A string of Middle East law firms finalised a US$110m M&A deal before the Islamic Eid celebrations.
Norton Rose, Trowers & Hamlins, Hassan Al Khater Law Office, Sultan Al-Abdulla & Partners and Tariq Al Naimi all took leads on the US$110m sale by Qatar Shipping of its engineering & construction subsidiary to the Qatar America Asia Consortium. The deal was announced on 16 September and the share agreement was signed the next day.
According to Abu Dhabi-based corporate lawyer Alan Bainbridge who led the Norton Rose team advising the sellers, the deal was challenging for several reasons – not only due to the time constraints during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. “Consortium deals always add a level of complexity but there was also time pressure in trying to get the deal signed during Ramadan and before the Eid celebrations, particularly in light of the ongoing merger discussions between Qatar Shipping and Qatar Navigation,” he said.
Bainbridge was supported by a team of London, Abu Dhabi and Dubai based lawyers on the deal, with sole proprietor Tariq Al Naimi advising Qatar Shipping on local law matters.
The Bahrain office of Trowers & Hamlins, led by corporate partner Abdullah Mutawi and lawyers Benn Spicer and Emma Oxlade, acted for the consortium on the deal. Katrina Wilson of Hassan Al Khater Law Office and Salman Mahmood of Sultan Al-Abdulla & Partners advised on Qatari law.
Bainbridge noted that an increasing number of deals are being conducted between groups of parties to lower risk. “It also highlights a growing appetite for “club” or “consortium” deals in the current market as parties look for additional ways of spreading risk and lowering leverage on deals,” he said.
The deal paves the way for Qatar Shipping, a long standing client of Norton Rose, to finalise its proposed merger with Qatar Navigation at the end of this year.
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