KSB has advised the WY Group on its acquisition of Hosting90 System and Hosting Zdarma in the Czech Republic.
Financial details of the deal were not disclosed.
WYgroup is a Portugal-based marketing and digital services company.
Hosting90 System and Hosting Zdarma are IT companies specializing in webhosting, managed services, VPS servers, dedicated VDS servers, and domain registration.
KSB’s team consisted of Partner Drahomir Tomasuk and Senior Associate Jana Guricova.
Pierstone’s Prague office has advised the Prague-based Socialbakers social media marketing company on the sale of its global business to U.S.-based customer engagement company Astute.
Financial details of the sale were not disclosed.
Pierstone‘s team included Partners Tomas Schollaert, Iva Zothova and Lenka Suchankova, Senior Associates Ferdinand Fort and Stefan Kral, and Associates Teodora Draskovic and Klara Kocarova.
Pierstone did not reply to an inquiry about the deal.
Editor’s note: After this article was published, Baker McKenzie announced that it had advised Astute on the deal. The firm’s team included Luxembourg-based Partner Diogo Duarte de Oliveira and Prague-based Partner Tomas Skoumal.
DLA Piper’s Prague office has advised Russia’s Trust Union Fund on its acquisition of the Kovosvit machine tool manufacturer from Industry Innovation, which itself is owned by Czech businessman Jaroslav Strnad. NKL Legal reportedly advised the sellers on the deal.
Financial aspects of the deal were not disclosed.
Kovosvit was established in the Czech Republic in 1939. The company currently exports its products to more than 31 countries around the world.
DLA Piper’s Czech team was led by Managing Partner Miroslav Dubovsky and included Associate Marcel Janicek and Junior Associate Pavlina Trchalikova.
NKL Legal’s team was reportedly led by Lawyer Martina Sourkova.
Kocian Solc Balastik has advised Solitea on its acquisition of D3Soft. PwC Legal advised the unidentified sellers.
Financial details were not disclosed.
D3Soft is a developer and provider of digital platforms used in customer relationship management, distribution of products, and invoicing, among others, for the energy, engineering, pharmacy, MLM, wholesale, facility, and waste management industries.
Solitea is a Brno-based developer of digital platforms that provide accounting, invoicing, and retail services. The company currently employs around 120 IT experts and operates branch offices in Prague and Liberec.
KSB’s team included Partner Drahomir Tomasuk and Lawyer Jan Beres.
PwC Legal’s team was led by Attorney-at-Law Vendelin Balog.
This marks the second deal this year that KSB has advised Solitea on, following its advice earlier this year on the company’s acquisition of AspectWorks’ IT services division (as reported by CEE Legal Matters on February 26, 2021).
Havel & Partners has assisted eMan a.s. with the listing of its CZK 45 million securities on the Prague Stock Exchange’s START exchange.
START is a niche market exchange aimed at mid-level companies (USD 80-100 million) seeking capital but which may find the costs associated with a typical IPO prohibitive.
Havel & Partners describes eMan as “a Czech software developer in the development of mobile and web applications and integrated solutions.” According to the firm, “it focuses primarily on solutions for the automotive industry, the banking and insurance sector and the energy sector. Its clients include Honeywell, Skoda Auto, E.ON, and CSOB, among others. The company operates in Europe and North America.”
Havel & Partners’ team included Partners Jan Topinka, Ondrej Florian, Senior Associate Monika Vnekova, Associate Martin Stancik and Junior Associate Ivona Hladikova.
BPV Braun Partners has advised ECO Finance Group s.r.o on establishing a joint venture with the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olomouc.
The ECO Finance Group invests in agriculture, energy, and real estate. It owns and operates 7.5 hectares of greenhouses in the Prostejov region of the Czech Republic.
According to BPV Braun Partners, “the transaction will secure a strategic alliance and cooperation between these two partners in the area of growing vegetables and fruits under the brand name Cerstve Utrzeno Hana, with investment support from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Olomouc. The shared goal is to expand production and build new greenhouses in and around Olomouc to continue providing high quality local fruit and vegetables for the region and the Czech Republic as a whole.“
BPV Braun Partners’s team was led by partner David Vosol, and included Attorney Ondrej Ponistiak and Trainee Attorney Filip Balousek.
The EU has been preparing for a substantial transition of its energy sector to address the urgency of climate change. The Czech Republic has proposed raising the share of its renewable energy sources (RES) in the gross final energy consumption from the current 15% (approximately) to 22% by 2030 to contribute to the EU-wide goal of obtaining 32% of gross final energy consumption from RES by the same year. This means there will be a focus on developing RES in the Czech Republic, and the Czech government also plans to substantially strengthen the role of nuclear energy while allowing the coal-fired energy to decline.
This energy transition is likely to bring many business opportunities in upcoming years. For the transition to be as smooth as possible, the legal framework will have to adapt to current as well as to future trends. We have recently seen a number of legislative initiatives being prepared in the Czech Republic which reflect these trends, although there is still much (legislative) work to be done.
The centerpiece of these legislative changes is an amendment to Act on the Subsidy of Renewable Sources of Energy (the “RES Amendment”). The Czech government approved the RES Amendment in late April 2020. If adopted, the RES Amendment will significantly change the system of subsidizing RES in the Czech Republic. For new projects, it proposes abandoning the feed-in tariff system and keeping in place only hourly green bonuses for RES with an installed capacity of less than 1 MW (6 MW in the case of wind energy). For sources with a higher installed capacity, the RES Amendment proposes introducing an auction system in which the bidder agreeing to deliver the required capacity at the lowest price will be granted the subsidy. It is anticipated that this new system will apply to new energy sources put into operation in and after 2021. Additionally, the amendment provides the basis for supporting biomethane production in the form a green bonus.
From 2008 to early 2011, the Czech Republic experienced a rapid development in solar power plants, which benefitted from a subsidy that did not reflect the falling costs of solar power plant construction fast enough, making the plants very lucrative for investors. This period is usually referred to as the “solar boom.” Various Czech politicians (including the current Czech president) are vocal critics of the costs to the state budget caused by the “solar boom.” As a result, and in accordance with series of decisions issued by the European Commission between 2014–2017, the RES Amendment will set out a mechanism for retrospectively assessing the adequacy of the state subsidy for RES put into operation between January 1, 2006 and December 31, 2015 to address the alleged “over-compensation,” which will be measured on the basis of the internal rate of return of the sources. The most recent version, approved by the Czech government in late April 2020, appears to be least favorable for solar power plants.
Furthermore, the Czech government has also been taking steps to build a new nuclear reactor at the Dukovany nuclear power plant. It has been announced that a tender to build the new reactor should commence later in 2020 and should be finished by the end of 2022. The ambitious plan is that construction should start in 2029 and be completed by 2036. The Czech Ministry of Trade and Industry has been instructed to draft a new law on measures for transitioning to low carbon energy (the main principles of which are yet to be announced).
The Czech government is also preparing an entirely new Energy Act. In October 2019, the Czech Ministry of Trade and Industry presented the principles of a new Energy Act, designed to address the transition of the energy sector and decline in the use of carbon energy, to the government. A draft of this new Energy Act is not yet publicly available.
On January 1, 2021, an amendment to the Act on the Conditions for Trading with Emission Allowances, transposing recent EU legislation, will come into effect. Among other things, this amendment implements an innovation fund which will help companies and households finance certain energy innovation projects. It was previously reported that about CZK 100 billion – approximately EUR 4 billion – will be made available to the fund over the ten-year period, but the final figure has not yet been determined.
By Lukas Janicek, Partner, and Lukas Vymola, Associate, CMS Prague
This Article was originally published in Issue 7.6 of the CEE Legal Matters Magazine. If you would like to receive a hard copy of the magazine, you can subscribe here.
Former Havel & Partners Senior Associate Rene Cienciala has joined Urban & Hejduk as the firm’s new Head of International Arbitration.
Cienciala specializes in complex dispute resolution, including international commercial, investor-state, and sports arbitration. According to Urban & Hejduk, he “provides comprehensive legal advice to Czech and foreign clients in all stages of court proceedings as well as in domestic and international commercial arbitration (ICC, LCIA, or UNCITRAL). He has equally acted as counsel in numerous cases before the Czech Arbitration Court [and has assisted] clients in preparing structured arbitration clauses, setting aside domestic arbitral awards, or recognizing and enforcing foreign judgments and foreign arbitral awards in the Czech Republic.” In addition, the firm reports, he “has extensive experience in sports law as an arbitrator before the Czech Football Association and as counsel in international sports arbitration or international disciplinary proceedings. Furthermore, he specializes in the protection of foreign direct investments and has acted as local counsel in investor-state arbitration.”
According to Cincala, “[Urban & Hejduk] has a growing number of international clients as well as interesting international mandates and was accordingly looking for someone experienced to expand this practice.” According to him, “we are currently commencing several complex multimillion court and arbitral proceedings on behalf of a prominent Swiss claimant and strengthening our sports law practice. I have, thus, decided accepting a stirring opportunity as the new Head of International Arbitration at Urban & Hejduk while dealing with challenging international cases from the day one.”
Cincala has a Master’s degree and a Ph.D. from Charles University in Prague as well as an LL.M. from the Geneva Center for International Dispute Settlement. Prior to joining Urban & Hejduk, he spent almost ten years with Havel & Partners.
“Rene’s arrival is an important step in developing our international practice,” commented Urban & Hejduk Co-Founding Partner Marek Hejduk. “He joins our team as a very talented professional having a locally unique experience in the representation of clients in legally or technically demanding disputes with a foreign element. We already have many significant mandates in this area that we want to expand further, including through our exclusive presence in the swiftly growing Grimaldi Alliance.”
Kinstellar has advised Genesis Growth Equity Fund I on its acquisition of R2B2, an advertising company in the Czech Republic.
Financial details were not disclosed.
According to Kinstellar, “R2B2 works for hundreds of clients, and its digital network is used by major publishers as well as some of the largest advertisers, such as Vodafone or Samsung. The growth fund GGEF I last year raised EUR 40 million (approximately CZK 1 billion) for investments in smaller and mid-size companies, primarily in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. R2B2 is its first-ever acquisition.”
Kinstellar’s team was led by Partner Jan Juroska and included Counsel Zdenek Kucera, Senior Associate Michal Kniz, and Junior Associates Denisa Simanska and Stepanka Havlikova.
Kinstellar did not reply to our inquiry on the matter.
Former Havel & Partners Partner Petr Sprinz has joined Allen & Overy in Prague as Counsel and local Head of Restructuring and Insolvency.
According to Allen & Overy, Sprinz not only specializes in restructuring and insolvency but also represents clients in judicial and arbitration proceedings and complex cross-border transactions. He is also a registered arbitrator at Czech and foreign arbitration institutions.” According to the firm, “During his career, Petr has represented international and local financial institutions and other clients in insolvency proceedings, incidental disputes and asset acquisitions, including portfolios of receivables. As a member of the working groups of the Ministry of Justice, Petr participates in the implementation of the Restructuring and Insolvency Directive and has also prepared a part of Czech insolvency legislation responding to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic.”
Sprinz has a Magister’s degree and a Ph.D. in law from the Palacky University as well as an LL.M. from CEU. Prior to joining Allen & Overy, he spent a year with Weinhold Legal, three years with Weil Gotshal and Manges, and six years with Havel & Partners.
“I am thrilled that Petr has become head of our restructuring and insolvency practice,” commented Allen & Overy Partner Petr Vybiral. “Petr’s arrival is a part of our strategic decision to invest in the development of our restructuring practice, which reflects the needs of our clients for us to offer any important very highly specialized advice.”