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Dorsey & Whitney and Chadbourne & Parke were lead counsel on one of the largest ethanol projects to come to market. Financing on the $423 million ASAlliances Biofuels project closed in February, marking the first time that commercial banks have syndicated on an ethanol deal. Financing for the project was provided by a combination of bank loans, private equity and subordinated debt. The deal will involve greenfield construction of ethanol production facilities in Ohio, Nebraska and Indiana. Dorsey & Whitney advised the project company through partners David Swanson, Robert Hensley and Mike Pignato. Chadbourne & Parke acted for WestLB, the lead arranger and agent to the syndicate of 17 senior lenders. Washington DC partner Rohit Chaudhry led for the firm. Patton Boggs and Moore & Van Allen acted for American Capital Strategies and Laminar Direct Capital respectively, each of which were among the firms providing private equity and subordinated debt to the project.

British Virgin Islands (BVI) corporate law has now reached the halfway point in the two-year transition from a dual statutory regime to a single statutory regime. It was possible in 2005 to incorporate a company under the International Business Companies Act (the IBC Act) or under the BVI Business Companies Act 2004 (the new Act), but in 2006 it will only be possible to incorporate companies under the new Act.

James Doyle and David Hudd set out some basic tips on documenting synthetic collateralized debt obligations and the potential legal issues that can arise during the structuring process

IFLR is pleased to announce the short-listed deals and law firms for the Asia, Americas and European awards. Presentations will be made at the annual IFLR Awards Dinners in London, New York and Hong Kong in March.

Regulators in the US are facing a predictably mixed response to their most recent proposed rule changes. Planned reforms affecting deregistration and soft-dollar commissions attempt to frame simple rules in areas of some complexity. Neither set of proposals is beyond criticism. But the new rules bring welcome clarity for those they affect.

The UK Ministry of Defence completed the £1.34 billion ($2.35 billion) refinancing of the Skynet 5 private finance initiative programme. The deal restructures the original 2003 project and removes insurance risk by producing a reserve satellite. Freshfields, led by partner Nick Bliss, acted for defence contractor EADS and subsidiary Paradigm. Allen & Overy advised Citigroup and Goldman Sachs as joint lead managers, as well as Dexia as co-lead manager. The A&O team was jointly led by securitization partner David Krischer and project finance partner David Lee. Lovells acted for contractor EADS Astrium on the deal and Burges Salmon represented the MoD.

ANZ Investment Bank acted as arranger as Hardman Resources, an independent Australian oil exploration firm, secured a $100 million seven-year financing to fund its share of the $500 million development costs of the offshore Chinguetti oil field, Mauritania. The transaction is the first internationally syndicated financing in the country. White & Case, led by partners Jason Kerr and David Baker, advised ANZ. Freehills acted as Australian counsel to the bank. Paul Wright of Wright Legal advised Hardman Resources.

Dewey Ballantine and Cravath Swaine & Moore were the US legal advisers on Lottomatica's proposed acquisition of Gtech Holdings. The Italian lottery operator announced last month that it had reached an agreement to buy the US gaming technology company for around $4.8 billion. Dewey Ballantine advised Lottomatica through a team of lawyers from the firm's New York, Milan and London offices. Bonelli Erede Pappalardo was local Italian counsel to the company. Cravath's Philip Gelston and Sarkis Jebejian were the lead corporate partners for Gtech, with Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge also working on the transaction. Shearman & Sterling and Gianni Origoni Grippo & Partners represented Credit Suisse First Boston and Goldman Sachs.

The Capital Markets Board (CMB) recently revised its draft law proposing amendments to various pieces of legislation. It aims not only to improve the legal issues hindering the growth of the mortgage market but also to address concerns raised by the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Industry and Commerce.

The Singapore government has, during the last two years, enacted a raft of legislative changes calculated to enhance Singapore's position as a leading financial and wealth management centre in Asia.