Category: Czech Republic

Kinstellar and Linklaters have advised Barclays Bank PLC, Citigroup Global Markets Limited, and Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch, on the sale of a 7.5% stake held by CEZ in the Hungarian oil company MOL.

According to Kinstellar, “the transaction aimed to avoid the risk of a decline in MOL’s share price following the sale.” The firm reports that “CEZ Group estimates that the transaction will have a total positive effect on its pre-tax profit in 2017 of CZK 3.4 billion (approximately EUR 125 million).”

Barclays Bank PLC, Citigroup Global Markets Limited and Deutsche Bank AG, London Branch acted as Joint Dealer Managers in relation to the Invitation and Joint Bookrunners with respect to the equity placing. Citigroup Global Markets Limited acted as Settlement Agent.

The Kinstellar team was led by Counsel Martina Brezinova and Partner Kamil Blazek.

Kinstellar did not reply to our inquiry about counsel for CEZ on the deal.

Kinstellar has advised Trelleborg, a provider of engineered polymer solutions, on its EUR 65 million sale of Trelleborg Material & Mixing Lesina s.r.o., a producer and supplier of polymer compounds, to Hexpol. Kocian Solc Balastik advised Hexpol on then deal.

Trelleborg Material & Mixing Lesina s.r.o., which is headquartered at a manufacturing facility in Lesina, in the Czech Republic, posted a turnover of EUR 40 million in 2016 and has around 125 employees.

The Kinstellar team was led by Partner Jan Juroska and included Associate Michal Kniz and Junior Associate Kristyna Del Maschio.

The KSB team was led by Managing Partner Dagmar Dubecka, supported by Associate Jan Beres.

Czech lawyer Radek Novotny has left LG Electronics to become the new Head of Legal at AERO Vodochody AEROSPACE a.s. in the Czech Republic.  

Founded in 1919, the Czech Republic’s AERO Vodochody is famous for producing the L-29 Delfin, L-39 Albatros, L-59 Super Albatros, and L-159 Alca military light combat jets. Currently the company —which was re-privatized and purchased by Penta Investments in 2006 — focuses on the development of two proprietary aircraft: The L-159 light combat aircraft and the L-39NG, a new generation of the jet trainer. The company also cooperates on production of the Sikorsky S-76 helicopter and produces key components for Embraer, Airbus, and Bombardier CSeries aircrafts. 

Novotny spent the past eight years at LG, and three and a half years before that in private practice with Havel, Holasek & Partners. Before that he spent five years at ING and almost three years as a lawyer at Airport Prague. At AERO Vodochody Novotny works as part of a three-person legal team. He declares himself excited to be working in his new position, which he described as being “much more challenging than my previous position.”   

CMS has advised Spanish investment fund Azora Europa l on its sale of the Galleries Louvre office property in Prague to Redstone Real Estate. Squire Patton Boggs advised Redstone on the deal. The price was not disclosed.

Galleries Louvre is a mid-sized office building offering approximately 4,800 square meters of administrative space and is fully and long-term let to tenants such as Lukoil Accounting and Finance Europe (LAFE), the Vseobecnazdravotnipojistovna (VZP) health insurance company, and the Stadler engineering company.

“We are very satisfied with the sale of Galleries Louvre,” said Anna Szelc of Azora Europa. “It is a high quality project located in an established and still improving area. It has been appreciated by international tenants with whom we extended the leases during last six years. The decision on the sale was taken considering the positive investment mood in the Czech market and the internal strategy of the fund.”

“Galleries Louvre, as a well-established asset in a growth location, fits well in our opportunistic strategy to seek tenants who appreciate attention and high-quality service,” added Richard Moravek, the founder of Redstone Real Estate. “With our strong financial backing and an experienced team which keeps expanding, we are confident to build a growth-oriented portfolio of assets located in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.”

The CMS Prague team consisted of Partner Lukas Hejduk and Associates Petr Koral and Michal Samek.

The Squire Patton Boggs team was led by Partner Radek Janecek and included Senior Associate Hana Cekalova and Associates Lenka Nova and Marek Hrubes.

Image Source: europaproperty.com

Dentons has advised automotive parts manufacturer Motorpal on the successful implementation of a pre-pack reorganization.

Motorpal is a manufacturer of fuel injectors for diesel engines. The company’s products include injection pumps, injection valves for diesel engines, and other products supplied to vehicle producers (including balancing shafts, piston pins, and tappets). Major customers include Zetor, Deutz, and MMZ. Motorpal has production plants in Jihlava, Jemnice, Batelov and Velke Meziricí. It has almost 1,250 employees. In 2016, the company celebrated its 70 year anniversary.

With Dentons’ assistance, and after successful negotiations, approval, and implementation of the reorganization plan, the company has now emerged from insolvency. As a result, Dentons reports, Motorpa will save more than 1200 jobs in an economically disadvantaged region of the Czech Republic.  The Motorpal case is the first successful pre-pack reorganization in the Czech Republic to obtain the strong support of senior secured lenders.

“We are happy about the outcome of the case,” said Dentons Partner Jiri Tomola, the Head of Dentons’ Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy practice in Prague. “It’s a great success for both Motorpal and its creditors, and for the Czech economy. Having represented Motorpal throughout this long journey, we believe the company has great potential and the restructuring has added significant impetus for further development. The case is also important from a legal perspective. It will serve as a precedent and create more space for the use of pre-packed reorganization in practice.”

Motorpal filed its insolvency petition together with a reorganization plan with the Regional Court in Brno on January 15, 2016. Despite the fact that the pre-pack reorganization plan had the overwhelming support of the creditors, the regional court in Brno rejected it based on formalistic grounds. Dentons successfully represented the client at the Constitutional Court of the Czech Republic, claiming that the Regional Court’s rejection of the plan violated the client’s right to a fair trial. The Constitutional Court found in favor of Motorpal – overturning the Regional Court’s decision and allowing the company to resubmit its reorganization plan. The plan was approved by the majority of secured and unsecured creditors and obtained approval from the Regional Court in September 2016. 

On February 21, 2017 the Regional Court in Brno issued a resolution stating that Motorpal had fulfilled its reorganization plan and was out of insolvency.

Due to the complexity of this restructuring deal, Dentons reports, the firm “brought together a cross-practice team including Restructuring, Insolvency and Bankruptcy, Corporate, Banking and Finance, and Litigation and Dispute Resolution.” The firm’s team, led by Tomola, included Counsel Juraj Alexander (who left the firm during the transaction), Associates Vaclav Zalud and Martin Fronek, and Junior Associates Vojtech Novak, Katarina Kucharovicova, and Jan Kralicek.

Clifford Chance’s Prague office has advised Danish electronics company Bang & Olufsen on the divestment of its Czech subsidiary, Bang & Olufsen, s.r.o., to its long-term partner Tymphany Acoustic Technology HK Limited.

According to a Clifford Chance press release, as part of the transaction, Tymphany Acoustic Technology will produce Bang & Olufsen products in the factory in Koprivnice, in the Czech Republic, “as a trusted and selected supplier of Bang & Olufsen.” All of Bang & Olufsen’s Czech workforce will be transferred to Tymphany Acoustic Technology, Clifford Chance reports, “ensuring the delivery of the innovative, high-end audiovisual solutions for which the Bang & Olufsen brand is renowned.”

The closing of the transaction is subject to the approval of the Czech competition authorities and is expected in Q2 2017.

The Clifford Chance team was led by Partner David Kolacek, supported by Associate Aneta Sosnovcova and Tax Advisor Petr Sebesta.

Image Source: bang-olufsen.com

Kinstellar has advised the Czech Republic’s Genesis Capital on its acquisition of a 47% share in the POS Media Group from founder and CEO Richard van het Bolscher, who remains the controlling shareholder.

POS is a provider of point-of-sale advertising and in-store communications solutions. 

The GP bought its stake in the business with capital from Genesis Private Equity Fund III, a EUR 82 million buyout fund that held its final close in September 2016. POS is the second investment by the fund, following the buyout of pharmaceuticals company Quinta-Analytica in June of last year.

POS, which is headquartered in Prague, was founded in 1998 as International Media Ideas Group and operates in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine. It reported revenues of EUR 29 million in 2016 and has 170 employees.

The Kinstellar team was led by Partner Jan Juroska and included Associates Kristyna Del Maschio and Michal Kniz.

Kinstellar did not reply to an inquiry about the identity of van het Bolscher’s counsel.

Image Source: pos-media.eu

Balcar, Polansky & Spol. has advised Skanska Reality on its CZK 841 million purchase of eight hectares of land for the development of a housing project in Prague-Vysocany from Codeco UK. The sellers were represented by Radek Budin of Advokatni Kancelar Holub. 

Skanska Reality plans to develop a large residential district — to be named the Emil Kolben district, after a prominent Czech entrepreneur — with approximately one thousand apartments in a location near Prague’s Kolbenova metro station. 

The area has been zoned for residential use in the master plan, and Skanska plans to launch an architectural contest for the project. Part of the area already has a construction permit, allowing Skanska to break ground on the first phase immediately.

The Balcar, Polansky & Spol team consisted of Managing Lawyer Radim Polansky and Lawyer Lenka Naxerova.

JSK has advised the Lama Energy Group on its acquisition of Live Telecom from sellers Pavel Stepanek, David Lukac, and Zdenek Nesveda. The sellers were represented by Delta Legal.

According to JSK, “Lama Energy Group (LEG) is a leading Czech wholesale and retail trader in energy commodities and a significant producer of natural gas. LEG also owns power and heating plants in the Czech Republic and crude oil related assets in North America. Over the past few years, LEG’s retail offering for Czech customers has been diversified with pay-TV services (through satellite and internet TV operator DIGI TV) and mobile voice and data (through virtual mobile operator Lama Mobile).”

The JSK team was led by Partner Tomas Dolezil, who explained that “We assisted with the identification of this investment opportunity and were pleased to continue on the legal front to the successful closing of the transaction.” Dolezil was supported by JSK Senior Associate Helena Hailichova and Junior Associates Barbora Safarikova and Michaela Krajickova.

The Delta Legal team consisted of Lawyers Pavel Fara and Libor Vacek.

Kinstellar has successfully advised Deutsche EuroShop AG on its EUR 374 million acquisition of Olympia Shopping Center in Brno from a joint venture of ECE Real Estate Partners and Rockspring Property Investment Managers LLP. White & Case advised the sellers on the transaction, which is expected to be finalized within the first half of 2017, and which represents Deutsche EuroShop’s entry into the Czech market.

Kinstellar describes Deutsche EuroShop as “Germany’s only public company that invests solely in shopping centers in prime locations,” and describes the Olympia Shopping Center as “the largest super-regional shopping center in the Czech Republic.”

The Kinstellar team was led by Partner Kamil Blazek and included Counsels Karla Rundtova and Martina Brezinova.

The White & Case team consisted of Partner Petr Panek, Local Partner Ladislav Chundela, and Associate Marianna Galusova.

Image Source: geddesarchitects.com