Leading international law firm Clifford Chance has advised Japan’s Mitsui & Co., Ltd., through Galaxy NewSpring Pte. Ltd., a joint venture company equally held by Mitsui and Singapore’s Hyflux Ltd., on the purchase of two of Hyflux’s water treatment companies for US$41.2 million. The agreement was signed on 27 December 2011.

Clifford Chance also advised Mitsui on the initial agreement entered into in August 2010 in which Mitsui established a 50/50 joint venture with Hyflux to develop a substantial water treatment and management business in mainland China, the acquisition of four water treatment plants from Hyflux, and the voluntary delisting from the Singapore Stock Exchange of the Hyflux Water Trust.

The two newly acquired companies are in the Shandong and Chongqing provinces that have experienced rapid industrialisation and urbanisation, and concerns about pollution and shortage of water resources are increasingly on the rise.

Partner Lee Taylor, who led the team in Singapore and was assisted by associates Antonio Chan and Andrew Heng on both the initial and follow-on transactions, commented: “I am very pleased our team has continued working on this important project. These acquisitions reflect the growing need for ensuring good management of water as a scarce resource, especially in China’s fast developing provinces.”