HFW advises on AED863M sharia-compliant syndicated financing

Global, sector-focused law firm HFW advised Al Seer Marine and BGN on the pre- and post-delivery financing for the construction of three Very Large Gas Carriers (VLGCs) being built in Korea and Japan.

The AED863m cross-border and multi-jurisdictional financing was led by Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) and comprised of a syndicate of five GCC-based banks.

HFW’s team was led by Tien Tai and also included Andrzej Czernis.

Tien Tai, Partner, HFW:

“We are delighted to partner with the ASM/BGN joint venture again, having advised them on two newbuild gas carriers delivered last year at Hyundai Heavy Industries in Korea. The upsizing of the Shari’ah compliant ship finance facility and the interest by the syndicate banks to finance these innovative vessels is a remarkable message to the shipping and gas industry in the Middle East and to this strategically important sector.”

HFW has been in the Middle East since 2006 and now has 20 partners and more than 60 lawyers in total across offices in Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Kuwait City, and Riyadh, making it one of the largest practices of any international law firm in the region.

HFW recently became one of a select group of international law firms to receive a license from the Saudi Ministry of Justice to practice in the Kingdom.