Practice Areas

Privatisation and State Transactions

The Irish Government has commissioned a report for December 2010 about its continuing investment as shareholder in a wide range of industries.  Any consequent privatisation programme will generate economic activity of a variety we in Mason Hayes & Curran are very familiar with and experienced in. 

We have worked on a number of significant State related transactions in Ireland.  Our experience includes advising on full privatisation processes, divestments, hive-downs, spin outs, investments, joint ventures, acquisitions and demergers in the public-private context.  Previous work:

• Advising Quinn Insurance in its acquisition of BUPA, with a particular focus on the health insurance regulatory position in Ireland, including a detailed analysis of risk allocation and community rating in Ireland and other jurisdictions.
  
  
• Advising Quinn Insurance Limited in the constitutional action challenging the introduction of the Health Insurance (Amendment) Act 2007, including parallel judicial review proceedings brought by the same company challenging the decision of the Health Insurance Authority to levy risk equalisation payments.
  
  
• Advising FLS Aerospace in acquiring TEAM Aer Lingus from the then State-owned flag carrier, Aer Lingus, including advising on the hive-down arrangements and subsequent demerger and sale to FLS Aerospace together with ancillary arrangements.
  
  
• Irish corporate law advisers on a number of key projects for eircom, the incumbent telco in Ireland.
  - Acted for the Irish Government on the retail offer element of
  eircom’s 1999 IPO;
  - Acted for Morgan Stanley, underwriter of the proposed
  secondary offer of eircom in 2000;
  - Acted for Providence Capital on the eircom takeover in 2002;
  - Act for eircom ESOP Trustee (eircom’s second largest shareholder)
  since 2003 including:
  - Restructuring and debt issue 2003;
  - Second IPO 2004;
  - Second take private 2006.
  
  
• Lead legal advisers to RTÉ (the Irish State owned national broadcaster) on the privatisation process (not concluded) and then hive-down of the national broadcast transmission assets into a dedicated subsidiary of RTÉ.
  
  
• Advising the Department of Communications, Marine & Natural Resources and Department of Finance in relation to An Post’s joint venture with Fortis Bank NV to establish a new retail bank in Ireland.  Many of the issues had a strategic nature with a focus on protecting national interests and policies. 
  
  
• Advising the Commission for Energy Regulation (CER) and Northern Ireland Authority for Energy Regulation on the drafting of the all-island Single Electricity Market Trading and Settlement Code and providing general advice on the SEM (a unique international precedent).
  
  
• Advising the CER on the Capacity 2005 Competition to procure an additional 550 MW of generating capacity, including advising on the competitions terms and process, implementation agreements and financing issues and the negotiation of the capacity and distribution agreements of over €1bn.
  
  
• Advising the CER on State aid issues, PSO and regulatory issues.
  
  
• Advised on the establishment of Gaslink, the independent gas transportation system operator, as an independent subsidiary of Bord Gáis Eireann.
  
  
• Advising the Minister for Transport on granting aid to Irish airlines following 9/11.
  
  
• Advising CER on its agreement with the State-owned industry incumbent Electricity Supply Board (ESB) on its divestment of a number of its power generation plants to the Spanish firm, Endessa, in return for permission to ESB to construct a new power plant.
  

Our team has a solution driven approach to business, which combines commercial awareness with intellectual rigour, to consistently exceed client expectations. We understand the unique challenges of working with State entities and have played a leading role in the transformation of these organisations from public to private. 

Related News

• National Treasures - The Future for Irish State Assets?

Related Publications

• Update on Irish State Asset Commercialisation/Privatisation Opportunities

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• David O'Donnell
  Head of Department
  
• John Kettle
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