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Baker & McKenzie Advises Gama Enerji on Privatization of Hydroelectric Power Plants in Turkey

Baker & McKenzie Advises Gama Enerji on Privatization of Hydroelectric Power Plants in Turkey

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The Esin Attorney Partnership, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, and Baker & McKenzie’s Paris office have represented Gama Enerji A.S. (Gama Enerji) and its subsidiary Kremna Enerji Uretim ve Ticaret A.S. (Kremna), on a USD 132 million secured senior acquisition finance facility extended to it by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the EBRD, and IFC for the acquisition of the Karacaoren 1 and 2 hydroelectric power plants from the Turkish Privatization Administration (TPA). White & Case and its Turkish arm, the Cakmak Gokce law firm, advised the ICBC, EBRD, the IFC, and other parallel lenders on the privatization, which will be conducted through a Transfer-of-Operating-Rights method. 

The Esin Attorney Partnership describes the deal as representing "one of the Turkish market’s most significant privatizations this year," and claims that it "represents a renewed interest in privatizations of power plants in Turkey."

Kremna will finance the acquisition of the power plants through the facility and equity injection. It also announced that it will renovate and streamline them.

Remarking on the matter, Esin Attorney Partnership Partner Muhsin Keskin commented that, "we are very proud to be acting on the privatization of Karacaoren power plants. The ongoing liberalization of the Electricity Market continues as demonstrated by the privatization of the state-owned power plants with a total installed capacity of 78 MW. The interest of the EBRD and IFC, although not surprising, shows these institutions’ commitment to enriching the liberalized power market, while the ICBC’s interest signals a new era for Turkish investors to seek financing from it and its current Turkish subsidiary. The deal structure involved complex facility and security documentation, which we have successfully completed thanks to our strong local team and our global reach."

Keskin led the Esin Attorney Partnership team, which also consisted of Baker & McKenzie lawyer Nicholas Macheras in Paris and Esin Attorney Partnership lawyers Berk Cin, Berkay Ozludil, Gul Incesulu, and Serenay Cinki in Istanbul.

Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to clarify that White & Case did not advise the TPA. In addition, after it was published, White & Case informed CEE Legal Matters that its team had been led by Partner Sebastian Buss, while the Cakmak-Gokce team was led by Partner Guniz Gokce and Senior Associate Ates Turnaoglu.

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