Bawat Water Technologies AB has resolved on a directed share issue of approximately SEK 15.3 million
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Hørsholm, Denmark, January 21, 2025 – The board of directors of Bawat Water Technologies AB (”Bawat” or the “Company”) has, based on the issue authorization from the annual general meeting held on May 30, 2024, and in accordance with the subscription undertaking, as published on December 30, 2024, resolved on a directed share issue of maximum 15,324,250 shares at a price of SEK 1 per share (the “Share Issue”). The Share Issue is directed to Cat 2 ApS (the “Investor”). The Share Issue has been fully subscribed and through the Share Issue Bawat will receive approximately SEK 15.3 million in total before transaction costs. The Share Issue is carried out in order to secure additional working capital for Bawat’s ballast as a service business (“BaaS”), while simultaneously gaining a new, long-term and strategically important shareholder, which further strengthens the Company’s shareholder base.
The terms of the Share Issue
In accordance with the subscription undertaking, as published on December 30, 2024, the board of directors of Bawat has resolved on the Share Issue of a maximum of 15,324,250 shares at a subscription price of SEK 1 per share. The Share Issue has been resolved with the support of the issue authorization granted by the annual general meeting held on May 30, 2024, and is directed to the Investor. The Share Issue has been fully subscribed and through the Share Issue Bawat will receive approximately SEK 15.3 million in total before transaction costs. The Share Issue is carried out in order to secure additional working capital for Bawat’s BaaS business, while simultaneously gaining a new, long-term and strategically important shareholders, which further strengthens the Company’s shareholder base. After the Share Issue, the board of directors of Bawat will not utilize the current Issue Authorization to raise further capital.
Deviation from the shareholders’ preferential rights and subscription price
Following the directed share issue performed in September 2024, the company believes the Share Issue will secure the final capital to execute on the roll-out of its BaaS service business. The majority of the capital that Bawat is raising is to accelerate its push into its BaaS service platform – a service that primarily supports vessel owners discharging non-compliant ballast water in port. The first step was already taken earlier this summer with a permanent presence in Hamburg Port, and now the plan is to capture the market in a faster and greater scale, which will require further working capital. Bawat is already in dialogue with numerous ports.
The board of directors of the Company has made an overall assessment and carefully considered different alternatives to meet the Company’s capital needs, as described above. Through the Investor’s investment, the Company also gains a new, long-term and strategically important shareholder, which further strengthens the Company’s shareholder base. The Investor is furthermore a financially strong owner, which the board of directors believes creates security, stability and favorable conditions for the Company’s growth. The Share Issue is also positive for the Company's further development and to secure sufficient working capital needs. The board of directors has also considered the possibility to raise the required equity through a rights issue. The board of directors has concluded that a rights issue would entail significantly longer execution time and thereby increased market risk exposure compared to a directed share issue. In addition, given the limited size of the Share Issue and the market volatility that has been observed during 2024 and which is still ongoing, the board of directors has assessed that a rights issue would also require significant underwriting commitments from an underwriting syndicate, which would entail additional costs and/or additional dilution depending on the type of consideration paid for such underwriting commitments. The Investor participating in the Share Issue has been selected on objective grounds to ensure that the Share Issue can be carried out on favorable terms for the Company. It is thus deemed to be beneficial for both the Company and the Company’s shareholders.
In light of the above, the board of directors has made the assessment that the Share Issue with deviation from the shareholders' preferential rights is the most favorable alternative for Bawat and in the best interest of the Company's shareholders.
The subscription price in the Share Issue is SEK 1 per share. The subscription price has been determined by the board of directors of the Company following arms-length negotiations with the Investor, based on the current share price of Bawat’s shares, and is therefore deemed to correspond to the shares’ market value.
Dilution
The Share Issue corresponds to a dilution of approximately 17.36 percent of the current total number of outstanding shares and votes. The total number of shares and votes in the Company will be 88,266,080 and the total share capital will be SEK 1,456,390.320 after the Share Issue.
Advisors
Translution Capital ApS acts as financial advisor and Advokatfirman Lindahl KB acts as legal advisor to the Company in connection with the Share Issue. Eminova Fondkommission acts as issuing agent.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Investors & Media:
Marcus P. Hummer, CEO, E-mail: mph@BAWAT.com
John B. Henriksen, CFO, E-mail jbh@BAWAT.com
Certified Adviser
Svensk Kapitalmarknadsgranskning AB
About Bawat
The development of an entirely new approach to ballast water treatment utilizing onboard waste heat to treat ballast water led to the founding of Bawat in 2011. A ballast water treatment system avoids disposal of untreated water in seas and harbors. Bawat's BWMS is a system that is simple, cost-effective, and sustainable, build on a zero environmental impact, using standard marine components. No filters, no chemicals no UV. And is the first to market a USCG/IMO Type Approval BWMS that uses pasteurization to treat ballast water in a one-pass process. Bawat has built upon its innovative breakthrough, and now offers ballast water solutions to the maritime industry in three categories:
- A ship BWMS for Retrofit and New Builds
- Mobile containerized solution for multiple vessel usage in a port, on a ship or for rigs
- Ballast Water as a Service for contingency services in ports
Bawat is an engineer-driven company that is rooted in the tradition of Danish maritime innovation and with a deep maritime insight: www.bawat.com. Bawat is listed on Nasdaq First North Growth Market.