Latham Advises Unioil on Sale of Minority Stake to Aramco

Latham & Watkins has advised Unioil, one of the largest petroleum companies in the Philippines, on its agreement with Aramco, a global leading integrated energy and chemicals company, to acquire a 25% equity stake in Unioil.

The planned acquisition, which is subject to customary closing conditions including regulatory approvals, aims to capitalize on anticipated growth of the high-value fuels market in the Philippines and represents progress in Aramco’s strategic downstream expansion and growth of its global retail network in high-value markets. The strategic partnership will also see Aramco extending brand, retail offerings, and Valvoline-branded lubricants to select retail stations in the Philippines.

The Latham team was led by Singapore corporate partner Sidharth Bhasin, with counsel Carolyn Wong and associates Cherine Teh, Ein Le Lim, and Jen Whee Lee. Advice was also provided on project finance matters by Singapore partner Don Stokes, with associates Rob Thompson and Hui-Yan Chew; on tax matters by London partner Simon Skinner with associate Pastora Little-Morgan; and on DTT matters by Singapore counsel Esther Franks with associate Zoe Wang.