Herbert Smith Freehills has advised UBS Global Asset Management (UBS) on its joint venture with Grocon for the establishment of a new institutional real estate investment platform. Through the venture, UBS and Grocon aim to create a substantial property platform over the next five years.

Herbert Smith Freehills partners, Justin O’Farrell and Robert Bileckij led the team, assisted by senior associate, Matthew Farnsworth, and solicitors, Calvin Kwok and Erica Zhong.

Latham & Watkins advises Industrie De Nora S.p.A., the Milan-based electrochemical technologies supplier, in establishing a joint venture with ThyssenKrupp Uhde, a 100% subsidiary of ThyssenKrupp Industrial Solutions.

Clifford Chance has advised China's largest automaker SAIC Motor Corporation (formerly Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) to establish a joint venture with Thailand's largest conglomerate Charoen Pokphand Group (CP) to produce MG automobiles in Thailand for the domestic and international markets.

Renewable energy investment company Low Carbon has announced that it will collaborate with Macquarie Capital on a solar farm portfolio of up to 300MW. The tie up relates to the funding of a portfolio of solar projects that could power up to 100,000 homes per year, supporting Low Carbon and Macquarie Capital’s joint aim to accelerate and deliver renewable energy sources in the UK.

The first phase of the collaboration will total 25.7MW with an investment of up to £29m to fund the construction of three ground mounted solar projects, two based in Cornwall and one in Wales.

Clifford Chance has advised Arabtec Holding PJSC, on its EPC joint venture with Samsung Engineering Co., Ltd. It is anticipated that Arabtec Samsung Engineering will provide engineering, procurement and construction services on large-scale multi-billion dollar projects relating to oil and gas, refineries, petrochemicals, water treatment, steel mills, and metallurgical process plants in the Middle East and North Africa region.

The joint venture also entails the establishment of a 'Centre of Excellence' in Abu Dhabi to train Emirati engineers.

Clifford Chance, Tokyo has advised Intermediate Capital Group Plc on a 50:50 partnership with Nomura Holdings Inc. The partnership will facilitate the future structuring and distribution of new domestic mezzanine investments and funds, to be managed by a local, Japanese fund management company that will be established. Intermediate Capital Group and Nomura have agreed to allocate JPY10 billion (US$99.3 million) each to this initiative.

DLA Piper advised Discovery Networks Benelux on a strategic partnership with Viacom International Media Networks in the Netherlands to launch a joint sales house called BrandDeli.

Trowers & Hamlins has advised existing clients Apache Capital Partners LLP (Apache), the London and Gulf-based real estate investment management firm, and Tadhamon Capital BSC(c) (Tadhamon), the Bahrain-based Islamic investment company, on a new £100 million joint venture with McLaren Property for the development of a major student accommodation and office scheme in Shoreditch, London.

DLA Piper and Field Fisher Waterhouse have advised the Cabinet Office on the creation of Shared Services Connected Limited (SSCL) a joint venture between HM Government and Steria, a leading provider of IT enabled business services, a contract potentially worth in excess of £1bn over 10 years.

SSCL will serve approximately 150,000 customers initially across 13 organisations to provide shared procurement, finance and HR services with potential for the service to be expanded to other public and private sector bodies in future.

Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer has advised German technology giant Siemens on the foundation of a joint venture with Accenture in the field of smart grids.
 
The newly found Omnetrics Group will provide the energy industry with advanced solutions and services focused on data management and systems integration. These solutions will integrate operational technologies – such as distribution management and real-time grid operations – with IT systems supporting smart metering, energy consumption and work and asset management.

Financial details were not disclosed.