Christopher Bremme

Christopher advises energy companies and financial institutions on mergers and acquisitions, projects, joint ventures and regulatory matters in the energy sector. In particular, he has extensive experience advising on the sale and acquisition of gas and electricity transmission system operators as well as oil & gas exploration and production (E&P) companies and on energy infrastructure projects such as pipelines, power lines, renewable energies as well as power plants.

In addition, he has specialist know-how in German and EU energy regulation, such as on the regulatory environment associated with the separation of energy generation and supply from transmission (“unbundling”).

Also, he advises clients on foreign investment control proceedings in Germany and other jurisdictions.

Work highlights

Christopher has advised on many major energy deals. These include advising:

• Dutch infrastructure funds DIF Infrastructure IV Coöperatief U.A. and DIF IV Co-Invest C.V. and investment arm of the French multinational utility company Energie de France S.A.: advising on the sale of their joint 100% ownership stake in Thyssengas Group, being one of the largest German gas transmission system operators, by way of an auction to funds advised by Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (Europe) Limited
• First Sentier Investors (formerly First State Investments): advising on the acquisition of a 45.8% stake of Mannheim-based energy utility company MVV Energie AG from EnBW and RheinEnergie
• Engie: advising on the sale of its German and Dutch coal-fired power plants to US financial investor Riverstone Holdings
• Stadtwerke München and Bayerngas: advising on the joint venture with Centrica to combine Bayerngas Norge’s and Centrica’s oil and gas exploration and production businesses in Denmark, The Netherlands, Norway and the UK. 
• A consortium consisting of Macquarie Infrastructure Real Assets and Allianz Capital Partners: advising on the proposed acquisition of a minority stake in the fifth largest German utility EWE AG.
• Sumitomo Electric Industries: advising on the contract for the design, procurement and production of HVDC cable with 50Hertz to replace the 400kV Germany-Denmark Interconnector land cable (Kontek) on the German side.
  
• RWE Power: advising on the participation in a project company for the proposed development, construction and operation of two additional units of the Cernavoda nuclear power plant in Romania
• RWE Innogy: advising on the sale of 85% of the offshore wind farm project Nordsee One to Canadian investor Northland Power
• Storengy: advising on the acquisition of five underground gas storage facilities in Deutschland, making Storengy the largest gas storage business in Europe.
• Numerous clients: representing in proceedings under German foreign investment laws before the Federal Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Protection as well as advising on foreign investment control legislation in Germany and abroad.

Christopher Bremme worked at the predecessor firms Rädler Raupach Bezzenberger and Oppenhoff & Rädler respectively from 1992 onwards. Since 1999, Christopher has been working at Linklaters and was promoted partner in the same year. From 1996 to 2004, Christopher spent almost eight years in the firm’s Prague and Warsaw offices. Since 2014, he is Of Counsel.

Christopher studied law at the Universities of Mannheim and Freiburg and earned a master’s degree in law (LL.M.) at the George Washington University, Washington, D.C.

Christopher spent part of his legal training (Referendariat) at a law firm in New York and at the then existing Chamber in charge of antitrust matters at the Court of Appeals in Berlin (Kammergericht).

He speaks German and English.

Christopher regularly writes on energy issues, and his articles include:

• Legal commentary on the Regulation (EC) 715/2009 (Regulation on access to the natural gas transmission networks) in Säcker (Ed.): Berlin Commentary on Energy Law (Berliner Kommentar zum Energierecht), 4^th edition, 2018
• “The Trans-Adriatic Pipeline - A Use Case of the Acquis Communautaire of Energy”, Oil, Gas & Energy Law Intelligence, April 2014, with Julia Sack
• “Comparison of Certain Regulatory Frameworks - Germany, France and Norway (Vergleich einzelner Regulierungssysteme - Deutschland, Frankreich und Norwegen) in Böttcher Ed.): Hydro Power Plant Projects - Legal, Technical and Economic Aspects (Wasserkraftprojekte - Rechtliche, technische und wirtschaftliche Aspekte), 2014

Events/Speeches:

Christopher regularly speaks at conferences and seminars, notably at the Florence School of Regulation, among others on

• Foreign direct investments into the energy sector – threat or opportunity? as part of the Vienna Energy Law Forum (2019);

and at the enreg, the Institute for Energy and Regulatory Law Berlin, among others on

• Regulation of LNG terminals in Germany as part of the seminar on the current and future gas market design (2019).