Homegrown industrial wastewater treatment firm De.mem to list in Australia

SINGAPORE-BASED water company De.mem, provider of solutions for industrial wastewater treatment, will be listing on the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) during the first quarter of this year.

The company said on Thursday that it intends to raise a minimum amount of A$3.75 million (about S$4 million), with a potential over-subscription of up to another A$750,000 to further expand its business in Singapore, Vietnam and the region.

De.mem is a spin-off company from the Nanyang Technological University's (NTU) Nanyang Environment and Water Research Institute (NEWRI), having licensed several innovations from the university.

These technologies include a novel low-pressure hollow-fibre nanofiltration membrane technology, which holds the potential to significantly lower operating cost and capital expenditure for applications in water and wastewater treatment.

Part of the proceeds of the initial public offering (IPO) will be used to fund build, own, operate (BOO) projects. Under such an arrangement, the company operates water and waste water treatment systems on behalf of its clients who then pay for the clean water, in turn reducing clients' capital outlay and manpower cost.

De.mem said that it is now looking at a significant pipeline of project opportunities in different countries, after having successfully run more than 15 projects in Singapore and Vietnam.

It is also setting up a pilot manufacturing facility for its new nanofiltration membrane, which has applications in both industrial waste water and municipal water treatment.

The IPO is lead-managed by broker firm Alto Capital while the corporate adviser to De.mem is Ventnor Capital. Both groups are based in Perth, Australia.