Dong Energy Floats Europe’s Biggest IPO of 2016
Dong, the Danish utility and the largest offshore wind operator in the world, went public this month in what became the largest initial public offering in the European equity markets this year, the Guardian reports.
The company was valued at 98 billion Danish kroner ($15 billion) in the IPO in Copenhagen.
The listing “gives Dong Energy a solid foundation to retain and develop its position as one of the leading green energy companies in the world,” Claus Hjort Frederiksen, Denmark’s finance minister, said in a statement. The Danish government owns just over half of the company’s shares. Goldman Sachs owns about 13%.
Dong has been shifting its focus from fossil fuels to renewables, the Guardian notes. It now generates about half of its electricity and heat from renewable sources, according to the New York Times.
Canadian Water Treatment Company Fundraising
Vancouver-based Axine Water Technologies is fundraising as it plans to commercialize its system of cleaning polluted industrial water, Business Vancouver reports. Axine has raised more than C$7 million ($5.4 million) from investors since 2012.
Axine is getting set to deploy its refrigerator-sized water treatment systems across the U.S. The devices contain electrolytic cells that react with organic compounds, breaking them down into water, carbon dioxide, nitrogen and hydrogen. The process uses no chemicals and produces no sludge, according to Business Vancouver.
The company’s target markets include semiconductor, pharmaceutical and chemical manufacturers as well as the mining and oil & gas sectors
India’s Axis Bank Issues $500M in Green Bonds
Axis Bank, India’s third-largest private sector bank, issued green bonds in late May, Finance Asia reports. The money will fund renewable energy projects including solar, wind and small hydro, as well as electric buses and low-emission building projects.
About half of the bonds went to Asia, while the rest was split between Europe and the U.S., FinanceAsia reports. The bank says KPMG has certified that its green bond framework complies with Climate Bond Initiative Standards 2.0.
It’s the fourth green bond issuance from the Indian financial sector so far this year, according to FinanceAsia.
Australia’s Westpac Raises $360M through Green Bonds
Westpac Banking Corp. issued A$500 million ($360 million) worth of green bonds, its first such issuance, late last month, Bloomberg reports. Proceeds will fund renewable-energy projects and energy efficient commercial buildings.
Among the investors was the Clean Energy Finance Corp., a government-owned entity that works to increase the flow of funds to renewable energy and energy efficient projects.
Bloomberg notes that amid soaring demand, global green bonds issuance is forecast to hit a record $56 billion this year, breaking last year’s record $46 billion.
New Venture Capital Fund to Focus on Robotics
A new €100 million ($112 million) venture capital fund will look to commercialize “breakthrough robotics technologies.” The RoboValley Fund comes from Vancouver-based clean tech VC firm Chrysalix Venture Capital and RoboValley, a center for robotics commercialization located at Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands.
“Global technology in robotics is advancing very quickly, yet today there is no international pure-play venture capital fund focused on robotics and so closely aligned with a robotics ecosystem,” Mike Sherman, managing partner of the RoboValley Fund, says in a statement. “Many breakthrough [robotics] technologies are stranded in universities and national labs with insufficient early-stage funding available to help them commercialize and scale.