Stephenson Harwood advises Badia Farms and National Bank of Fujairah

Stephenson Harwood has acted as legal counsel to UAE-based Badia Farms on its investment from Green Corp.

Established in 2016, Badia Farms is the Gulf Co-operation Council’s (GCC) first commercial indoor vertical farming company; it supplies produce to high-end hotels, restaurants, and consumers across the GCC. Green Corp was launched in Bahrain this year by Gulf Islamic Investments (GII), a leading Shari’ah-compliant global alternative investment company with more than USD3 billion of assets under management, as an agribusiness platform to initiate and develop sustainable agricultural, aquaculture, food processing and production projects across the GCC states.

Green Corp’s investment will enable Badia Farms to expand its advanced production models and pesticide-free farms into Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, enhancing regional food production opportunities significantly.

“This is a significant transaction for the GCC, as well as the region’s agricultural and sustainability sectors,” said Diwakar Agarwal, partner, Stephenson Harwood. “It is part of a wider initiative to increase sustainable food production projects across the GCC, and this investment will help Saudi Arabia and Bahrain diversify their food sources, and become more self-sufficient and less dependent on food imports.”

The Stephenson Harwood team was led by partner Diwakar Agarwal, who was supported by associate Phathu Rambau.

The firm has also advised the National Bank of Fujairah, a UAE-based commercial bank, on a long-term credit facility to CleanMax. The funds will be used to refinance CleanMax’s rooftop solar portfolio in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

CleanMax is Asia’s largest commercial and industrial renewable energy developer, with assets over 1GW across the Middle East, India and South East Asia. In the UAE, CleanMax has a portfolio of 70MW in solar projects for corporate, institutional and governmental clients. Specifically, this facility will cover 48 different operational rooftop solar assets, located on industrial facilities, shopping centres, schools and universities.

“This partnership between National Bank of Fujairah and CleanMax represents a significant milestone in financing clean energy in the region,” said Nijoe Joseph, partner, Stephenson Harwood. “As a firm, we have notable expertise in relation to decarbonisation projects, including financings, and so were well-placed to support our long-standing client on this important sustainable finance deal.”

This deal is a significant step towards meeting the goals of UAE’s COP28 ambitions and Clean Energy Strategy, which aims to have 50 per cent clean energy in the energy mix by 2050.

The Stephenson Harwood team was led by partner Nijoe Joseph, who was supported by associates Chinar Zaidi, Murtaza Hussain, and paralegal Shwini Dsouza.