Global law firm Eversheds has advised Network Rail, on a joint venture with developer Ballymore Group to provide a 200-home development in West Hampstead, London.

The 0.9 hectare development is the result of a co-operation agreement between the two companies, who were adjacent landowners. The London Borough of Camden Council granted planning permission last year, and the companies have now agreed to develop the site in a joint venture, with the project expected to be completed in late 2015.

Addleshaw Goddard's commercial and corporate teams have advised Sainsbury's on the creation of the new mobile phone network, Mobile by Sainsbury's.

Sainsbury's has teamed up with Vodafone, by way of a joint venture, to create a new mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) which will reward customer loyalty, offer great quality value-for-money mobile products and Nectar points when it launches later this summer.

Working with Sainsbury's senior legal and commercial team, Addleshaw Goddard advised on all aspects of the deal.

Global law firm Eversheds has advised the Medical Research Council (MRC) on the transfer of four of its intramural research units to their partner universities as part of the MRC’s expanding University Units programme.

Trowers & Hamlins has advised housing association Poplar HARCA on a deal with Willmott Dixon’s be:here company that will see the development of 233 homes in the London Borough of Towers Hamlets as part of the regeneration of the Aberfeldy estate.

Herbert Smith Freehills has advised BTG Pactual on the completion of its US$1.525 billion agreement with Petrobras International Braspetro B.V. ("PIBBV") to establish a joint venture for the exploration and production of oil and gas in Africa.  The transaction was completed on 28 June 2013.

Trowers & Hamlins has acted for Affordable Housing Finance Plc (AHF), a subsidiary of long-standing client The Housing Finance Corporation (THFC), in relation to its successful bid to the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) to enter into an exlusive licence to offer guaranteed long-term debt to provide registered providers. Through the scheme, DCLG will gurantee up to £3.5bn of debt for AHF on terms of up to 30 years.

Slaughter and May advised the Department for Communities and Local Government on the award of the licence to deliver the Affordable Housing Guarantee Scheme to Affordable Housing Finance plc (a subsidiary of The Housing Finance Corporation Limited). Under the Affordable Housing Guarantee Scheme, the Department for Communities and Local Government will guarantee up to £3.5 billion of debt for private registered providers who commit to building new affordable housing.

CONTACTS

Marubeni and SK Shipping have established two jointly owned shipowning companies (the J/V Companies), which have signed shipbuilding contracts with Samsung Heavy Industries of Korea, time charter contracts with Total, and loan agreements with a club of financial institutions led by SMBC. The vessels are scheduled for delivery in January 2017 and October 2017.

Both ships will be engaged in the transportation of LNG from the Australian Ichthys LNG project and the Sabine Pass LNL terminal in Louisiana which is spearheading the liquefaction of US shale-gas.

Trowers & Hamlins is advising W.R. Grace, a global speciality chemicals and materials company, in its industrial joint venture with UAE company Al Dahra Agricultural for the establishment of a US$200 million plant in Khalifa Industrial Zone Abu Dhabi (KIZAD).

The plant will be the first of its kind in the Middle East and will manufacture fluid cracking catalysts to be sold primarily to Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) group companies.

Olswang has acted for Maverick Television in relation to the launch of Digital Life Sciences, the UK's first whole life-cycle digital healthcare business.