Norton Rose Fulbright advises Bank Polska Kasa Opieki S.A. on a shipping finance transaction

The Warsaw and London offices of global law firm Norton Rose Fulbright advised Bank Polska Kasa Opieki S.A. on refinancing the debt of Polska Żegluga Morska Group companies (Polsteam Group) in connection with the acquisition of five vessels. The transaction involved the drafting of a full security package for the financing, including among others ship mortgages.

Assisted by Bahamian law firm Lennox Paton and Cypriot law firm Michael Kyprianou, this marks the first shipping finance transaction on which Norton Rose Fulbright advised Bank Polska Kasa Opieki S.A.

With 62 vessels, Polsteam Group is the largest and oldest ship operator in Poland and one of the world’s leaders in marine transport of molten sulphur.

Norton Rose Fulbright’s team was supervised by partner Grzegorz Dyczkowski who heads the Warsaw banking and finance practice of Norton Rose Fulbright. The Warsaw team was led by senior associate Krzysztof Gorzelak and included associates Aleksander Haleniuk and Oskar Sula as well as paralegal Karolina Lepakiewicz.

London-based partner Richard Howley, senior associate Nicholas Papadopoulos and trainee solicitor Jamie Brazier provided support.

Norton Rose Fulbright’s Warsaw office led and coordinated the work of the London, Bahamian and Cypriot teams, which assisted on the drafting and negotiation of English and Polish law-governed finance documents.

Polsteam Group was advised on the transaction by Rosicki, Grudziński & Co.