Kior, a US-based biofuels developer backed by Netherlands-based Bioecon and which has former US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on its board, has raised $150m in Nasdaq flotation after pricing its shares below the forecast range at $15 each.
Kior sold 10 million shares below its $19 to $21 per share range and two of its investors, venture capital firms Khosla Ventures and Artis Capital Management, said they would buy up to 3.5 million shares at its listing price in the initial public offering, according to its regulatory filing.
Kior, which originally filed to raise $100m in April, processes wood and non-food agricultural biomass into a renewable crude oil and was started in 2007 as a joint venture between Khosla and Bioecon, which owns 21.3% of the portfolio company.
Catchlight Energy, a joint venture between oil major Chevron – which also has Rice on its board – and industrial group Wayerhaeuser, will provide forestry waste that Kior will use at the plant.
Investment banks Credit Suisse, UBS and Goldman Sachs led the offering for Kior, which has raised more than $180m in equity before the IPO, according to data provider Bloomberg New Energy Finance.