Tag: vietnam
Written by John on 06 November 2013.
♦ Recent Deals ♦ Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Baker & McKenzie has advised Minh Phu - Hau Giang Seafood Processing Company (“MPHG”) on a VND400 billion-valued acquisition by Mitsui & Co (“Mitsui”). MPHG is the major processing subsidiary of Minh Phu Seafood Corporation (“MPC”). The deal involved the purchase of more than 30 percent of MPHG's shares by Mitsui through a private placement, which led to the conversion of the corporate form of MPHG. “The success of this deal is a testament to our Firm's ability to meet our client's high expectations and to complete the negotiations and documentation for this acquisition within a very tight timeline,” said partner Nguyen Hoang Kim Oanh, who led the team. MPC is one of the largest vertically-integrated Vietnamese shrimp processing companies and exporters, with operations across the full scope of aquaculture process, from post-larvae rearing, shrimp farming, processing and sale & export. Their total volume of exports is approximately 15 percent of the total exporting volume for Vietnam, and it is the market leader in the industry. MPC exports their products to the US, Europe, Japan, Korea, Canada and Australia, and has expanded their operations to reach customers across the globe. The acquisition by Mitsui represents a milestone and marks a strong development in the 15-year long partnership between the two corporations. It also show MPC's ambition to expand its footprint in the world market. The Baker & McKenzie team, led by partner Nguyen Hoang Kim Oanh and special counsel Nguyen Thuy Hang, was responsible for the deal negotiation and transactional documentation drafting.
Written by John on 16 September 2013.
♦ Recent Deals ♦ Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Baker & McKenzie acted for Canadian-based pharmaceutical company, Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. on its share subscription, via a private placement, of a 65% stake in Vietnam-based Euvipharm Pharmaceutical Joint-Stock Company. Valeant completed the acquisition in late July with a subscription price of above USD20 million. Baker & McKenzie served as lead legal advisor to Valeant, from start to finish, including due diligence, negotiation, document drafting and licensing. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. is a multinational specialty pharmaceutical company that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of pharmaceutical products, primarily in the areas of dermatology, eye health, neurology and branded generics. More information about Valeant Pharmaceuticals International, Inc. can be found at www.valeant.com. Euvipharm is a GMP-WHO certified full-service pharmaceutical manufacturer of Rx and OTC products for domestic and international markets. Valeant's acquisition in Vietnam is representative of foreign investors' increased interest in entering and operating in the country's pharmaceutical and healthcare sector. The Baker & McKenzie team primarily comprised of Partners Seck Yee Chung and Nguyen Lan Phuong, Associate Tran Duy Binh and Senior Regulatory Practitioner Vu Minh Ha.
Written by John on 05 September 2013.
♦ Recent Deals ♦ Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Mayer Brown, a global leading law firm, today announced The Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group ("Vinashin"), a Vietnamese government-owned company registered in Vietnam, yesterday successfully applied to the High Court for sanction of a scheme of arrangement with certain of its creditors pursuant to a US$600 million facility. Vinashin was the 5th largest shipbuilder in the world in 2008 and had liabilities of more than US$4.5 billion at the commencement of its financial restructure. Vinashin successfully entered into consensual arrangements with other domestic and international creditors as part of its overall financial restructuring plan. The Scheme became necessary due to the creditors of the US$600 million facility being unwilling to accept Vinashin’s debt restructuring proposals. John Marsden, Managing Partner of Vietnam and Departmental Managing Partner, Commercial at Mayer Brown JSM who led the team advising in Vietnam, said: "This is a milestone for Vietnam’s shipping industry as well as its debt market. It sets a precedent for future restructuring route maps and will have a far-reaching positive impact on foreign investors' confidence in Vietnam.” Vinashin came under severe pressure from some of its loan creditors, who brought proceedings in the UK for summary judgment. Having successfully applied for a stay of those proceedings, the scheme was ultimately approved by creditors at a meeting in Singapore on 5 August 2013 and sanctioned by the High Court yesterday. The court held that it had jurisdiction to sanction the scheme even though Vinashin had no operations or assets in the UK because the loans were governed by English law and subject to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts. Devi Shah, joint head of restructuring at Mayer Brown in London said: "This is the first time that a court has used its discretion to stay proceedings at an early stage so that a scheme can be put forward and the first time that a Vietnamese company has made use of an English scheme of arrangement as a restructuring tool. This case is an excellent example of the flexibility of a scheme of arrangement to assist the restructuring of any company with a sufficient connection to England and of the English Courts' 'can do' approach when it comes to restructurings proposed for the benefit of a company's creditors as a whole."
Written by John on 31 July 2013.
♦ Recent Deals ♦ Australia, Ho Chi Minh City, Perth, Singapore, Sydney, Vietnam
Allen & Overy is advising H.C. Starck, one of the largest companies in the global tungsten industry, on its joint venture (JV) with Nui Phao Mining Company (Nui Phao), a subsidiary of one of Vietnam’s largest private sector business groups, Masan Group Corporation (Masan Group), and developer of the largest known tungsten deposits outside of China. Subject to regulatory approval, Nui Phao and H.C. Starck will own 51 percent and 49 percent respectively of the JV which will, through a newly constructed chemical plant in Thai Nguyen Province, Vietnam, process all of Nui Phao’s tungsten concentrate into higher value-added tungsten chemical products. The tungsten chemicals are used in a variety of applications requiring high strength including high speed cutting and drilling tools used in mining and mechanical engineering. The chemical plant will have an installed capacity of around 6,500 tons tungsten trioxide per annum. Commenting on the deal, Allen & Overy partner Barry Irwin said: “This is a significant deal for our client as it will provide a very substantial and stable source of material for the JV company, and it will strengthen our client’s well-established leading position as a global tungsten chemicals producer. It is a deal that plays well to Allen & Overy’s strengths given the firm’s global footprint (at least seven different offices were involved), our very strong corporate and finance practices in Vietnam and Singapore, and our extensive experience in minerals processing and offtake and the mining sector in general.” Dao Nguyen, managing partner for Vietnam, added: “The deal is also significant for Vietnam as the tungsten processing business is a niche and technologically-intensive industry. With H.C. Starck’s know-how and technology, this JV will see Vietnam shift further towards becoming a manufacturer of value-added products.” The Allen & Overy team was led by partners Dao Nguyen (Ho Chi Minh City), Barry Irwin (Singapore) and Helge Schäfer (Hamburg). They were supported by senior associates Nick Marchica (Sydney), Matthew Williams as well as other lawyers in Singapore, Perth, Hamburg and London. Other law firms on the deal include Milbank and YKVN acting for Masan/Nui Phao.
Written by John on 20 June 2013.
♦ Recent Deals ♦ Australia, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Japan, Sydney, Tokyo, Vietnam
A&O advises on USD9bn Nghi Son Refinery deal, the largest international project financing the country has seen in over 20 years. Further highlighting our reputation as one of the top go-to firms in the region, A&O is advising the export credit agencies and commercial lenders on the USD5bn financing of the Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical (NSRP) project in Vietnam. Total project costs are in excess of USD9bn. Key facility providers include Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC), The Export-Import Bank of Korea (KEXIM) and Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI), The Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd. (BTMU) and 24 commercial lenders covered by guarantees or insurance from KEXIM and NEXI. Located in Thanh Hoa Province, 200km south of Hanoi, construction of the refinery and associated infrastructure is scheduled to commence in July 2013, with the refinery expected to start commercial operations in 2017. The project will have the capacity to process 200,000 barrels of crude oil a day imported from the Middle East, producing a range of petroleum and petrochemical products including gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and polypropylene. Commenting on the deal, A&O Tokyo partner, Simon Black, said: "This is a groundbreaking project for Vietnam, being the largest international project financing to take place since the country opened its doors to foreign investment in the early '90s, and the first major foreign invested refinery and petrochemicals project in Vietnam. "As an import substitution project, it includes some innovative features to manage the foreign exchange and market risks in a robust legal and commercial structure. It was a massive effort by all involved." Partner Matthias Voss, noted: "This has been a tremendous project for the firm as it has given us the opportunity to showcase a fully integrated leading finance team operating out of Tokyo, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City and other offices in the region. "We thoroughly enjoyed working with the Allens team representing NSRP and the sponsors, whose commercial and practical approach made it possible to conclude this complex financing in a highly compressed timeframe." NSRP is a joint venture formed by Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. (35.1 percent), Kuwait Petroleum Europe B.V. (35.1 percent), Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (25.1 percent) and Mitsui Chemicals, Inc. (4.7 percent).