25 January, 2019
Baker McKenzie acted as lead legal advisor to SK E&S, a member of SK Group specializing in gas and power business, in connection with its sale of 49% stake out of its wholly-owned Paju Energy Service Co., Ltd, which owns one of the largest merchant LNG power plants in Korea, to Gen Plus B.V. a wholly owned subsidiary of Electricity Generating Plc of Thailand (EGCO). The deal was valued at approximately KRW 897 billion (approx. USD 800 million) and used the locked-box mechanism.
Baker McKenzie fielded a top multijurisdictional team led by the Seoul-based Partners Won Lee and Winton Kim with support from Albert Chung (Senior Associate) and SeungPyo Hahn (Associate); Sawanee Sethsathira (Partner) and Kullapa Stavorn (Partner) in Thailand; and Simon Leung (Partner), Gerry Wong (Registered Foreign Lawyer) and Annie Wat (Associate) in Hong Kong.
EGCO was advised by Hunton Andrews Kurth (lead counsel), Kim & Chang (Korean counsel) and HSBC (financial advisor).
This transaction is the latest example of the work of Baker McKenzie and its associated offices in acting as lead legal advisor on strategic, high value M&A transactions, following on from Unilever’s recent USD 5.2 billion agreement to acquire the Health Food Drinks portfolio of GlaxoSmithKline in India, Bangladesh and 20 other predominantly Asian markets; Mitsubishi UFJ Trust and Banking Corporation’s USD 2.9 billion acquisition of Colonial First State Global Asset Management; LafargeHolcim’s USD 1.75 billion disposal of its interest in Holcim Indonesia to Semen Indonesia; Link REIT’s HKD 12.01 billion disposal of 12 shopping centers in Hong Kong to a consortium led by Gaw Capital; and Evergrande Health’s USD 930 million acquisition of majority stake in National Electric Vehicle Sweden.
Baker McKenzie is one of the leading firms for cross-border transactions, providing strategic advice on deals involving the world’s leading financial institutions and multinational companies. From deal inception to business integration, we help clients bridge the gap between aspiration and achievement. The Firm leads and closes three deals a day with expertise spanning banking and finance, capital markets, corporate finance, funds, M&A, private equity and projects. The combination of deep sector expertise, and our ability to work seamlessly across each of the countries where we operate, means we add unique value in shaping, negotiating and closing a deal.
