Month: September 2021

Rymarz Zdort advised Globalworth in connection with the sale of five office buildings located in Warsaw. Globalworth has signed a preliminary agreement with 5th Corner, a new investment platform created by Cornerstone Investment Management and certain other shareholders. The approximately EUR 123m transaction involved the sale of five office buildings in Warsaw: Nordic Park, Bliski Centrum, Batory Building I, Company House I and Warta Tower. The largest of these is the 30,000 sq.m. Warta Tower situated in the heart of Warsaw’s business district.

Globalworth is an investment company active on the CEE real estate market and listed on London’s AIM. It achieved its top standing as an investor in the CEE office space market thanks to its leading market positions in Romania and Poland.

The Rymarz Zdort team advising on the transaction was led by Piotr Fedorowicz, a corporate partner and the head of the real estate practice. Members of the transactional team included Tomasz Bąkowski, senior associate, Izabela Skrzypczak, associate, Mateusz Konopka, associate, and Marcin Banak, associate.

Rymarz Zdort advised Groupe CANAL+  (the “Buyer”) on its acquisition of 70% of the shares in SPI International B.V., the majority shareholder of Kino Polska TV S.A., from Cooperatieve SPI International U.A.

Groupe CANAL+ is a leading world pay-TV operator and major player in free-to-air television in France. CANAL+ has a wide international footprint with a presence in 40 countries in Europe, Sub-Saharan Africa and Asia. In Europe, CANAL+ has a strong presence in mainland France and Poland and has also acquired the M7 Group platform in 2019. Following the transaction, the Buyer will indirectly take over control of 12,913,285 shares in Kino Polska TV S.A. representing 65.15% of the company’s share capital.

SPI International is a global media group that has been a leading broadcaster and distributor of theatrical films and television programming for over 25 years. SPI’s portfolio includes free to air and pay TV channels available in CEE, Western Europe, CIS and the Balkans, including Poland, Czechia, Romania, Serbia, Russia and the Netherlands. SPI’s offer includes channels such as Kino Polska, Stopklatka and Dizi, as well as the FilmBox and Film1 brands.

The closing of the transaction remains subject to conditions precedent including the procurement of approvals from the Polish and Hungarian anti-trust authorities.

The Rymarz Zdort transaction team was headed by Dr Marek Maciąg, a partner in the corporate department, who was assisted by associate Monika Michałowska. The team that conducted the due diligence process comprised Monika Kierepa, a partner in the corporate department and the head of the intellectual property practice, Marek Kanczew, counsel, as well as Hubert Bracichowicz, Aleksandra Pietrzak and Piotr Króliński, associates from the corporate department. Antitrust matters were handled by Iwona Her, a partner in the corporate department and the head of the antitrust and competition law practice, Antonina Falandysz-Zięcik, a senior associate, and Karolina Chudy, an associate.

Rymarz Zdort advised Griffin Real Estate on the conclusion of a joint venture agreement with Kajima Europe involving the financing and development of renewable energy projects located in Poland. As part of the deal, the joint venture (the “JV”) created under the agreement acquired a 72% stake in PAD-RES, a leading developer in the clean energy asset sector in Poland.

The companies plan to focus on the further development of PAD-RES’ renewable energy portfolio, which comprises investments in solar and wind projects at various stages of implementation, both in the development stage and ready to build, with an operational renewable capacity exceeding 500MW. The portfolio places the platform at the forefront of the country’s renewable energy sector.

The JV will provide capital expenditure and development equity financing for the platform, which will develop the existing portfolio in 2021 – 2025, with a view to acquiring new projects and pursuing greenfield opportunities. Griffin Real Estate will act as a co-owner and investment manager of the platform. Mariusz Adamczewski, founder of PAD-RES, will remain as a minority investor and CEO.

Griffin Real Estate is the largest privately owned innovative investment and asset manager in private equity specialised in real estate in CEE, originating and introducing several new concepts and formats to the market. The Company invests and manages its investment platforms on behalf of both its owners and its renowned international investors and strategic partners. The gross asset value of Griffin-managed investments across ten different platforms exceeds EUR 5 billion with a total invested equity of over EUR 2 billion.

Kajima Europe Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Kajima Corporation, headquartered in London, managing subsidiaries in the UK, the Czech Republic, France and Poland. Its principal activities are property investment, development and construction.

The team advising on the transaction was headed by managing partner Paweł Zdort, who was supported by counsel Jakub Krzemień and associate Małgorzata Deruś.

Rymarz Zdort provided legal support to PGNiG S.A. (“PGNiG“) in connection with the purchase of a controlling stake in Ukrainian company Karpatgazvydobuvannya from Energy Resources of Ukraine Management Services (“ERU“). Karpatgazvydobuvannya is the sole owner of the Byblivska licence, which covers an area located in Western Ukraine near the border with Poland. The company also holds a hydrocarbon exploration and production licence covering an area in the western part of the Lviv region. With respect to Ukrainian law matters, the transaction was supported by the law firm of Sayenko Kharenko.

The team involved in the transaction included the following members of the corporate department: Marek Durski, a partner and the head of energy and natural resources practice; Iwona Her, a partner and the head of the competition and antitrust practice; Jakub Krzemień, counsel; Łukasz Lech, senior associate; Antonina Falandysz-Zięcik, senior associate; and Andrzej Granat, associate.