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Clifford Chance Expands Sponsor-Side Energy & Infrastructure Capabilities with Jean Lee

Mon, 26 Oct 2026 13:57:00 GMT

Lee brings more than 20 years of experience representing sponsors, developers and a broad range of private and public lenders in complex project financings globally across multiple sectors. She advises energy transition-focused companies and funds on a range of projects including clean fuels, renewable power generation and storage, battery manufacturing and the electric vehicle value chain. She also brings significant experience advising on Korea-connected financings and projects, having previously helped establish legacy Allen & Overy's Seoul office. From 2020 to 2022, she served as managing partner of Allen & Overy's Washington, DC office.

Global Head of Project Development & Finance Craig Nethercott said, “Jean's deep experience advising sponsors and developers is a tremendous addition to our energy and infrastructure team. Her arrival builds on the continued growth of our project development and finance practice and further strengthens our ability to support clients on projects and investments in the United States and globally.”

Lee said, "The energy and infrastructure sector is increasingly global, requiring advice that spans jurisdictions, disciplines and markets. Clifford Chance's integrated platform is uniquely positioned to support clients pursuing those opportunities, and I'm thrilled to be joining the team."

Lee is the latest partner to join Clifford Chance in the US, following the recent arrivals of Jill Kelley and Alan Wang in New York and Vittorio Cottafavi in Washington, DC. Her arrival brings the firm's US partner hires this year to 12.

With more than 450 attorneys across New York, Washington, DC, Houston and São Paulo, the firm combines deep local market knowledge with the reach of a fully integrated global partnership. The Americas team advises clients on complex US, Latin America and cross-border transactional, regulatory and disputes matters across key sectors including private capital and financial services, entertainment and sports, healthcare and life science, technology, infrastructure, and energy.

Press Contact: Maria Arnone

Clifford Chance advises Africa50 on key milestones for its DRE Fund initiatives

Mon, 26 Oct 2026 13:56:00 GMT

Strategically aligned with Nigeria’s national development priorities, the Nigeria DRE Fund is designed to contribute to the country’s ambitions to expand reliable, affordable and sustainable energy access. It also supports Mission 300, the ambitious effort to connect 300 million people across Africa to electricity by 2030.

The Africa50 DRE Fund, sponsored by ISA, is a financing platform designed to mobilise concessional, institutional and private capital for DRE projects such as commercial and industrial solar, mini-grids, clean cooking and e-mobility across Africa.

Through these two initiatives, Africa50 is seeking to mobilise up to US$500 million of investment into DRE solutions and expand access to reliable and sustainable energy across the continent.

The Clifford Chance team was led by Funds & Asset Management partners Patrick Meniru and Gerard Saviola, with support from senior associate Gugu Madonsela and associate Snow Zheng.

Press contact: Sonia Malhotra-Denny

Clifford Chance advises GIGA Storage on €260 million financing for Albatross energy storage project in Germany

Mon, 26 Oct 2026 10:43:00 GMT

Albatross is GIGA Storage’s first project in Germany. It will have a power output of 350 MW and a storage capacity of 1,400 MWh. The project will connect directly to the high-voltage grid of German transmission system operator Amprion at the adjacent 380 kV Merzen substation.

The financing is provided by a consortium of seven international banks comprising ABN AMRO, Hamburg Commercial Bank, ING, Rabobank, Siemens Bank, SMBC and Société Générale. Financial close took place on 23 October 2026. Read more about this transaction here.

Clifford Chance has previously advised GIGA Storage on several strategic transactions, including the financing of its 2.8 GWh Green Turtle energy storage project in Belgium and its 1,200 MWh GIGA Leopard battery energy storage project in Delfzijl, the Netherlands.

The cross-border Clifford Chance core team included partners Liesbeth Buiter in Amsterdam and Bahar Rahimyar in Germany, senior counsel Nanette Rutgers, senior associate Carlijn Tenge and trainee lawyer Daniël van Selst in Amsterdam.

The team further included partner Mathias Elspaß, of counsel Björn Heinlein, senior associates Marie Georgi, Duy Tuong Huynh, Johanneke Butijn and Louisa Busch, associates Philine Zambon, Philipp Deuster and Dilan Ata, and trainee lawyer Derek Rademaker.

Press contact: Iva Celic

Clifford Chance advises ODDO BHF on strategic agreement with BRED Banque Populaire for the sale of its ICB division

Fri, 23 Oct 2026 10:41:00 GMT

Following completion of the transaction, ODDO BHF’s clients will continue to benefit from the services of the transferred business units, while ODDO BHF will focus on growing its Private Wealth Management, Asset Management and Investment Banking business lines.

Completion of the transaction is expected in the first half of 2027 and is subject to the required regulatory approvals from the ECB, BaFin and the ACPR.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Thomas Krecek (Corporate, Frankfurt) and also included associates Julien Schickling, Friederike Anna Fisch and Lukas Tuschhoff (all Corporate, Frankfurt), partner Marc Benzler, counsel Dominik Schöneberger and associate Sarah Buschmann (all Financial Regulation, Frankfurt), partner Christopher Fischer as well as associates Anna-Celine Brill (both Frankfurt) and Mara Gnanko (Düsseldorf, all Employment), partner Dominik Engl, counsel Claus-Peter Knöller and Michael Bohnhardt as well as associate Christina Wanner (all Tax, Frankfurt), partner Holger Lutz (Tech Digital, Frankfurt), senior associate Simon Wattenberg (Antitrust, Düsseldorf) as well as legal project manager Marlene Böker (Frankfurt).

In-house at ODDO BHF, Pierre-Emmanuel Charrette and Jochen Hörbelt led the transaction.

Press contact: Lisa Trager

Clifford Chance advises Helical plc and Thames Brettenham on the pre-letting of Brettenham House

Fri, 23 Oct 2026 09:31:00 GMT

Brettenham House is a 128,000 sq ft landmark building with panoramic river views occupying a prime location on the elbow of the River Thames on the Duchy of Lancaster's historic London estate. The Clifford Chance team initially advised Helical plc on their appointment as development manager for the scheme and are now also working with the building owner, Thames Brettenham Limited, on the leasing up of the building.

The Clifford Chance team was led by Real Estate partner Ian Painter with support from senior associates Rose Tinker and Holly Porter and associate Chloe Sherrington.

For more information please click here.

Press contact: Emma Cessford

Clifford Chance advises the underwriters on CAF's US$2 billion notes offering

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 15:11:57 GMT

The offering is CAF's largest US dollar transaction to date and the longest tenor of any US dollar bond. The proceeds will be used for general corporate purposes.

The team was led from New York by partner Jonathan Zonis with support from associate Alexandra Machado and foreign law clerk Natalie Jana Deradi.

Clifford Chance regularly advises on similar transactions across the Latin America market, including the joint lead managers on CAF's debut Rule 144A/Regulation S floating rate bond offering under its medium-term note programme earlier this year.

Clifford Chance advises Luxinva on the voluntary public takeover offer of QIAGEN NV

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 08:19:00 GMT

Global law firm Clifford Chance is advising Luxinva S.A., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), as indirect co-investor alongside EQT XI Fund ("EQT Private Equity") and CPP Investment Board Europe Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of CPP Investments, in connection with the intended voluntary public takeover offer for all registered ordinary shares in QIAGEN N.V. ("QIAGEN").

QIAGEN and Crown NL Bidco BV, a holding company which is controlled by EQT Private Equity, have entered into a Business Combination Agreement regarding an all-cash public takeover offer for all outstanding shares in QIAGEN at an offer price of €46.50 per share, a premium of about 40.3% to the unaffected share price. The transaction values QIAGEN at approximately €10.8 billion in enterprise value (approximately US$12.1 billion at current exchange rates, including approximately US$1.1 billion of net debt).

The transaction is subject to certain conditions agreed in the Business Combination Agreement and to be set out in the Offer Document.

QIAGEN, headquartered in Venlo, Netherlands, is a scientific global leader specializing in technologies for molecular diagnostics, life-science tools, and bioinformatics. The company serves more than 500,000 customers worldwide across molecular diagnostics, applied testing, pharma, and academia.

The multijurisdictional Clifford Chance core team consisted of partners Thomas Krecek (Frankfurt), Christian Vogel (Düsseldorf), Dominik Heß (Düsseldorf), Samuel Frommelt (Munich; all Corporate/M&A), Bruce Embley (Private Equity, London) and Lynn Ammar (Corporate/M&A, Abu Dhabi) as well as senior associates Lennart Göbel (Corporate/M&A, Düsseldorf), Mhairi Cruickshank, Cari Sweeney (both Corporate, Dubai), and Marie Möllering (Corporate, Frankfurt), as well as associates Olga Filmanovic (Private Equity, London), Marie Burckhardt and Mona Fuchs (both Corporate, Munich).

Amsterdam-based partners Jan-Hendrik Horsmeier (Corporate) and Ernst van der Touw (Private Equity) and senior associate Femke Buijs (Corporate) advised on Dutch law aspects.

Partners Dimitri Slobodenjuk (Düsseldorf) and Philipp Girardet (London), senior associate Hendrik Kühn and associate Patricia Trapp (both Düsseldorf) advised on antitrust matters. The tax team comprised partners Richard Kalaher (London), Dominik Engl (Frankfurt) and Michiel Sunderman (Amsterdam) as well as associates Paul Harrington, Alfie Futerman and Angel Chun (all London), Alec Sanderson (Amsterdam) and Tali Lee (New York). Partner Axel Wittmann (Frankfurt), partner Stefanie Ferring and associate Thiébaud Lohisse (both Luxembourg) provided additional support in connection with certain capital markets and transactional aspects.

Press contact: Nadja Fersch

Clifford Chance advises on MUFG's inaugural Australian dollar AT1 issuance

Thu, 22 Oct 2026 04:00:00 GMT

The transaction represents MUFG's inaugural Australian dollar-denominated AT1 issuance, broadening the group's funding sources and investor base.

The Clifford Chance team was led by Matthew Ball and supported by Xavier Chan in Tokyo. Cameron Dwyer and Stef Yakubova in London and Avrohom Gelber and Gil Shauly in New York advised on tax aspects.

Matthew Ball said, "We are delighted to support MUFG on this transaction, which highlights the opportunities available to Japanese issuers seeking to reach new investor bases. As an offering of AT1 securities governed by English law by a Japanese bank, the transaction marks an important milestone in the development of cross-border capital markets in Asia Pacific."

This transaction builds on Clifford Chance's longstanding relationship with MUFG. Most recently, the firm advised MUFG on the expansion of its structured notes business, which broadened the group's product offering and access to international investors.

Media contact: Fenix Wong

Clifford Chance advises Tristan Capital Partners on sale of Berlin property

Wed, 21 Oct 2026 13:21:00 GMT

Engeldamm 12-24 comprises three existing residential buildings as well as vacant plots with potential for further residential development. Plans previously publicised for the property envisage the construction of 122 additional residential units.

The property formed part of the portfolio of Tristan Capital Partners’ value-add fund EPISO 5, which acquired it in 2020 through the acquisition of Berlin-based real estate company Industrie und Handel Aktiengesellschaft für Vermögensverwaltung.

The Clifford Chance team advising Tristan Capital Partners consisted of Partner Philipp Stoecker and Associate Robin Molitor (both Real Estate, Frankfurt).

Press contact: Nadja Fersch

Clifford Chance advises MTN Group on strategic partnership to accelerate AI-ready digital infrastructure across Africa

Wed, 21 Oct 2026 11:01:00 GMT

The partnership will pursue future digital infrastructure opportunities through Africa Data Hub Holding Limited, with an initial focus on South Africa and Nigeria. The transaction – between Bayobab, MTN's digital connectivity business, and the UAE-based investment platform - represents a significant milestone in MTN Group's Ambition 2030 strategy and supports growing demand for cloud computing, artificial intelligence workloads and digital services across the continent.

Jennifer Chimanga, partner and TMT Sector Co-Lead at Clifford Chance, commented:

"The rapid growth of artificial intelligence, cloud adoption and digital innovation is driving unprecedented demand for sophisticated digital infrastructure across Africa. This partnership brings together complementary infrastructure, investment and operational expertise that will help accelerate the development of AI-ready digital infrastructure platforms and support the continent's next phase of digital transformation. Congratulations to MTN Group on this strategically important transaction."

The Clifford Chance team was led by Jennifer Chimanga supported by senior associates Hudson Archer, Lourenco Limão Oliveira and associate Kamryn Rana, with UAE support from M&A Legal Director Gareth Dray and senior associate Noor AlKooheji.

Click here to find out more: MTN Group advances Africa's AI-ready digital infrastructure ecosystem through strategic partnership |

Press contact: Emma Cessford

Clifford Chance advises Vattenfall on battery storage tolling agreement with Royal Vopak

Wed, 21 Oct 2026 10:57:00 GMT

Under the agreement, Vattenfall will have access to 100 MW / 400 MWh of battery storage capacity, helping to balance fluctuations in electricity supply and demand.

Vopak will develop and operate the battery energy storage system, which will have a total capacity of 150 MW and a storage duration of four hours. Commercial operations are expected to begin in the second quarter of 2028.

The agreement supports Vattenfall’s goal of contracting at least 1.5 GW of battery capacity across its core markets and Vopak's expansion into electrical energy storage infrastructure. Read more about the transaction here.

The Clifford Chance team consisted of associate Niels Kuil, partner Liesbeth Buiter and senior associate Johanneke Butijn.

Press contact: Iva Celic

Clifford Chance advises Carrefour on its proposed acquisition of Codifrance from Colruyt Group

Wed, 21 Oct 2026 08:29:00 GMT

Codifrance is a leading French player specialising in affiliation and convenience food distribution, supplying approximately 3,100 customers across France. The company employs approximately 380 people and generated revenue of €307 million in the 2025/26 financial year. The transaction values Codifrance at an enterprise value of €152 million.

The proposed acquisition forms part of the Carrefour 2030 strategic plan, which notably aims to continue growing Carrefour’s convenience business and pursue selective acquisitions of high-value assets. The transaction would strengthen Carrefour’s leadership in the convenience segment in France and further enhance its ability to support independent retailers, leveraging Codifrance’s customer base, logistics infrastructure and teams’ expertise.

Completion of the transaction remains subject to completion of the information and consultation process with the relevant employee representative bodies, as well as approval by the French competition authority. Completion is expected during the first half of 2027.

The Clifford Chance team comprises Marianne Pezant (Partner) and Adeline Nayagom (Counsel) on the M&A aspects, as well as David Tayar (Partner) and Clémence Carlier (Counsel) on the antitrust aspects.

Press contact: Lydia Persico

Clifford Chance advises Aligned Climate Capital on ~US$387 million financing for 126 MW solar portfolio

Mon, 19 Oct 2026 15:50:00 GMT

The financing was led by Apterra Infrastructure Capital, an affiliate of Apollo Global Management, and is backed by a lender syndicate made up of BankUnited, Stifel, Banco de Crédito e Inversiones (Bci), Amalgamated Bank, Farmer Mac, BTG Pactual and Siemens.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Alex Leff in Houston and associate Henry Myers in New York, with support from associates Elbert Belk, Adele Irwin, Trumond Best, Hyde Kwan, Julian Pozza and Luis Sierra-Garriga.

Press contact: Maria Arnone

Clifford Chance advises GD Towers on its €1 billion debut public bond

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 11:48:00 GMT

GD Towers is the first tower company in continental Europe to issue a public bond under a common terms financing platform. The bonds rank alongside the bank facilities and private placement notes under the platform and were listed on the Euro MTF market of the Luxembourg Stock Exchange. The proceeds are used to partially refinance GD Towers’ existing term loan facility under the platform. The transaction was launched and priced on 8 October 2026 and settled on 15 October 2026.

GD Towers is a full-service provider of passive infrastructure and acquires, plans, realizes, operates and markets radio sites throughout its wholly-owned subsidiaries “Deutsche Funkturm” in Germany and “TOWERS Infra Austria” in Austria. Its portfolio includes towers, masts, rooftop sites and small cells. Since 2023, it has been jointly owned by Deutsche Telekom, DigitalBridge and Brookfield Asset Management.

Clifford Chance had already advised GD Towers on the establishment of the common terms financing platform in November 2025 and on its €2.5 billion private placement in December 2025. For the debut bond, the team combined its German and English law capital markets expertise with its knowledge of the platform documentation. Clifford Chance also advised GD Towers on the establishment of its capital markets compliance framework (MAR) ahead of the listing.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Axel Wittmann (Capital Markets) and included partners Simon Reitz (Debt Finance) and George Hacket (Capital Markets), partner (Germany) Christoph Nensa (Debt Finance) and partner Cristina Freudenberger, counsel Henrik Gildehaus and Andrei Manea (all Capital Markets), senior associate Nico Köhler (Debt Finance), associate Lara Esser and transaction lawyers Felicitas Fischer and Lilli Neubauer (all Capital Markets, all Frankfurt). From Clifford Chance's London office, partner Matteo Sbraga, senior associate John Thomson and associate Bailey James (all Capital Markets) supported the team.

Advice was also provided on tax matters by partner Olaf Mertgen and counsel Steffen Waadt and on employment and pensions matters by partner Ines Keitel and special counsel Nicole Engesser Means (all Frankfurt).

The GD Towers inhouse team leading the transaction included Head of Treasury Volker Hoffarth, General Counsel Felix Müller, Senior Legal Counsel Pamela Victoria Schaarschmidt, Head of Accounting Methods and Consolidation Nicole Morgenstern and Senior Expert Treasury Marc Blümel.

Press contact: Lisa Trager

Clifford Chance advises on Transsion's Hong Kong IPO and listing

Thu, 15 Oct 2026 07:58:00 GMT

Chair of China Practice and partner Tim Wang co-led the transaction with partners Virginia Lee, Jean Thio and Janet Fok with support from Agatha Shen, Ryan Ho, Francine Chang, Veronica Liu, Hester Choi, Yvonne Zhu, Natalie Tse, Patrick Zhang, Mia Jin, Jay Lee, Pascal Chan, Chunqin Li and Vivian Li.

Transsion is a leading provider of smart devices and mobile internet services in emerging markets, with mobile phone brands including TECNO, Infinix and itel. It is ranked first in Africa by mobile phone sales volume in 2025.

Clifford Chance has advised on the listings of several companies in China's technology sectors, including the listings of ESWIN Computing, Nexchip and Mobvoi.

Press contact: Fenix Wong

Clifford Chance advises Grenergy on US$457 million financing for Oasis de Atacama platform in Chile

Wed, 14 Oct 2026 08:24:00 GMT

The financing includes Algarrobal, the fifth phase of Oasis de Atacama, with 242 MW of solar capacity and 1.5 GWh of energy storage, as well as the Palmas cluster, comprising 21 distributed generation solar projects in Chile and the hybridization of six of them, totalling 204 MW of solar capacity and 289 MWh of energy storage.

The financing was coordinated and underwritten by BNP Paribas, with the participation of an international pool of banks, including BBVA, J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, MUFG Bank, Santander, and The Bank of Nova Scotia.

The cross-border Clifford Chance team was led in Madrid by partner José Guardo and counsel Eduardo Sánchez, with the support of senior associates Ángel Muñoz and Pablo Cancelo and associates Yago López and Asier Vivanco. Partner Fabricio Longhin led the Americas team, including associates Alejandro León, Joyce Moore and Genevieve McCarthy.

Press contact: Iva Celic

Clifford Chance advises lenders on €1.5 billion refinancing of Rheinmetall AG's revolving credit facility

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 13:30:00 GMT

The new syndicated credit facility replaces the existing facility and will be available to Rheinmetall for general corporate purposes. Rheinmetall has doubled the volume of the existing facility from €750 million to €1.5 billion while strategically realigning its core banking group and adding further international banking partners. The transaction provides the company with additional financial flexibility to support its continued growth trajectory.

The Clifford Chance team comprised partner Simon Reitz, counsel Vanessa Steiner and senior associate Nico Köhler (all Debt Finance, Frankfurt) as well as partner Olaf Mertgen and counsel Steffen Waadt (both Tax, Frankfurt).

Press contact: Lisa Trager

Clifford Chance asesora a Azora en el cierre del mayor fondo inmobiliario para el sur de Europa

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 08:38:36 GMT

El equipo transfronterizo de Clifford Chance estuvo liderado por el socio Ildefonso Alier, con el apoyo de la asociada senior Marina Naydenov, los asociados José Loring y Sara López-Viejo y el counsel Roberto Grau. El equipo de derecho luxemburgués estuvo liderado por la socia Maren Stadler-Tjan.

Press contact: Iva Celic

Clifford Chance advises Jardine Matheson on acquisition of full ownership of Gammon Construction

Tue, 13 Oct 2026 04:28:00 GMT

Headquartered in Hong Kong, Gammon Construction is a leading construction and engineering company that delivers major projects across Hong Kong, Singapore and the wider region, including transport, energy and education infrastructure, data centres, grade A office, retail and luxury integrated resorts and residences. Jardines has been an investor in Gammon Construction since 1969, and the company has operated as a 50:50 joint venture between Jardines and Balfour Beatty since 2004.

For more details about the transaction, see Jardines' announcement.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Bryan Koo, and includes:

M&A: Counsel Ryan Wong, senior associate Declan Ng and trainee solicitor Kristy Lam;
Technology: Counsel Brian Harley and associate Chris Peng; and
Antitrust: Partner Bai Yong, counsel Dayu Man and associate Hendrik Coppoolse.

Media contact: Fenix Wong

Clifford Chance advises the Caisse des Dépôts group on a €400 million bond issuance to finance the acquisition of stakes in ATMB and SFTRF

Mon, 12 Oct 2026 13:41:00 GMT

The proceeds have been used to finance part of the acquisition from the French State of approximately 67.30% of the share capital and voting rights in Autoroutes et Tunnel du Mont Blanc (ATMB) and 99.94% of the share capital and voting rights in Société Française du Tunnel Routier du Fréjus (SFTRF). The bonds are admitted to trading on Euronext Paris.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partners Cédric Burford and Auriane Bijon and included senior associate Baya Hariche and associate Santiago Ramirez who advised on the capital markets aspects, and partner Jean-Baptiste Merigot de Treigny who advised on the public law aspects.

Gide advised La Banque Postale and Nomura Financial Products Europe GmbH as joint lead managers on the issuance.

Press contact: Lydia Persico