27/10/2024
Dentons Signals All-Aboard for Rail Project
This week’s key terms/concepts:
• Project Financing: A model of financing whereby the funding of long-term projects, such as public infrastructure, is facilitated through a specific financial structure.
• Concession Agreement: A contract between a public authority and an economic operator to have the permit to carry out services.
• Track Access Agreement: A contract allowing a rail operator to use a rail network under agreed terms of fees and scheduling.
Earlier this month, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) secured US$1.5 billion in project finance debt for a cross-border rail project – The Hafeet Rail Project – that plans to connect five major ports in the UAE and Oman, with large positive implications for cargo capacity and reduced passenger times across the border.
Why is this significant?
The Hafeet Rail Project establishes the first cross-border rail project in The Gulf, allowing for increased trade and cooperation between the United Arab Emirates and Oman, and Dentons has played a key role in advising all aspects of project financing as well as guiding a concession agreement for construction and a track access agreement for companies involved in the project. This follows several other major projects that Dentons had aided and advised, including the construction of the Emirates Complex in Abu Dhabi.
What does this mean for Dentons?
Denton’s advisory work for the GCC marks a key milestone in the firm’s commitment to growth in the Middle East. Partner Stephen Knight, who led the transaction, joined the Banking & Finance team as part of Dentons’ pivotal expansion of their Middle East offices in 2018. Knight’s acquisition from Allen & Overy was one of four hires in Denton’s expansion, including the recruitment of office manager partner Ziad Saad who worked on a similar deal involving a luxury train cruise in May of this year.
With many law firms pulling their offices out of the Middle East and Africa as of late – not the least of which includes A&O Shearman leaving Johannesburg – Dentons continues to assert its strong presence around The Gulf.
Lex Weekly 