HPA Project Finance Update
Perth, Mar 8, 2022 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Altech Chemicals Limited (
ASX:ATC) (A3Y:FRA) is pleased to provide an update on the proposed ~US$144 million listed green bond offering and additional project equity, which in combination would provide the balance of funds required for the recommencement of construction of its Malaysian high purity alumina (HPA) project.
Green Bond
Altech continues to work with London based structuring agent Bedford Row Capital Plc (Bedford Row) and Perth based Bluemount Capital (WA) Pty Ltd (Bluemount) to finalise its green bond offering. Project financial, legal, environmental, social & governance (ESG) due diligence has successfully concluded, and legal counsel from various jurisdictions have also completed their respective reviews of documentation. An initial bond offering "reach out" phase to potential subscribers was recently completed and more than 80 groups registering interest to receive the offering documents. Access to the project data room has been provided to a number of these groups for detailed due diligence and potential subscriber due diligence is ongoing. Detailed presentations and individual discussions are being scheduled on request, and these are expected to continue for some time.
Altech is aiming to raise US$144m from the bond issue (Series 2021-F3 Notes), of which US$100m will be used as secondary debt for construction of its Johor HPA plant with the balance of US$44m to service bond interest during the HPA plant's construction phase. The bonds would be issued by Sustainable Capital Plc, a company incorporated in United Kingdom as a dedicated green bond issuance platform (www.sustainablecapitalplc.com). In terms of security, the bonds will be subordinate to the senior project finance of US$190m that is committed from German government owned KfW IPEX-Bank.
Project Equity
In parallel with the bond offering, Altech is progressing the additional equity component of its HPA project funding requirement. US based global investment bank DelMorgan & Co. (Del Morgan) was appointed by Altech in mid-2021 to manage this process for potential North American investors. Del Morgan is a specialised investment bank that has over $300 billion of successful transactions across 75 countries. The Bank has experience over the last 30 years, successfully concluding various project funding transactions around the globe.
In late 2021, DelMorgan completed its detailed project familiarisation and due diligence process and it recently commenced a targeted marketing and reach out process to potential equity investors.
Distribution of comprehensive corporate presentation packs is now underway, and Altech is conducting detailed briefings to potential subscribers, as requested. Also, as with the green bond offering, project data room access has been provided to a number of interested parties to assist them with their respective due diligence activities. Altech is aiming to identify a 49% equity partner to provide US$100m of equity funding as a project level investment.
About Altech Batteries Ltd
Altech Batteries Limited (ASX:ATC) (FRA:A3Y) is a specialty battery technology company that has a joint venture agreement with world leading German battery institute Fraunhofer IKTS ("Fraunhofer") to commercialise the revolutionary CERENERGY(R) Sodium Alumina Solid State (SAS) Battery. CERENERGY(R) batteries are the game-changing alternative to lithium-ion batteries. CERENERGY(R) batteries are fire and explosion-proof; have a life span of more than 15 years and operate in extreme cold and desert climates. The battery technology uses table salt and is lithium-free; cobalt-free; graphite-free; and copper-free, eliminating exposure to critical metal price rises and supply chain concerns.
The joint venture is commercialising its CERENERGY(R) battery, with plans to construct a 100MWh production facility on Altech's land in Saxony, Germany. The facility intends to produce CERENERGY(R) battery modules to provide grid storage solutions to the market.
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