Bird & Bird advised EIFFEL GAZ VERT, a fund managed by Eiffel Investment Group, in connection with a joint investment alongside SUEZ and SPV Bourgogne in ARA Cursus (“ARA”), a Polish-based developer and operator of biogas plants.
We assisted EIFFEL GAZ VERT at every stage of the transaction – structuring, drafting and negotiating the transaction documents, and assisting at the completion of the transaction.
ARA, a Polish developer and operator of anaerobic digestion plants, has developed a portfolio of nine agricultural biogas projects in the country, with the support of key technology and project partners. Each project is designed to produce around 1 MW of renewable electrical energy, with one plant already in operation. Construction on the next group of projects is planned to begin in 2024. These projects also involve the production of digestate as an agricultural fertilizer, and the drying of wood for commercial customers.
SUEZ, along with Eiffel and Bourgogne, plans to invest nearly 70 million euros in the construction of the first group of biogas plants and the development of additional biomethane production plants.
On Bird & Bird’s side, the project was led by Wojciech Nowosad (Senior Associate, Corporate & M&A, Warsaw) under supervision from Ludomir Biedecki (Partner, Corporate & M&A, Warsaw). Bartłomiej Sikora (Senior Counsel, Tax, Warsaw), Marcin Alberski (Counsel, EU & Competition, Warsaw) and Szymon Gołębiowski (Senior Associate, EU & Competition, Warsaw) were responsible for the tax and antitrust aspects of the transaction.
“We were pleased to work with Eiffel Gaz Vert and its team in connection with this project. The transaction had a fast pace, as it was a key issue for the client, but we were able to meet all the deadlines, despite the multijurisdictional aspects, including matters of Polish and French law. We strongly believe that ARA, backed by such players as SUEZ and Eiffel, will have everything it needs to become a leader on the Polish biogas market”, said Ludomir Biedecki.
“We are very happy to become a shareholder of the platform that we started to finance three years ago. The combined expertise of SUEZ, Eiffel and Bourgogne will allow ARA CURSUS to position itself as a leading actor on the Polish biogas market. We would like to thank Bird & Bird for efficiently handling the project from the legal perspective in a demanding timeline. We were very happy with the quality of the services, attention to detail and response time, which helped us successfully close the deal”, commented Marc-Etienne Mercadier, fund manager of Eiffel Gaz Vert.
