10 key trends in transition M&A
Traditional players moving outside of their comfort zones
M&A and JVs allow for a much speedier move into markets where one partner or target has access to and knowledge of a particular territory or has finessed a particular business line.
International energy companies are taking their project development and international logistics and marketing expertise from traditional petrochemicals and applying it to new molecules like low-carbon hydrogen and its vectors.
James Chapman
Freshfields Partner
The energy transition brings novelty: a fundamentally different way of doing business using new tools, assets and ways of thinking.
In some cases, this will involve adapting an existing technical skill set and acumen into new markets, says James Chapman, a Freshfields Partner advising on the energy transition. 'For example, the international energy companies are taking their project development and international logistics and marketing expertise from traditional petrochemicals and applying it to new molecules like low-carbon hydrogen and its vectors.'
M&A and JVs allow for a much speedier move into markets where one partner or target has access to and knowledge of a particular territory or has finessed a particular business line, says Philip Morgan, Freshfields Partner and head of the firm’s energy and natural resources practice in Asia.
'The same logic applies where technology or intellectual property is key to a particular decarbonisation pathway,' Philip explains. 'M&A can enable a company to deploy its business strategy more effectively with a variety of integrated IP in its market offerings.'
Transformational M&A 10 key trends
- 01. Increased vertical and horizontal integration
- 02. Bundling small projects from SME developers into portfolios to create scale
- 03. Traditional players moving outside of their comfort zones
- 04. New technology providers and specialist operators entering projects earlier
- 05. Geography is critical for many low-carbon technologies
- 06. No business is an island: low-carbon investment requires a full value chain
- 07. Setting up businesses/projects to facilitate M&A and realise synergies in future is critical
- 08. Sources of capital driving M&A activity (and their constraints) are changing
- 09. Private capital trends are affecting energy transition M&A
- 10. Antitrust and FDI controls are influencing energy transition M&A
- Outlook for transition M&A
Key contacts
James Chapman Partner
London
Philip Morgan Partner
Singapore
Samira Afrasiabi Partner
London
Alon Gordon Partner
London
Richard Thexton Partner
London
Graham Watson Partner
London
Bukunola Alakija Counsel
London
Laurent Bougard Counsel
Hong Kong
Sarah Jensen Counsel
London
