Clifford Chance has advised a consortium of municipal shareholders on the sale of a 35% stake in EAM (Energie aus der Mitte), based in Kassel, Germany.

German utility group E.ON had previously sold its stake in EAM (formerly E.ON Mitte AG), the electricity and gas grid operator, to a consortium of municipal shareholders for around EUR 610 million at the end of 2013. A Clifford Chance team previously advised the consortium on that acquisition at the end of 2013.

Following remunicipalisation, EAM is owned by twelve administrative districts, as well as the City of Göttingen, and is thus a wholly-owned municipal utility. EAM operates electricity and gas grids in much of Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, as well as in parts of North Rhine-Westphalia, Thuringia, and Rhineland-Palatinate.

The municipal shareholders have now resold a 35% stake to a total of 109 cities and municipalities which also grant licences to EAM for the operation of electricity and gas grinds. Clifford Chance advised on the related corporate law, tax and financing aspects. The Firm also advised on the restructuring of the EAM Group.

The Clifford Chance team was led by partner Dr. Frank Scholderer (Corporate, Frankfurt) and comprised partners Dr. André Schwanna (Corporate, Düsseldorf), Dr. Peter Rosin (Energy, Düsseldorf), Thorsten Sauerhering, Gerhard Dreyer, senior associates Dr. Benjamin Büttner and Dr. Dominik Engl (all Tax, Frankfurt), partner Dr. Florian Mahler, senior associate Dr. Axel Schlieter and associate Bahar Rahimyar (all Banking & Capital Markets, Düsseldorf).