Global law firm Freshfields has advised SMS group, a global leading technology and services provider in metals plant engineering, on the acquisition of an agglomeration and calcination technologies business from the listed Finnish technology company Metso.

The transaction comprises solutions such as sintering, pelletising and fluidised bed technologies, formerly part of Metso’s brand, which SMS group aims to further develop to the benefit of customers, in line with SMS group’s strategic focus on decarbonisation and its green steel strategy.

The carve-out transaction comprises operations and business activities in Germany, India, China, Australia and other regions.

The Freshfields team consisted of:

Lead: Partner Philipp Pütz and Principal Associate Maxim Gomer (both Corporate/M&A, Düsseldorf)

Partners: Ilka Oberländer (Antitrust, Munich), Philipp Redeker (Tax) and Thomas Granetzny (Employment Law, both Düsseldorf)

Counsel: Gernot Fritz (Commercial/IP/IT, Vienna) and Martin Rehberg (Tax, Munich)

Principal Associates: Vera Barthel-Westphal (Antitrust), Julian Reinecke (Real Estate, both Düsseldorf) and Nicolas Sölter (Regulatory, Hamburg)

Associates: Chris Pflüger, Anna-Katharina Seubert (both Corporate/M&A, Düsseldorf), Philipp Mroz (Commercial/IP/IT, Hamburg), Elena Münster (Tax), Hendrik Reichert (Antitrust) and Sarah Maria Fröhlingsdorf (Employment Law, all Düsseldorf)

Senior Transaction Support Lawyer: Maurine Gergely (Berlin)