Germany

Norton Rose Fulbright’s long-standing engagement with sustainability is evident in its climate change practice which was established 20 years ago and which sits alongside the firm’s dedicated sustainability and energy transition team. The practice in Germany stands out in particular for its corporate and finance work within the renewable energy space.

In a highlight led by Munich-based Klaus Bader and Sebastien Frech, the team advised JERA, a Japanese power company which promotes the adoption of greener fuels and thermal power that doesn’t emit CO2 during power generation, on its investment in Hydrogenious LOHC, a German company developing, producing and selling technology which supports the safe transport and delivery of hydrogen. Bader and Frech also acted alongside Bernd Dreier and others in advising Brookfield Renewables, which operates one of the world’s largest renewable power platforms, on its acquisition of Sunovis, a solar project design and development company which has successfully developed more than 30 solar projects in Germany and other European countries.

Globally, the firm regularly contributes to thought leadership in the area via its energy transition newsletter and energy transition hub, among other platforms. It is also one of the founding members of the Chancery Lane Project.

Italy

Norton Rose Fulbright’s Italian team stands out for its work assisting companies transition to more sustainable operations.

Under the leadership of Arturo Sferruzza, the team is advising Shell on its acquisition of 100% of SKI, a company active in the design and construction of photovoltaic plants; SKI has a pipeline of 25 projects under development in Italy, amounting to around 747 MW. Following the acquisition, Shell’s solar development pipeline in Italy will reach nearly 2 GW.

Globally, the firm actively contributes to thought leadership in the sustainability arena; its energy transition hub consists of various publications on climate change and the energy transition. It also offers an ESG Insights portal, an ESG and green finance webinar series, a road to COP27 portal, a bi-annual climate change litigation update, and a guide to creating carbon offset units on the voluntary market.

The firm not only demonstrated its long-standing engagement with sustainability by establishing a climate chance practice 20 years ago, but also by being one of the founding members of the Chancery Lane Project, a collaboration of legal professionals aiming to enable legal solutions to climate change.

United Arab Emirates

In the United Arab Emirates, Norton Rose Fulbright’s sustainability-related work recently included advice to International Holding Company on its AED 1.8bn acquisition of a 50% stake in Kalyon Enerji. The deal led by Zubair Mir, Mark Berry and others saw the client acquire the Konya-based Kalyon Karapinar Solar Power Plant, which is set to meet the annual electricity needs of around two million people, as well as other renewable projects in Turkey, such as a wind project of 1 GW, and a 100 MW solar project.

In another recent highlight, Nick Robinson worked with a London team to assist the underwriters, led by Citi, HSBC and MUFG, in relation to green bonds which will be included in the list of Euronext ESG Bonds, issued by Sweihan PV Power, the operater and owner of Noor Abu Dhabi solar PV power generation plant, with a power capacity of 881 MW.

The firm is a founding member of the Chancery Lane Project and a signatory to the Law Society’s commitment to tackling the climate crisis, a resolution that was drafted under the guidance of the Law Society’s Climate Change Working Group, chaired by the firm’s head of sustainability across the EMEA region. The firm’s global environmental sustainability committee is dedicated to improving the sustainability of the firm’s operations and taking direct action to support the United Nations Development Goal 13: Action on Climate Change.

In 2021, the firm held its first ‘climate hackathon’, which was joined by over 100 lawyers who exchanged ideas on climate change and environmental issues impacting clients.