Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla advises ADNOC on a real-estate deal worth $5.5 bn

Leading international law firm Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla recently advised Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), on one of the region’s largest real-estate transactions as it signed a long-term agreement worth $5.5 billion (AED 20.2 billion) with Apollo Global Management, one of the world’s largest alternative investment managers. The agreement aims to lease some of ADNOC’s real-estate assets as part of its strategy to unlock capital from its non-core assets.

The strategic investment partnership will allow ADNOC to benefit from leveraging the rental returns from select ADNOC real-estate assets under a lease agreement with a maximum duration of 24-years. It will also unlock new pools of global institutional long-term capital for ADNOC, while aiding investment and initiatives in its core oil and gas businesses as well as strategic growth projects.

Direct upfront proceeds of almost half of the full deal amount, $2.7 billion, will flow to ADNOC from the transaction which is expected to close before the end of 2020.

Commenting on the transaction, Borys Dackiw, Partner at Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla says: “We greatly appreciate our relationship with our long-standing client ADNOC and are excited to successfully deliver this exceptional transaction during such challenging times. This real-estate investment partnership reflects the growing confidence in the Middle East region and we can certainly expect more opportunities to present themselves both in the short and long-term.”

Further, Steven Henderson, Partner at Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla concluded: “We are pleased to have had the opportunity to work closely with ADNOC and represent them on a real-estate transaction of this magnitude. Despite the current challenging economic environment globally and regionally, the UAE remains an attractive global investment hub, including in the real estate sector, and this milestone transaction is a great example of that.”

The Baker McKenzie Habib Al Mulla team was led by Partners Borys Dackiw and Steven Henderson along with Senior Associate Keri Watkins, Associate Hazem Hebaishi and Trainee Associate Sami Saygh.