DLA Piper has advised John Swire & Sons and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Argent Energy, on the acquisition of Biodiesel Amsterdam (BDA) – a leading producer of second-generation biodiesel made from used fats and oils, Tankstorage Amsterdam (TSA) – a tank storage company for vegetable oils and fats and biodiesel, and Tank & truck cleaning Amsterdam (CSA) – a tank and truck cleaning service in the port of Amsterdam, from the Amsterdam-based Simadan Group.
Argent Energy is an award-winning, large-scale commercial biodiesel production that uses food and meat processing industry waste and sewer grease to make green road fuel, and this acquisition sees Argent Energy become one of the largest biodiesel producers in Europe.
The DLA Piper Corporate team was led by London-based partner Chris Baird and Amsterdam-based partner Pieter Paul Terpstra. They were assisted by senior associate Jess Hogan, and associates, Jacklynn Everduim and Olmo Weeshoff, all Corporate. The transaction required significant assistance and involvement from the Commercial, Intellectual Property & Technology (IPT), Real Estate, Regulatory and Tax groups within the Amsterdam office, including legal directors Max van Drunen (Real Estate) and Khaled Dadi (IPT), senior associates Sebastiaan Wijsman (Tax) and Jaap Lameijer (Litigation & Regulatory), and associate Alexandra Robins (IPT).
Commenting on the deal, partner Chris Baird, said: "Having assisted John Swire & Sons with its acquisition of Argent Energy, we are delighted to have worked with the team again on this highly complex transaction. The intricacy of some of the advice required to give effect to this transaction has resulted in almost all of the practice groups in our Amsterdam office having to work tirelessly and seamlessly with our Corporate teams under great time pressure. We are proud to have been able to assist John Swire & Sons with its ongoing green energy strategy."
Partner Pieter Paul Terpstra, added: "Complex transactions like these are where we can truly make a difference to our clients. Our full-service capabilities enable us to be well equipped to advise on these sorts of a-typical transactions structures. We are proud to have been part of this successful transaction and wish John Swire & Sons, as well as Argent Energy, the best of luck with integrating BDA, TSA and CSA into their existing business and taking it to the next level."
