VA Tech Wabag to allot shares worth Rs 120 crore on preferential basis to marquee investors
Water technology major VA Tech Wabag has managed to raise an amount of Rs 120 crore from marquee high networth individuals through an allotment of shares on a preferential basis. The investors include Rekha Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, the wife of stock market biggie Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.
The preferential allotment of shares to the investors is part of the Chennai-based VA Tech Wabag’s plans to raise as much as Rs 400 crore by issue of equity or issuing debt papers to explore new business opportunities and fund growth.
The company’s board of directors has considered and approved the capital infusion by the select group of investors and now the shareholders’ nod is needed.
VA Tech Wabag has issued 50 lakh shares to Rekha Rakesh Jhunjhunwala to raise Rs 80 crore while 15 lakh shares worth Rs 24 crore were issued to Basera Home Finance. Another 10 lakh shares have been allotted to Sushma Anand Jain and Anand Jaikumar Jain for Rs 16 crore. The shares were issued at a price of Rs 160 per equity share including a premium of Rs 158 per share, the company said in a regulatory filing.
VA Tech Wabag is listed on both Bombay Stock Exchange and the larger National Stock Exchange. The capital infusion by high networth individuals is one of the rarest instances in a leading profit-making company engaged in the water and wastewater treatment sector in India.
“We would like to extend a warm welcome to all the potential incoming investors, each of whom enjoys a high level of respect and credibility in the financial markets ecosystem. This is the first time, the company has proposed to raise equity capital since its IPO in 2010,” VA Tech Wabag Managing Director Rajiv Mittal said.
“We believe this well timed equity infusion will provide the necessary growth capital for the company to scale greater heights,” he said.
The company with its technology focus, asset light model and global presence is well positioned to consolidate its leadership in the water technology sector. “In the backdrop of a growing awareness and need for sustainable businesses, across the world, we believe that the company is an ideal destination for global investors, especially for ESG focused investors”, the company said in a statement.
Meanwhile, the company has won the prestigious Global Water Award for its 45 million litre per day (MLD) tertiary treatment reverse osmosis (TTRO) plant at Koyambedu, Chennai. The plant bagged the distinction award under ‘Wastewater Project of the Year’ category.
The TTRO plant is one of the largest and technologically most advanced water reuse plants in India designed and built by a consortium comprising WABAG and Israel’s IDE Technologies for Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply & Sewerage Board (CMWSSB).
The project marks a decisive step in the direction of municipal water recycling, thereby promoting an alternative and viable model for urban water governance.
The project is aimed at boosting Chennai’s water resilience and sustainability in the wake of its ongoing struggles with drought and water scarcity. The treated water from the plant caters to the water requirements of the industrial hub in South Chennai. The TTRO plant will help free up over 16 million m3 of freshwater each year, securing water supply for Chennai’s population of more than 10 million people, the company said, adding that the plant makes Chennai the first Indian city to reuse more than 20 per cent of its treated wastewater.
