20.12.2019

A Year of New Technology – Document Automation Now Part of Everyday Work

Signe, Castrén & Snellman’s document automation tool, was launched inside the firm four years ago to speed up drafting. In January of this year, we began offering our document automation expertise of our clients.

You can use Signe to create new documents efficiently based on automation, which reduces the amount of time spent on drafting. The documents that you need most often, such as various contracts, are always within arm’s reach.

Signe makes it possible to test how automation could benefit your workplace. It is easy to start with your most common documents, such as confidentiality agreements or powers of attorney, before automating more extensive sets of documents. Signe functions as a portal, and the monthly fee depends on the total page count of your automated documents. If you already have contract templates, automating them through Signe is often a matter of just a few days.

Automation Frees up Time for More Challenging and Creative Work

Using technology to support legal work speeds up and streamlines document drafting at a reasonable cost by reducing routine tasks. This produces many benefits, such as better work efficiency, smoother contract negotiations and improved risk management. By freeing up time for more challenging and creative work, technology also improves work satisfaction.

New Product: Annual General Meeting Minutes

Castrén & Snellman is now offering annual general meeting minutes as a new type of automated document. Automated minutes streamline administrative work by making it easier to get to grips with the contents and structure of the minutes, speeding up the recording of meeting participants and their shares, and providing alternative wordings for mandatory sections prescribed by the Limited Liability Companies Act.

Signe makes it possible to draft minutes for as many as ten companies quickly using a single form. The minutes and other documents are available in Finnish, English and bilingual versions.

Castrén & Snellman’s legal tech team supports our clients by producing efficient automated documents. Get acquainted with Signe by contacting Teresa Kauppila or Paula Aura.

Latest references

We advised Neste as it signed a EUR 250 million 10-year loan with NIB. The loan will finance Neste’s investments related to research and development (R&D) in processing lower-quality feedstocks into high-quality renewable products; as well as the liquefied waste plastics (LWP) investment at Neste’s refinery in Porvoo, Finland. The R&D activities supported by the loan focus on the development of renewable solutions. These include, for example, expanding feedstock capabilities and technologies that enable the processing of new and lower-quality waste and residues into high-quality renewable end products. Part of the financing supports Neste’s liquefied waste plastics investment in Porvoo, related to upgrading low-quality plastic waste into high-quality feedstock at an industrial scale. The investment contributes to advancing circular economy solutions by enabling the use of hard-to-recycle plastic waste as a replacement for virgin fossil raw materials. The unit has an annual capacity to process up to 150,000 tonnes of liquefied waste plastic. Production ramp-up commenced in 2026.
Case published 19.8.2026
We advised Aspo Plc, ESL Shipping Ltd and AtoBatC Shipping AB in relation to finance matters in connection with the demerger of Aspo, by which all the shares in ESL Shipping Ltd held by Aspo, together with the related assets and liabilities, will be transferred to a new independent company to be named ESL Shipping Group Plc. Aspo intends to apply for the shares of ESL Shipping Group to be admitted to trading on the regulated market of Nasdaq Helsinki. It is further intended that Aspo be renamed Telko Group Plc. 
Case published 19.8.2026
We acted as Finnish law legal adviser to the lenders and the export credit agencies in connection with the EUR 514.4 million green project financing for the development and construction of Easpring Finland New Materials Oy’s cathode active material (CAM) manufacturing plant in Kotka, Finland. The borrower, Easpring Finland New Materials Oy, is a joint venture owned by Beijing Easpring Material Technology, Finnish Minerals Group and LG Energy Solution. The financing was provided by six international commercial banks, with Société Générale acting as financial adviser and mandated lead arranger together with Natixis as co-mandated lead arranger, and DNB, ICBC, ING and Standard Chartered participating as lenders, with support from the export credit agencies Finnvera and Sinosure. The project represents a significant milestone for Finland and the European battery value chain by strengthening Europe’s domestic supply of cathode active materials, a key component in lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles and energy storage applications. Once the first phase of the project is operational, the Kotka facility is expected to produce approximately 60,000 tonnes of cathode active material annually, making it one of the largest CAM production plants in Europe and supplying leading battery manufacturers across Europe. 
Case published 21.7.2026
We acted as Finnish legal advisor to Delta Capacity in connection with its acquisition of the ready-to-build Karppio battery energy storage system (BESS) project from Helios Nordic Energy. The acquisition was made and the project will be implemented together with Strioga Family Foundation. The Karppio BESS project is located in Teuva, Finland, and has a capacity of 125 MW / 300 MWh. Delta Capacity will lead the remaining development of the project through to commissioning, planned for 2027, and will serve as long-term asset manager. Delta Capacity is a Swiss-based developer of utility scale battery storage systems. The acquisition adds to Delta Capacity’s growing Nordic portfolio. 
Case published 20.7.2026