Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP (“Freshfields”) is advising Total, S.A. (“Total”) on its proposed acquisition of Maersk Oil for US$7.45 billion, to be settled in Total shares and assumed debt.  The proposed transaction is subject to the applicable legally required consultation and notification processes for employee representatives and to approvals by the relevant regulatory authorities. Closing is expected in the first quarter of 2018.
 
The Freshfields team working on the transaction is being led by Paris partner Hervé Pisani and London partner Graham Watson, alongside partners Sam Newhouse, Vincent Daniel-Mayer, Jérôme Philippe and Gwen Senlanne, counsel Guillemette Burgala and Christel Cacioppo and senior associate Alex Calloway.
 
Bech-Bruun Law Firm P/S is advising Total on Danish law matters, with a team led by partner Simon Milthers and senior associate Martin Allan Christensen.
 
Commenting on the transaction, Graham Watson, Co-Head of Freshfields’ Global Oil & Gas Group, said, “This is another significant transaction in a buoyant Oil & Gas M&A market.  We are delighted to support long-standing client Total with our sector expertise for complex, multi-jurisdictional portfolio deals and high-end French M&A capability.”
 
Hervé Pisani, Head of Paris Corporate, said, “We are very pleased to advise Total on such a strategic and international transaction, combining our knowledge of the industry and our expertise in high-end international transactions”.