US-based fuel cell technology developer Bloom Energy, previously backed by energy utility E.ON, has secured $130m of an expected $160m round from unnamed investors, the Wall Street Journal reported yesterday.
Bloom is raising the round using convertible notes which would convert to preferred stock in the series G round in the event of an initial public offering, as long as Bloom floats at a price of at least $25.76 per share. The notes have an annual interest rate of 8% and a term of 36 months.
The series G round first closed in 2011 at $150m. E.ON led a $130m round for Bloom in 2013, investing $100m, with the other $30m coming from financial services provider Credit Suisse.
Bloom has now raised more than $1.3bn since 2001 from investors also including investment banks Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, and venture capital firms Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, New Enterprise Associates, DAG Ventures, GSV Capital, Apex Venture Partners, Mobius Venture Capital, and SunBridge Partners.
Growth capital firm Madrone Capital, pension fund managers Alberta Investment Management and New Zealand Superannuation Fund, and brokerage firm Advanced Equities, now managed by Spruce Investment Advisors, have also backed Bloom in past rounds.
Bloom builds on-site power generators that exploit fuel cell technology to convert natural gas into electricity. It markets those generators to office buildings and data centres.
The company stated in 2013 that it intended to float in either 2013 or 2014, but has made no statement concerning an IPO since.