DLA Piper has acted as international and Australian counsel for Shanghai-listed ENN Ecological Holdings Co., Ltd (ENN), the largest private natural gas company in China, on its recent acquisition of Hony Capital’s approximately 11.72% stake in Australian-energy company, Santos Limited (Santos). The total consideration was approximately US$750 million.

ENN supplies natural gas to more than 12 million households in 152 cities across China and more than 56,000 industrial and commercial users. ENN has become the largest shareholder in Santos. The acquisition marks ENN Group’s first exposure to the upstream part of the value chain.

Carolyn Dong, Foreign Legal Consultant and Head of Energy at DLA Piper in China said: "We are delighted to have advised ENN on this investment which is an important strategic milestone for the company."

Lyndon Masters, partner at DLA Piper in Australia, added: "It’s an exciting time for ENN to enter the Santos share register.  This transaction demonstrates our ability to seamlessly coordinate our international resources and use our energy and oil and gas sector expertise to help our clients achieve their strategic ambitions."

The DLA Piper team was led by Carolyn Dong (Finance & Projects, Hong Kong) and Lyndon Masters (partner, Brisbane) and were supported by senior associate Matthew Davis (Finance & Project, Hong Kong), legal assistant Yisha He (Finance & Projects, Beijing) and senior associates Kelly Morrison and Alexander Samson, (both Corporate, Brisbane).