Leading global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills has advised LLC Gazpromneft-Sakhalin on its international tender and contract for a semi-submersible drilling rig from Japan Drilling Company to be deployed at the Ayashsky block, located on the continental shelf of the Sea of Okhotsk.

The firm advised on the structuring of the transaction and all aspects of the drilling contract and associated charterparties for support drilling vessels.

Herbert Smith Freehills has advised on the construction, operation and financing of Stage 3 of the Hornsdale Wind Farm, located about 200km north of Adelaide in South Australia.

This follows on from the successful achievement of financial close and the commencement of construction of Stage 1 and Stage 2 of the Hornsdale Wind Farm (together totalling 200MW of capacity) on which the firm advised in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

A cross-practice team at Herbert Smith Freehills has advised on the establishment of Clear.Bank – the UK's first new clearing bank to enter the market for more than 250-years.

Unveiled for the first time today (28 Feb, 2017), Clear.Bank will officially open in Autumn 2017 to financial services providers, FCA-regulated businesses and Fintechs that require access to UK payment systems and core banking technology to support current account capabilities.

As lead adviser on this high-profile matter, Herbert Smith Freehills:

Ashurst LLP advised WeWork, a US company created in 2010, now valued US$ at 16bn, specialised in coworking spaces worldwide, on its second establishment in France based at 64-66 rue des Archives in Paris (75003).

Former headquarters of the Galeries Lafayette, these new premises in the Coeur Marais building, are over 7,000 sq.m and will accommodate up to 1,000 WeWork members from October 2017.

WeWork had already planned the opening of its flagship establishment in early April 2017 (at 33 rue Lafayette, Paris), and continues thus its development in France.

Luther advised Aurubis AG on a national flagship energy efficiency project: In the presence of Hamburg's environmental senator Jens Kerstan, the world's leading copper group signed an agreement on 17 February 2017 with enercity Contracting Nord GmbH concerning use of industrial waste to supply eastern Hafencity in Hamburg . The project is one of ten flagship energy - efficient thermal waste usage projects at the German Energy Agency (dena) and provides a meaningful contribution to thermal energy change.

A cross-practice team from Herbert Smith Freehills' London office has helped the firm's alumnus Robert Rothkopf launch Balance Legal Capital, a new litigation funding venture.

DLA Piper has advised global life sciences company Novo Nordisk on a new research facility to be built on the University of Oxford campus.

International law firm Watson Farley & Williams (“WFW”) has advised long standing client DONG Energy (“DONG”) on the reorganisation of its Lincs offshore wind farm (“Lincs”) joint venture following the decision of partners Centrica and Siemens Project Ventures to sell their respective 50% and 25% stakes in the Lincs project. DONG retains its 25% stake in Lincs.

UBS Switzerland AG (UBS) has established a mortgage financing disintermediation platform which brings together institutional investors such as pension funds seeking to invest in mortgages on incoming producing real estate and borrowers seeking to finance such objects.

Olswang has acted as lead legal advisor on the launch of Expectation – a new independent TV production company created by former Endemol Shine Group President Tim Hincks and ex-ITV Director of Television Peter Fincham.

Expectation launches with six departments across scripted and non-scripted programming including drama, comedy, factual entertainment, entertainment, reality and factual.