BOYANOV & Co. Advised Borealis on the sale of its Indirect Shareholding in Neochim

July 2023 BOYANOV & Co. advised Borealis AG, a subsidiary of the Austrian OMV AG, on all legal aspects of the sale of its indirect shareholding in Neochim AD, a large Bulgarian producer and trader of inorganic and organic chemical products including fertilizers. The transaction was part of the global divestment of Borealis AG of its nitrogen business including fertilizer, melamine, and technical nitrogen products. The business was acquired by AGROFERT – a Czech-based group active in a number of industries in Central Europe, with activities spanning from chemicals and agriculture to food…

SEE Legal Member Firms Advised BioIVT on the Acquisition of Fidelis Research

October 2022 Five SEE Legal member firms provided legal support to BioIVT, a leading provider of biospecimens, research models, and drug and diagnostic development services, for the successful acquisition of Fidelis Research, an 85-site clinical biospecimen collection network in Southeastern Europe with headquarters in Sofia, Bulgaria. BOYANOV & Co. coordinated the legal work of its SEE Legal partners from Divjak Topic Bahtijarevic & Krka, BDK Advokati, NNDKP, and Kolcuoglu Demirkan Kocakli. The transaction increased the scale and depth of BioIVT’s global operations by adding new…

Metinvest Group is Considering Building a New Plant in Bulgaria

July 2022 The Ukrainian mining and metallurgical group Metinvest (owner of the destroyed plant Azovstal) is considering building a new metallurgical plant in Bulgaria or Italy.

BOYANOV & Co. is Advising Plastics Manufacturer Borealis

February 2022 BOYANOV & Co. is advising plastics manufacturer Borealis on the Bulgarian legal aspects of the binding offer from EuroChem for Borealis’ nitrogen business. EuroChem intends to acquire Borealis’ nitrogen business, which includes fertilizer, melamine, and technical nitrogen products. It is valued at EUR 455 million under the terms of the offer. The transaction is subject to certain closing conditions and regulatory approvals, with closing expected for the second half of 2022. Borealis is one of the world’s leading providers of advanced and circular polyolefin solutions and…

HCC RunDown 2019

The Hellenic Competition Commission’s (HCC’s) investigatory activity during 2019 was marked by the biggest Dawn Raid carried out to date by HCC’s officials in the banking sector. HCC officials carried out successive unannounced ex officio investigations at the premises of a number of banks and banking associations triggered by complaints filed by market players supporting that the four systemic banks under investigation are alleged to have been involved in anti-competitive horizontal agreements in the provision of banking and payment services.

Sale of Share in CINKARNA, d.d.

The Slovenian Bank Assets Management Company is selling a 12,83% share in CINKARNA, Metalurško-kemična Industrija Celje, d.d., a titanium dioxide pigment manufacturer and one of the largest chemical-processing companies in Slovenia.

Valvoline to Acquire FAM’s Production Plant and Related IP Rights

BDK Advokati represented Ellis Enterprises d.o.o. a subsidiary of Valvoline (NYSE: VVV), in the acquisition of the production facility and IP rights from Serbian lubricant producer FAM for a purchase price of EUR 9.5 million. As a result of this acquisition, Valvoline will add to its portfolio FAM’s products which are well-known in the Balkan region.

Divjak, Topic & Bahtijarevic Law Firm Represented Prvo Plinarsko Drustvo

On 31 October 2018 INA and Prvo plinarsko drustvo (PPD) as investors, together with the Republic of Croatia, entered into a Capital Increase Agreement regarding Petrokemija, the largest regional fertiliser manufacturer listed on Zagreb Stock Exchange. The companies paid the aggregate amount of HRK 300 million (approx.  EUR 40 million) for 30 million stocks of Petrokemija, thereby becoming majority owners of Petrokemija (and replacing the State in this capacity), holding more than 50% of the share capital and the respective control over Petrokemija. The transaction was carried out via INA and PPD’s…

Possible Sale of Cinkarna Celje

In June 2018, Anatol with the financial support of the investment company KKR has resigned from the intended takeover of the chemical company Cinkarna Celje (which is on the list for privatisation, so it might be up for sale again). Cinkarna Celje has long been one of the most profitable Slovenian industrial companies. It has been designated for privatisation since 2013 and several attempts at selling a majority stake have been undertaken, most recently in 2015, when a 70% stake was put up for sale (but the sale was aborted because the price was affected by environmental concerns stemming from…

SEE Legal Advised an US Chemical Company on Merger Control Aspects

The SEE Legal Competition Practice Group advised an US chemical company on merger control aspects of an intended acquisition of a Slovenian chemical company with substantial sales in other SEE countries.

NNDKP Secures an Irrevocable Decision on Behalf of Azomures Against GFR in a Complex Commercial Dispute

SEE Legal's Romanian member, NNDKP, successfully represented the company Azomures in a commercial dispute that involved damages in the amount of EUR 15 million, representing lost profits pursuant to a framework transportation agreement. In this dispute that lasted seven years and involved complex procedural steps, including quashing and remanding for re-adjudication on appeal, a change of venue at the opponent's request, an annulment claim and several expert opinions, the court issued a final decision whereby it irrevocably dismissed the claim filed by GFR against Azomures, represented by  NNDKP. In…