Organica Water Closes Series B Financing

BUDAPEST, August 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ --

Organica Water, a global provider of innovative solutions for the treatment and recycling of wastewater, today announced it has completed its Series B round of financing.  The round was led by the International Finance Corporation (IFC), with participation by WLR China Energy Infrastructure Fund L.P. ("CEIF"), a private equity fund managed by Invesco WLR Private Equity Investment Management Company Ltd. ("Huaneng Invesco"), which is a joint venture between Huaneng Capital , Invesco, and WL Ross & Co., along with existing investors RNK Capital LLC (New York) and Gamma Capital Partners (Vienna).    Organica's mission is to become the standard operating system for municipal wastewater treatment plants ("WWTPs") globally.  The Series B funding will be used to finance business development activity for Organica's continued global expansion into new markets, the launch of its first-of-a-kind hosted WWTP design platform in 2014, continued R&D activity around its solution set, and general working capital.  Organica was advised by Quintal Partners for a portion of the transaction. 

"We are thrilled to add the IFC and Huaneng Invesco's fund to our already strong team of investors.   The IFC (part of the World Bank group) is one of the most active financiers of wastewater treatment infrastructure in the world, and adding their deep domain expertise and broad industry network is an invaluable strategic resource for the company going forward.  Perhaps more importantly, the IFC and Organica share a core set of values that guide us in both business and life, as we both work to improve infrastructure in developing countries, helping to reduce poverty and improve people's lives," said Ari Raivetz, CEO of Organica.  "Huaneng Invesco is a JV among unique entities, each offering a compelling value proposition.  Invesco and WL Ross & Co. are two of the most respected and successful investors in the world, with nearly 50 years of experience as investors in 'basic' industries such as energy and water, and global reach in the capital markets.  Huaneng Capital is the financial services arm of the China Huaneng Group, which is the largest power company in China, one of Organica's most important growth markets.  The Huaneng team brings both strong and long-standing relationships in Asia, as well as significant experience doing business in the infrastructure sector in China." 

"Organica's management team and products have great potential to improve wastewater treatment around the world," said Vincent Gouarne, Director, IFC Telecom, Media, Technology and Venture Capital.   "We look forward to partnering with Organica in this stage of growth to further spread their reach in emerging markets."

As part of the financing Patrick Mullen, Water and Sanitation Specialist for the IFC's Global Water Unit, and Robert Liu, Chief Executive Officer of Huaneng Invesco's investment advisor, Huaneng Invesco WLR (Beijing) Investment Fund Management Company Ltd., will join Organica's Board of Directors.  

In addition to its well-documented success in the French market, in the past few months Organica has signed contracts for the design and equipment supply of a number of large WWTPs in Asia, including a 45,000 m³/d plant in Indonesia, a 30,000 m³/d retrofit in China, and a number of plants in India.  The company is pursuing numerous opportunities in new markets, and continues to invest in R&D to further develop its product portfolio.  "Beginning in 2014, Organica's website will become a place where any utility, consultant, or construction company can enter a few basic wastewater parameters and instantly receive a complete 'basic' design for a small-footprint, energy-efficient, aesthetically pleasing, Organica-powered wastewater treatment facility," said Raivetz.  We believe this will level the playing field in the industry globally, and give cities and towns around the world access to the most economic and sustainable wastewater treatment solution on the market today.  Today's announcement of our Series B financing brings us closer to that goal, and we look forward to sharing more developments in the coming months."

About Organica

Since its founding in 1998 as a Hungarian EPC Contractor, and its transformation to a global solutions provider via a Series A financing in 2008, Organica has worked to bring its sustainable wastewater treatment solutions to cities and communities around the world.  The company's latest offering is the Organica Food Chain Reactor (FCR) solution, a type of Integrated Fixed-Film Activated Sludge (IFAS) system which utilizes a fixed-bed biofilm that grows on both natural (plant) and artificial (patented biofiber media) root structures, resulting in a significantly reduced physical footprint, zero "psychological" footprint, and lower operational and infrastructure costs when compared to other activated sludge-based wastewater treatment solutions.  Each Organica FCR is housed in a fully-enclosed, odorless greenhouse facility with the appearance of a botanical garden, preserving the surrounding land value and allowing the wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) to be placed directly adjacent to the wastewater source, thereby greatly reducing infrastructure costs and enabling cost-efficient reuse of the treated effluent. With nearly two decades of experience and more than 30 operating references (15+ under construction), Organica offers proven economic and sustainable solutions for today's wastewater management challenges.  Organica has offices in Budapest (Hungary), New Delhi (India), Shanghai (China), and Princeton, NJ (USA). 

About IFC

IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. Working with private enterprises in more than 100 countries, we use our capital, expertise, and influence to help eliminate extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity. In FY13, our investments climbed to an all-time high of nearly $25 billion, leveraging the power of the private sector to create jobs and tackle the world's most pressing development challenges. For more information, visit http://www.ifc.org.

About Quintal Partners

Quintal Partners is a Hong Kong based corporate advisory business, specializing in strategic and corporate development for sustainable infrastructure and clean-energy capital formation in Asia and beyond.

About WLR China Energy Infrastructure Fund ("CEIF")

CEIF is a private equity investment fund managed by Invesco WLR Private Equity Investment Management Limited, a joint venture between Huaneng Capital, the financial services arm of China Huaneng Group, Invesco and WL Ross & Co., an Invesco affiliate. CEIF takes advantage of the unique combination of strengths of Huaneng as the largest power company in China, Invesco's global reach in capital markets, and WLR's private equity experience to provide capital and support to companies engaged in cleaner traditional energy, new energy, and energy conservation sectors in China.