Baker McKenzie advised infrastructure funds managed by B Capitals Partners AG, Zurich, in connection with the establishment of BCP Battery Holding (BCP), a platform to acquire a pipeline of German battery assets exceeding 300 MW. As the first asset in this pipeline, the platform has acquired a 60 MW battery project in Eisenach, Thuringia which is currently under construction and will be the largest industrial battery in the German battery storage market once completed.
The infrastructure funds managed by B Capital Partners have implemented the transaction as part of a newly formed joint venture together with other investment funds as co-investors which are managed by another Zurich-based asset manager.
Baker McKenzie's work included, in particular, advice on a framework agreement to secure the pipeline, project-related contracts (such as lease, EPC, O&M and marketing contracts), the joint venture structure, the financing, the tax structuring, and the M&A work relating to the acquisition of the projects as such.
"With their deep industry knowledge and their exceptional experience in advising on all stages of project lifecycles and M&A, the Baker McKenzie team lead by Claire Dietz-Polte and Holger Engelkamp was able to support us on all relevant aspects of the transaction and project agreements," commented Dr Barbara Weber, founder of B Capital Partners.
"It is great to see such innovative and future-oriented investments growing and thus contributing to the energy transition in Germany." commented Claire Dietz-Polte. Holger Engelkamp added: "A special challenge of this transaction was the implementation of various ESG requirements based on an ESG tool developed by our client to make sure that this is truly a sustainable investment."
After its first investment into battery storage in Germany in 2020, B Capital Partners, a Zurich-based asset manager specialized in sustainable infrastructure, put together an exclusive pipeline of battery storage assets in Germany from several leading battery developers. The pipeline consists of more than 300 MW of battery storage assets, which the newly established BCP Battery Holding (BCP) will acquire and build over the course of the next twelve months. Once the build-out of the pipeline is complete, BCP will be the largest of its kind in Germany.
Legal advisor to B Capital Partners AG:
Baker McKenzie
Lead:
Corporate/Projects: Dr. Claire Dietz-Polte LL.M. (Partner, Berlin), Holger Engelkamp LL.M. (Counsel, Berlin)
Team:
Corporate/Projects: Jasmin Mayerl (Associate, Berlin)
Public Law: Dr. Janet Butler (Counsel, Berlin), Dr. Maximilian Voll LL.M. (Associate, Berlin)
Antitrust: Prof. Dr. Christian Burholt LL.M. (Partner, Berlin), Dr. Katrin Kurz (Associate, Berlin)
Real Estate: Dr. Daniel Bork (Counsel, Dusseldorf)
Insurance: Dr. Peter Stankewitsch (Senior Counsel, Frankfurt)
Tax: Dr. Stephan Behnes (Partner, Frankfurt), Florian Gimmler (Partner, Frankfurt), Dr. Astrid Ruppelt (Counsel, Frankfurt), Cornelia Hoene (Associate, Frankfurt)
Banking & Finance: Kathrin Marchant (Partner, Frankfurt)
Litigation/Arbitration: Dr. Max Wilhelm Oehm LL.M. (Associate, Frankfurt) Commercial: Dr. Johannes Teichmann (Partner, Frankfurt), Rebecca Romig (Associate, Frankfurt)
Legal Project Management: Felix Müller (Legal Project Manager, Frankfurt)
Luxemburg/M&A: Elodie Duchene (Partner, Luxemburg), Jean-Philippe Smeets (Partner, Luxemburg), Nastasia Dumitru (Associate, Luxemburg), Thibaut Groeninger (Associate, Luxemburg), Laura Massagé (Associate, Luxemburg)
Luxemburg/Tax: Amar Hamouche (Principal Tax Advisor, Luxemburg), Andrea Addamiano (Associate, Luxemburg), Matteo Barchi (Tax Specialist, Luxemburg), Antonio Merino (Associate, Luxemburg)