Latham & Watkins LLP's offices in New York and Chicago has helped Dutch health and nutrition company Royal DSM acquire the Brazilian arm of US bioscience company Amyris in a US$96 million deal.

Amyris hired Shearman & Sterling LLP in San Francisco and Pinheiro Neto Advogados in São Paulo.

DSM gets Amyris' fermentation facility, located in the state of São Paulo. The factory produces farnesene, an ingredient used in solvents, emollients and vitamins.

As part of the deal, both companies signed a long-term partnership agreement for Royal DSM to supply speciality compounds to Amyris. The US company says the sale will allow it to focus on its core business of developing breakthrough bioscience technologies.

The deal was signed on 17 November and is subject to customary closing conditions.

Counsel to Royal DSM

In-house counsel – Marcio Moreira

Latham & Watkins LLP

Partner Adel Aslani-Far and counsel Alan Tamarelli in New York; and partner Jason Morelli in Chicago

Counsel to Amyris

In-house counsel – Nicole Kelsey

Shearman & Sterling LLP

Partners Michael Dorf, Jordan Altman, Jessica Delbaum, counsel Jeffrey Tate, and associates Christopher Hines and Ben Petersen in San Francisco

Pinheiro Neto Advogados

Partners Guilherme Leite, Giancarlo Matarazzo, Renê Medrado and Franco Grotti, and associates Fabio Silva, Filipe Coube, José Arnaldo de Paula in São Paulo