Latham & Watkins Advises Swiss Life Asset Managers and Gelsenwasser on Acquisition of Infrareal
Latham & Watkins LLP advised Swiss Life Asset Managers (Swiss Life AM) and Gelsenwasser AG (Gelsenwasser) on the acquisition of Infrareal GmbH (Infrareal), the owner and operator of two growing life science industrial parks in Germany. Swiss Life Asset Managers and Gelsenwasser will support Infrareal’s investment program over the next 10 years and spearhead management’s efforts in growing best-in-class site operations as well as technical and logistics services for blue-chip life science companies. The financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
Infrareal is the owner and operator of two prime life science-focused industrial parks in Marburg and Jena, Germany. Infrareal helps its clients focus on their core manufacturing and R&D competencies, providing them with all-encompassing infrastructure support which includes buildings, utilities, technical services, logistics and IT solutions. With its attractive loca-tions and high-quality asset base, Infrareal is well-positioned to capture the growth in out-sourced infrastructure in the life science industry.
Swiss Life AM offers its asset management expertise to third-party clients in Switzerland, France, Germany, Luxembourg and the UK. As at 31. December 2020, assets managed by Swiss Life AM on behalf of third-party clients amounted to €85 billion. The team has advised 30 infrastructure investments in Europe and North America across the renewables, energy, regulated utilities, transportation, and communication sectors.
Gelsenwasser is a major German utility company with a main focus on infrastructure, service and supply, from water and wastewater to energy (gas, electricity, wind, PV, heat) and to the digital area.
The cross-border team was co-led by London finance partner Conrad Andersen, London corporate partner John Guccione and Düsseldorf corporate partner Tobias Larisch with support from Düsseldorf corporate associates Katharina Intfeld, Alexander Belk, Jaschar Mirkhani, Felix Gasten, and Ivo Wanwitz. Advice was also provided on finance matters by Frankfurt associate Martina Eisgruber, Hong Kong associates Lynsey Edgar and Tirmzi Zarmina; on regulatory matters by Frankfurt counsel Joachim Grittmann and associate Alexander Wilhelm, on antitrust matters by Düsseldorf partner Jan Höft, Hamburg counsel Jana Dammann de Chapto and Düsseldorf associate Leonie Spangenberger, on tax matters by Hamburg partner Tobias Klass and associate Verena Seevers, on real estate matters by Frankfurt partner Otto von Gruben, on corporate/IP matters by Frankfurt partner Susan Kempe-Müller and associate Pia Sösemann, on employment matters by Munich partner Tobias Leder, and on data privacy matters by Frankfurt associates Wolf-Tassilo Böhm and Isabelle Brams.