Bawat Water Technologies AB has resolved on a directed share issue of approximately SEK 25 million
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Hørsholm, Denmark, August 22, 2024 – 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, resolved on a directed share issue of maximum 17,238,209 shares at a price of SEK 1.46 per share (the “Directed Share Issue”). The Directed Share Issue is directed to Friheden A/S, Bebop & Rocksteady ApS and Banyan Tree Holding ApS (the “Investors”). The Directed Share Issue has been fully subscribed and through the Directed Share Issue Bawat will receive approximately SEK 25 million in total before transaction costs. The Directed Share Issue is carried out in order to secure additional working capital at favorable terms, while simultaneously gaining new, long-term and strategically important shareholders in, which further strengthens the Company’s shareholder base.
The Directed Share Issue
The terms of the Directed Share Issue
The board of directors of Bawat has resolved on the Directed Share Issue of a maximum of 17,238,209 shares at a subscription price of SEK 1.46 per share. The Directed 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 Investors. The Directed Share Issue has been fully subscribed and through the Directed Share Issue Bawat will receive approximately SEK 25 million in total before transaction costs. The Directed Share Issue is carried out in order to secure additional working capital at favorable terms, while simultaneously gaining new, long-term and strategically important shareholders, which further strengthens the Company’s shareholder base.
Deviation from the shareholders’ preferential rights and subscription price
The ballast water convention is coming to its final implementation on 8th September this year, and global experience is widely showing difficulties in reaching compliance for many vessels owners for multiple reasons. The majority of the capital that Bawat Water Technologies is now raising is to accelerate its push into its Ballast-as-a-Service (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 Investors’ investment, the Company also gains new, long-term and strategically important shareholders, which further strengthens the Company’s shareholder base. The Investors are furthermore financially strong owners and prepared to support the Company’s long-term growth plans, which the board of directors believes creates security, stability and favorable conditions for the Company’s growth. The Directed Share Issue is also positive for the Company's further development and to secure sufficient working capital need. 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 Directed 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 Investors participating in the Directed Share Issue have been selected on objective grounds to ensure that the Directed 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 Directed 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 Directed Share Issue is SEK 1.46 per share. The subscription price in the Directed Share Issue has been determined by the Company’s board of directors based on the volume-weighted average price (VWAP) of the Company’s shares on First North Growth Market during the period from August 8, 2024, up to and including August 21, 2024, which is why the board of directors considers the subscription price to correspond to the shares’ market value. The subscription price is based on arm’s length negotiations with the Investors.
Dilution
The Directed Share Issue corresponds to a dilution of approximately 23.63 percent of the current total number of outstanding shares and votes. The total number of shares and votes in the Company will be 72,941,830 and the total share capital will be SEK 1,203,540.195 after the Directed 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 Directed Share Issue. Nordic Issuing acts as issuing agent.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:
Investors & Media:
Marcus P. Hummer, CEO, E-mail: [email protected]
John B. Henriksen, CFO, E-mail [email protected]
Certified Adviser
Svensk Kapitalmarknadsgranskning AB
This press release constitutes inside information that Bawat Water Technologies AB is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation 596/2014. The information was sent for publication, through the agency of the contact persons set out above, at the time stated by the Company's news distributor, Cision, at the publication of this press release on August 22, 2024, at 22:45 CEST.
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
- BaaS - Ballast 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.