Burges Salmon have advised long standing client the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) on the completion of an approximately £200 million deal with Nugen (now owned by Toshiba Corporation and GDF SUEZ) on the extension of a land option agreement for the Moorside site. The deal will boost the development of the new nuclear power project in West Cumbria.

The NDA agreed key commercial terms with NuGen to extend a land option agreement, which reaffirms the consortium's commitment to build three reactors at Moorside.

The announcement can be read in full on the NDA website.

Herbert Smith Freehills has advised long-standing client Virgin Trains on its new contract to operate the West Coast rail franchise, announced by the Department of Transport on 19 June 2014.

The West Coast franchise is Britain's busiest intercity line and covers passenger services between London, Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, North Wales, Glasgow and Edinburgh.  The new West Coast franchise agreement entitles Virgin Trains to operate the passenger services from 22 June 2014 to at least April 2017, with an option to extend for up to an additional 12 months.

Slaughter and May is advising First Reserve, the global energy-focused infrastructure investment firm, on a framework agreement with Petrofac, the international service provider to the oil and gas industry, to create PetroFirst Infrastructure Partners (the 'Agreement'). The new venture intends to deploy capital both in purchasing a number of existing assets from Petrofac's Integrated Energy Services (IES) division as well as in new energy infrastructure projects that utilise Petrofac's development capability.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, has advised China Construction Bank Limited, the UK subsidiary of China Construction Bank (China’s second largest lender), on the establishment of its UK renminbi (RMB) clearing operations. China Construction Bank Limited is the first and only UK RMB clearing bank to be officially-sanctioned by the People’s Bank of China. This consolidates London’s position as a leading RMB centre, at a time when financial capitals around the world are vying for a slice of the fast-growing offshore RMB trade.

Addleshaw Goddard advised the Department for Transport (DfT) on the refranchise of the West Coast Main Line, which was awarded to Virgin Trains yesterday (19 June).

The short-term contract will see Virgin Trains run the franchise for the next two years and nine months for a premium of £430 million.

National business law firm DWF has advised the Transport Scotland, on behalf of the Scottish Ministers, on the recent award of the contract for the Caledonian Sleeper rail franchise.

This is the first passenger rail procurement directly undertaken by the Scottish Government, and the first time that the Caledonian Sleeper service has been awarded separately from the wider ScotRail franchise.

The award will see new rolling stock being introduced by the summer of 2018. These will be part-funded by a £60m grant from the Scottish Government.

Clifford Chance is advising Crespo Foundation, Frankfurt am Main, in the context of a pro bono matter introducing "Baby Guards Frankfurt", a project involving Frankfurt's maternity clinics.

Asia Oil Terminal Services (AOTS), advised by DLA Piper, has today signed construction contracts with supporting guarantees for the development of its project to construct South East Asia's largest independent oil terminal facility. The facility will be constructed on the East Coast of Peninsula Malaysia by China Railway Construction Bridge Engineering Group Co. Ltd (CRCBEG).

AOTS is a Malaysian company involved in the development of large-scale oil infrastructure projects in South East Asia.

Eversheds has advised Department for Transport (DfT) on the new Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern (TSGN) franchise which has been awarded to Govia Thameslink Railway Limited.

The new seven year franchise will be the largest in the UK in terms of passenger numbers, trains, revenue and staff.

Ashurst has provided legal advice to Singapore's Pavilion Gas Pte Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Pavilion Energy, in relation to its 10-year 0.7 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) liquefied natural gas (LNG) purchase agreement with Total Gas & Power Asia starting from 2018.

The LNG sale and purchase agreement was signed on 31 May 2014 and is the first publicly announced long-term LNG sale and purchase agreement for the Pavilion group.