WFW Advises Ridgebury, Tufton on Suezmax Acquisition

Watson Farley & Williams, international law firm based in London, advised Ridgebury Tankers and Tufton Oceanic on the acquisition of two Suezmax tankers in a 50%-50% joint venture with Euronav NV who also provided secured debt to the joint venture companies for the purposes of the acquisitions.

Last month, Belgium's tanker shipping company Euronav has acquired two Suezmax tankers through a joint venture formed with affiliates of Ridgebury Tankers and clients of Tufton Oceanic.

The  two Suezmax tankers fetch a combined consideration of US$40.6m. Both vessels have been delivered into the joint ventures.

Ridgebury is a US-based shipping company with a fleet of high-quality crude and refined product tankers. Tufton Oceanic, a specialist fund manager in the maritime and energy markets since 2000, has invested over US$1.2bn in 83 vessels since 2013. Euronav is the largest NYSE-listed independent crude oil tanker company in the world.

The WFW London team that advised Ridgebury and Tufton was led by Partner George Macheras supported by Associate Philip Chope. Partner Mark Tooke and Senior Associate Nicholas Connell advised on the corporate aspects of the deal.

George said: “We are delighted to have advised Ridgebury and Tufton on this important collaboration with Euronav, and to have assisted the joint venture with the significant acquisition of these tankers. This deal demonstrates our ability to meet the needs of our clients across different disciplines in the global maritime industry”.