Westermann, Associate, all Real Estate Dr Friedrich von Burchard, Partner, Energy & Climate Change Dorothée Janzen, Part­ner  Chris­toph Zarth, Partner Robin Azinovic, Associate, all Commercial Dr Kerstin Block, Partner, Banking & Finance  Dr Martin Mohr, Partner Dr Olaf Thießen, Principal Counsel, both Tax Dr Sebastian Cording, Partner Dr Anna Lena Füllsack, Senior Associate, both TMC Dr Michael Bauer, Partner Luisa Thomasberger, Associate, both Antitrust, Competition & Trade Dr Philipp Nonnenmühlen, Counsel, Labor, Employment & Pensions Dr Martin Gerecke, Partner, IP Birgit Wagner, Legal Manager, Smart OperationsPress Con­tact presse@cms-hs. com

Cologne – KANSAI HELIOS has acquired the entire industrial coatings business of GREBE Holding, based in Weilburg in Hessen, Germany, which operates under the name WEILBURGER Coatings. WEILBURGER Coatings is a well-known manufacturer of industrial coatings and comprises of WEILBURGER Coatings GmbH in Weilburg and WEILBURGER Asia Limited in Hong Kong. The share purchase agreement was signed on February 9, 2024. With the acquisition, KANSAI HELIOS intends to significantly expand its strategic position as a system supplier and manufacturer of industrial coatings and extend its geographical presence internationally. The company will also gain additional expertise, distribution channels, production and storage capacities. The parties involved have agreed not to disclose further details of the transaction. An international CMS team headed by Lead Partner Klaus Jäger and Christoph Schröer provided KANSAI HELIOS with comprehensive legal advice on the acquisition. The complexity of the transaction is characterized in particular by the size of the acquired Weilburger Coatings Group, which, in addition to the German companies, includes subsidiaries in Brazil, China, France, Hong Kong, India, Italy, Turkey and the USA. In addition to the actual purchase agreements in Germany and Hong Kong, CMS drafted and negotiated numerous other contracts. In addition to CMS teams in Brazil, China, Hong Kong, Italy, Turkey, France, Serbia, Austria and the United Kingdom, the law firms MILLER & MARTIN PLLC from the USA and Vaish Associates Advocates from India also provided support. KANSAI HELIOS regularly relies on the expertise of CMS, most recently in connection with the acquisition of all shares in CWS Lackfabrik GmbH (CWS), which specializes in powder coatings and synthetic resins, including the group companies in Germany, the USA, Denmark and Poland. KANSAI HELIOS, headquartered in Vienna, is part of the Japanese KANSAI PAINT Group. The company has a history of more than 170 years and is one of the major global players in the paints and coatings market. KANSAI HELIOS designs, produces and distributes industrial coating solutions, bleaching and cleaning chemicals, materials for sticking and sealing, high-quality resins, architectural paints and refinishing coatings throughout Europe and beyond. WEILBURGER Coatings was founded in 1900 at its current headquarters in Weilburg and has group companies in Germany, Italy, France, Turkey, the USA, Brazil, India and China. With around 600 employees at seven production sites and several sales offices, the company is active worldwide and generates a turnover of around 150 million euros. CMS Germany Klaus Jäger, Lead Partner Dr Kai Wallisch, Part­ner Chris­toph Schröer, Senior Associate Dr Katharina Kapp, Associate Dr Henrik Meurer, As­so­ci­ate Domin­ic Zimmer, As­so­ci­ate Kath­rin Dengel, Associate, all Corporate/M&A Dr Björn Herbers, Partner Moritz Pottek, Counsel Dr Denis Schlimpert, Counsel Kirsten Baubkus-Gerard, Senior Associate Dr Robert Bodewig, Senior Associate David Rappenglück, Associate, all Antitrust, Competition & Trade Dr Dirk Smielick, Principal Counsel Claudia Böhmer, Counsel, both IP Dr Angela Emmert, Partner Dr Andreas Hofelich, Partner Dr Mario Brungs, Counsel Lennard Martin Lürwer, Counsel Marcel Heinen, Senior Associate, all Labor, Employment & Pensions Michael Kamps, Partner Thorsten Hemme, Principal Counsel Dr Arne Schmieke, Senior Associate, all TMC Dr Martin Friedberg, Partner, Tax law Dr André Lippert, Partner Maike Füchtmann, Senior Associate, both Real Estate & Public Dorothée Janzen, Partner Dr Philipp Rohdenburg, Counsel, both Com­mer­cial Birgit Wagner, Legal Manager Conrad Gräwe, Legal Co­ordin­at­or Steven Washington, Legal Coordinator Anke Clippingdale, Senior Legal Specialist Edris Trabzadah, Senior Legal Specialist Faraz Ahmad, Legal Specialist Sofia Schreiner, Legal Spe­cial­ist Al­ex­an­der Stadahl, Legal Specialist, all Smart Operations CMS Beijing Falk Licht­en­stein Roxy Meng CMS Milan Daniela Murer Alessandra Cuni CMS Rome Fabrizio Spagnolo CMS Istanbul Döne Yalçın Merve Akkuş CMS Paris Thomas Hains Marion Berberian CMS Belgrade Maja Stepanović CMS Vienna Dr Dieter Zandler CMS London Russell Hoare Melanie Lane Focaccia Amaral L S Advogados, Brazil in association with CMS Renata Homem de Melo Fontes Carla Anastácio Lau, Horton & Wise LLP, Hong Kong in association with CMS Shirley Lau Albert Jok MILLER & MARTIN PLLC, USA Joe DeLisle Vaish Associates Advocates, India Shrinivas SankaranPress Con­tact presse@cms-hs. com

Hamburg – Vattenfall has completed a strategic review of its Berlin district heating business and decided to sell it in full to the Federal State of Berlin. An agreement to this effect was signed by...

Cologne – Kapital 1852 SCS SICAV-SIF Equity Invest IV MidCapPlus, a fund managed by private equity firm Kapital 1852 Beratungs GmbH, has acquired a majority stake in SPRiNTUS GmbH. Based in Welzheim...

Stut­tgart/Brus­sels – State-owned gas trader SEFE Securing Energy for Europe GmbH (SEFE) can continue to operate as an integrated midstream gas company and pursue its chosen realignment strategy after...

Hamburg/Brussels – The German government is set to support energy group Uniper, Germany’s biggest gas importer, with a stabilisation package worth EUR 33 billion and take a majority stake in Uniper...

Ham­burg/Stut­tgart – Struggling gas company Securing Energy for Europe (SEFE) has been transferred to the ownership of the Federal Republic of Germany in order to secure German gas supplies. SEFE is...

Stuttgart – EnBW Energie Baden-Württem­berg AG has sold 49.9% of the shares in a portfolio comprising 16 solar parks with a total rated output of 597 MW. The plants in Brandenburg, Baden-Württem­berg...

A guide for large energy users Across Europe there is a clear and consistent trend for large scale commercial and industrial users of electricity adopting on-site power solutions. This is the result of a range of factors, in­clud­ing:re­new­able on-site generation being one of the most clear-cut ways to help “green” a site’s electricity supply and help the com­mer­cial/in­dus­tri­al user achieve their climate change targets;on-site power solutions having the ability to provide resilience of electricity supply during times of system outage or con­straint;avoid­ance of the network and policy charges typically associated with electricity taken from the grid; andthe commercial opportunities from leveraging flexible on-site power solutions to reduce consumption from the grid and/or to export electricity onto the grid. However, while such opportunities mean that on-site power solutions are often an attractive option, on-site projects will generally come with a complex array of legal options and considerations. These range from:the fundamental point that such projects inherently involve participation in a typically heav­ily-reg­u­lated arena (and often the backdrop of a set of regulations rapidly evolving to keep pace with the sector), toa range of pro­ject/agree­ment structures and parties (without a “cookie cutter” approach) involved in project ownership, operation and electricity sale and purchase, with significant co-dependence between such parties, toa government policy context that (while at face value often pro-green) is often increasingly concerned about grid and policy charges being avoided through these types of project and wishes to see all market participants paying a perceived fair share of such costs. In this guide we provide an overview of these challenges and opportunities in Europe, with a view to assisting you in reviewing, upfront, the key issues often associated with on-site power solutions of this nature.