Bloom Energy, the US-based fuel cell system provider that counts energy utility E.ON as an investor, has confidentially filed for an initial public offering, the Wall Street Journal has reported.
Founded in 2001 as Ion Energy, Bloom manufactures oxide cell energy storage systems that can be installed on-site to produce energy for large buildings by converting gas to electricity.
The company was valued at $2.9bn as of a $150m series G round in 2011 but it will be unlikely to float at as high a valuation.
Venture capital firm GSV Capital sold its stake, sized at less than $3m, in March this year at a reported 42.7% drop in valuation from the 2011 round.
E.ON led a $130m tranche for Bloom in 2013 that represented a continuation of the series G round, bringing the company’s overall funding to about $1.2bn. It subsequently raised another $130m in January 2015 from undisclosed investors.
Bloom’s other backers include financial services firms Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley, New Enterprise Associates, Apex Venture Partners, TriplePoint Capital, Madrone Capital, DAG Ventures, Alberta Investment Management Corp and New Zealand Superannuation Fund.
– Photo courtesy of Bloom Energy