Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised long-standing client and Swedish energy group, Vattenfall, on the sale of its entire UK electric vehicle business to Statkraft AS (“Statkraft”), Europe’s largest generator of renewable energy.
Statkraft will take on Vattenfall’s existing electric vehicle charging network staff in the UK and will manage, operate and maintain its charging stations. It will continue to power the charging network using 100% renewable energy from its own portfolio.
The deal includes a six-month transition services agreement governing the transfer of Vattenfall’s network of charging points to Statkraft. This transfer of assets will take place on a case-by-case basis to ensure there is no disruption to customers.
Vattenfall is a Swedish multinational power company owned by the Swedish government. Beyond Sweden, the company is active in Denmark, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. In 2019, it reported a net profit of SEK14.86bn (US$1.47bn). Statkraft is a leading hydropower company, fully owned by the Norwegian state.
The multidisciplinary WFW London team that advised Vattenfall was led by Partner Martin Lucas, supported on corporate and operations and maintenance matters by Senior Associates Nick Connell and Helen Forsey respectively. Employment law matters were handled by Partner Devan Khagram and Associate Aarti Jagpal, while Partner Tom Jarvis advised on tax issues.
Martin commented: “I am pleased that WFW was able to support Vattenfall as it makes key changes to its UK operations. That a market leading company such as Vattenfall opted for WFW to advise them on this strategically significant divestment underlines our status as one of the leading law firms active in the European power market”.
