Africa Desk
Overall, Africa represents a broad spectre of business opportunities that both should and must be exploited in order to create growth. However, doing business in Africa also represents risks, and preventive work, expertise and experience are necessary to manage the African market. Our Africa team has broad experience with assignments in Africa, within a variety of industries and countries, and assists clients on a regular basis in all aspects of their African ventures – from risk management to growth creation. Our close relationship with NABA (Norwegian-African Business Association) is valuable when we assist clients in doing business in African countries.
Our focus
- Lawyers and advisors in SANDS' Africa team have been deeply involved in Africa for over 30 years, working on numerous landmark transactions, and building vital business connections in many African countries.
- SANDS acts mainly for Norwegian companies and institutions located on and off the continent with interests in investing in African countries. Our clients also include Africa-based companies wishing to expand internationally and to access capital in the international finance markets.
- We help our clients mitigate risk and navigate the complex issues that exist in cross-border deals and projects within both established and developing African economies.
Our Expertise - Skills and services in Africa
- Infrastructure and Energy projects, from early phase design and feasibility studies to operational phases and transfer
- Renewable Energy projects
- Anti-Corruption and Compliance
- Oil & Gas
- Trade and Industry
- Contact and negotiations with authoritative bodies, including ministries and governmental entities
Our African networks
SANDS has access to a wide network of partners in Africa, which ensures that we are always able to deliver high quality advice and guidance with the necessary insight into both the local trading environment and the relevant legal frameworks. This includes LEX Africa, an alliance of leading African law firms, which have a cooperation with The Interlex Group®, where SANDS is a member. Interlex is ranked in Tier 1 by the international rating agency, Chambers & Partners.
SANDS is also a member of WTS Global, the international network of selected independent consulting firms. With its partners, it is represented in more than 100 countries. The offered service portfolio focuses on tax, legal and consulting. In order to avoid any conflict of interest, the network deliberately refrains from conducting annual audits.
Ulf Sørdal and Torgeir Fjeldskaar are SANDS’ representatives of WTS.