Ashurst advised a consortium comprising Crédit Agricole Corporate and Investment Bank, European Investment Bank and Norddeutsche Landesbank – Girozentrale on the financing of new rolling stock for the operation of rail passenger services on the Regensburg-Donautal network by RDO Fahrzeuggesellschaft mbH & Co. KG (RDO KG). The parties have agreed not to disclose the amount of the financing.
The consortium is providing the financing for the acquisition of 23 new single deck electric railcars of the type Mireo 4-Teiler manufactured by Siemens Mobility GmbH. The railcars will be operated by RDO KG in a leasing structure with agilis Eisenbahngesellschaft mbH & Co. KG (agilis) on the regional transport routes of the Regensburg-Donautal network. Agilis was awarded the contract for operating regional rail passenger transport for the lines of the Regensburg-Donautal network on 17 May 2021 by the responsible authorities, Bayerische Eisenbahngesellschaft mbH and Ministry of Transport Baden-Württemberg. The underlying transport agreement has a term until the end of 2036 with a planned start of operations in December 2022.
The financing of both phases – the construction and operation phase – by the consortium is provided by means of loans, purchase of receivables as well as registered bonds and is bundled at the documentation level in a framework agreement.
Ashurst provided comprehensive advice to the consortium on banking and capital markets law, insurance supervisory law, tax law and transport / public law. The Ashurst team was led by partner Derk Opitz. He was assisted by partner Dr Tobias Krug, senior associate Alexandra Heitmann, associate Dr Jan Ulrich Heinemann (all Project Finance, Frankfurt), transaction lawyer Ariana Fazlic (Project Finance, Munich) as well as partners Dr Anders Kraft (Tax) and Dr Detmar Loff (Insurance Supervisory Law, both Frankfurt). Partner Dr Maximilian Uibeleisen and counsel Holger Mlynek (both Infrastructure, Frankfurt) advised on the transport agreement and the rolling stock related contracts.
Ashurst's German project finance practice regularly advises on asset finance transactions in the context of regional rail passenger transport financings.
