In what constitutes one of the biggest UK real estate financings in recent years, Battersea Power Station has raised £1.4bn from a syndicate of Asian and Middle Eastern banks with Baker & McKenzie and Norton Rose Fulbright landing key advisory roles.
Announced yesterday (28 October), and signalling the high demand by domestic and international investors for real estate as an alternative asset class, the financing on the deal comprises a £750m facility to fund the development of the Power Station building; and a £600m facility to fund the development of Electric Boulevard.
Bakers’ London real estate partners Justin Salkeld and Stephen Turner advised the lenders alongside the firm’s Europe head of energy, mining and infrastructure, Mike Webster, and Singapore-based principal Emmanuel Hadjidakis. Norton Rose Fulbright’s team included Dan Kennedy on financing aspects of the deal and partner Dan Wagerfield on property aspects.
Although not typically ranked for its capabilities in property finance, Bakers has acted on certain heavyweight mandates in the burgeoning real estate market previously, including Salkeld acting for CIMB Bank Berhad and a syndicate of banks on the £790m refinancing of the site acquisition and development financing for phase one construction at Battersea Power Station. More recently, the top Global 100 firm secured a role advising on the receivership of London’s iconic building, the Gherkin, valued at around £650m and put up for sale after collapsing into receivership earlier this year. With the 40-storey skyscraper expected to be purchased by a foreign buyer, Bakers acted for the facility agent for the senior lender syndicate and its receivers Deloitte.
Norton Rose Fulbright, meanwhile, is ranked top tier in commercial property and typically takes on large-scale, long term development projects including Battersea Power Station and London Gateway.
sarah.downey@legalease.co.uk
