Istanbul, 23 June 2016 - Esin Attorney Partnership, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, a Swiss verein, and Baker & McKenzie's Paris office represented Gama Enerji A.S. (Gama Enerji) and its subsidiary Kremna Enerji Uretim ve Ticaret A.S. (Kremna), in relation to the extension of USD 132 million secured senior acquisition finance facility by Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC), the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), and International Finance Corporation (IFC) for the acquisition of Karacaören 1 and Karacaören 2 hydroelectric power plants from the Turkish Privatization Administration. The privatization will be conducted through Transfer-of-Operating-Rights method.

This represents one of the Turkish market's most significant privatizations this year and represents a renewed interest in privatizations of power plants in Turkey. Kremna will finance the acquisition of the power plants through the facility and equity injection; however, it will also renovate and streamline the Karacaören power plants.

Partner Muhsin Keskin commented that “We are very proud to be acting on the privatization of Karacaören power plants. The ongoing liberalization of the Electricity Market continues as demonstrated by the privatization of the state-owned power plants with a total installed capacity of 78 MW. The interest of EBRD and IFC, although not surprising, shows these institutions' commitment to enrich the liberalized power market while interest from ICBC, the world's largest bank by assets, signals a new era for Turkish investors to seek financing from ICBC and its current Turkish subsidiary. The deal structure involved complex facility and security documentation, which we have completed thanks to our strong local team and global reach."

Muhsin Keskin led the team consisting of Nicholas Macheras (Paris), Berk Cin, Berkay Ozludil, Gul Incesulu and Serenay Cinki (Istanbul).