Valedo has acquired Rapunzel of Sweden in partnership with the management team and board of Rapunzel of Sweden.

Valedo is a Swedish private equity group investing in small and mid-size companies in the Nordic region. Rapunzel of Sweden is a rapidly growing company offering hair extensions and related products and services, with a focus on e-commerce.

Valedo was advised by Mannheimer Swartling in the transaction. The firm’s team included Tom Wehtje,  Maria Holme, Oscar Björkman Possne and Veronica Stiller.

Addleshaw Goddard has advised The Peel Group (Peel) on its joint venture with Legal & General Capital (LGC) at MediaCityUK in Salford.

The JV will see LGC become a 50% shareholder in MediaCityUK with Peel retaining responsibility for the ongoing development and asset management of the estate.

AG advised Peel on the transaction that marks a milestone in the growing maturity of MediaCityUK and the wider community anchored by it at Salford Quays.

Clifford Chance has advised pan-emerging markets private equity firm Actis on a joint venture with Mainstream Renewable Power, a global wind and solar developer, to establish a US$1.9 billion pan-African renewable energy generation platform, Lekela Power. It is envisaged that Lekela Power will develop between 700 and 900MW of wind and solar power projects across Africa in the coming years.

Lekela Power recently completed its inaugural investment in three wind projects in South Africa, which will have a combined generation capacity of 360MW.

A cross-border team from international law firm Clifford Chance has advised MC Aviation Partners, Inc. ("MCAP"), the aircraft leasing and trading arm of Mitsubishi Corporation, on the formation of a joint venture dedicated to aircraft leasing ("JV") with Cheung Kong ("CK"), one of Hong Kong's leading multinational conglomerates. The JV is held 40% by MCAP and 60% by CK.

As part of the transaction, MCAP sold a portfolio of 15 aircraft owned by MCAP to the JV for US$ 730 million. MCAP will act as exclusive servicer to JV in respect of these aircraft.

Fujian Provincial Pingtan County Ocean Fishing Group Co., Ltd (“Pingtan Fishing”) entered into a strategic investment agreement with China Agriculture Industry Development Fund Co., Ltd. (“China Agriculture”), pursuant to which China Agriculture will invest RMB400 million into Pingtan Fishing. Zhong Lun Law Firm (“Zhong Lun”) advised on the investment agreement as Pingtan Fishing’s legal counsel. The Zhong Lun team was led by partner Xiaoming Song and assisted by associates Yingrui Chen and Mingkai Wang.

Baker & McKenzie acted as Russian counsel for Siemens Aktiengesellschaft on the corporate and commercial aspects of its joint venture with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. (MHI). With this joint venture both partners are forming a globally operating complete provider for plants, products and services for the iron, steel and aluminum industry.

Wragge Lawrence Graham & Co's life sciences experts have advised long-standing client AstraZeneca on a drug discovery collaboration agreement with Orca Pharmaceuticals.

Rockspring Property Investment Managers LLP has brought together Rockspring’s German Retail Box Fund, a Dutch pension fund and a Belgian insurance group as investors to acquire a portfolio 23 large, out of town, food-anchored big box retail parks in Germany in a share deal. The transaction was one of the largest food-anchored retail real estate transactions in Germany of the last years.

CHSH Cerha Hempel Spiegelfeld Hlawati has provided comprehensive legal advice to the Cascade Group in connection with the acquisition of a minority share of 40% in an Austrian joint venture company managing all activities developed by INALCA S.p.A. (Cremonini Group) in Russia.  INALCA S.p.A. (Cremonini Group) and the Cascade Group have signed and now closed, in view of the merger clearance in Russia and a capital increase effected in the Austrian joint venture company, such strategic partnership.

Addleshaw Goddard's cross-border Manchester and Dubai corporate teams have advised Fircroft, the international recruiter specialising in the engineering and oil and gas sector, on their investment into a joint venture with a Saudi Arabian consultancy. The venture has operations in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Afghanistan.

Addleshaw Goddard's cross-border team was led by Manchester-based partner Roger Hart and Dubai-based managing associate Darren Harris and supported by Dubai-based Amun Bashir.