Overview
PARIS (January 18, 2018) – International law firm McDermott Will & Emery has advised Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in connection with its participation in the reorganization of the French nuclear industry.
McDermott counseled Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in acquiring a minority stake in Framatome (formerly known as New NP), an entity that brings together the assets of the Areva group relating to the design, supply and sale of equipment, fuel assemblies and services for nuclear reactors.
With an acquisition price of close to 500 million Euros, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries became a 19.5% shareholder of Framatome, along with EDF (the global electricity company) (75.5%) and Assystem (the engineering services firm) (5%). McDermott also advised Mitsubishi Heavy Industries on EDF’s acquisition of an equity stake in ATMEA, a joint venture formed in 2007 by and between Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (50%) and AREVA NP (50%), dedicated to the design and sale of a mid-size nuclear reactor.
McDermott lawyers from Paris, Brussels, Boston, Washington DC, Düsseldorf and Shanghai were involved in these transactions.
In Paris, partners Jacques Buhart, Jonathan Wohl and Nicolas Lafont led the transactions with a team including associate Ali Afshar Saber, advising on corporate aspects and Laura Morelli, counsel, assisting on intellectual property aspects. Partner Antoine Vergnat and associate Romain Desmont advised on tax, partner Laurent Ayache with associate Camille Spegt assisting on public law aspects alongside Alexis Werl, partner, counsel Aymeric Discours and Nisrin Abelin who advised on litigation aspects.
In Boston, partner Jed Gordon handled intellectual property aspects. In Washington, DC David Levine, counsel, advised on aspects related to the CFIUS (The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States). In Brussels, partner Wilko Van Weert and associate David Henry were involved in competition/antitrust aspects. The McDermott international team also included, in Shanghai, partner Michelle Gon, and in Düsseldorf, partner Sebastian Von Lossow.
About McDermott
McDermott Will & Emery is a premier international law firm with a diversified business practice. Numbering more than 1,000 lawyers, we have offices in Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Dallas, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Houston, London, Los Angeles, Miami, Milan, Munich, New York, Orange County, Paris, Seoul, Silicon Valley and Washington, DC. Further extending our reach into Asia, we have a strategic alliance with MWE China Law Offices in Shanghai.
