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CMS advises Equitix and Kansai-led consortium on acquisition of 50% stake in Electricity North West

30 July 2019

International law firm CMS has acted for Equitix and a consortium comprising Kansai Electric Power Co. Inc., Daiwa Energy & Infrastructure Co. Ltd (DEL) and Mitsubishi UFJ Lease & Finance Company limited (MUL) on its acquisition of a 50% stake in Electricity North West, the electricity distribution network operator covering the North West of England.

Owned by First State Investments and J.P. Morgan Asset Management since 2007, Electricity North West serves approximately five million customers across 2.4 million premises, and operates from urban Manchester to rural Cumbria with a network of 57,000km of cables and wires. This investment marks a significant next step for Electricity North West, which will work with its new partners to deliver its current price control which runs to 2023 (RIIO ED1) and create a plan for the next price control from 2023 to 2028 (RIIO-ED2).

The CMS team was led by Co-Head of Corporate Charles Currier, and included Bill Carr, Susan Currie, Alice Xiao, Leo Mikros and Fareed Anees (Corporate); Brian Sher and Ruth Derruau (Competition); Patrick Donegan (Finance); Aaron Fairhurst and Jason Todd (Tax); and Robert Lane and Tom Forman (Energy).
Charles Currier comments: “We are delighted to have supported our clients to acquire this significant stake in Electricity North West. Their combined expertise and experience will help fuel the growth of one of the UK’s premier distribution network operators and support the operator to develop solutions to address some of its immediate challenges including smart cities, electric vehicles and virtual power.”