Gradiant raises over $100 million in new funding for cleantech water growth

• Warburg Pincus and Schlumberger New Energy lead funding round

• Funding will be used for strategic growth opportunities, project-level financing, technology deployment, and opportunistic acquisitions

• Gradiant is a global solutions provider and developer of cleantech water projects

Boston--(ANTARA/Business Wire)- Gradiant, a leading global end-to-end cleantech water treatment solutions provider and projects developer, today announced it has raised over $100 million in Series C funding. The round was led by financial and strategic partners Warburg Pincus and Schlumberger New Energy and was oversubscribed from its initial target of $65 million. The round brings Gradiant’s total funding to date to over $200 million since inception.

Gradiant develops and delivers advanced water and wastewater treatment facilities around the world, with a primary focus in the rapidly growing Asia Pacific region for global brand owners and manufacturers with mission-critical needs in cleantech water and sustainable operations. The company offers a broad portfolio of proprietary and patented technologies and services for end-to-end cleantech solutions that focus on water reuse, resource recovery, brine concentration for minimum and zero liquid discharge (MLD / ZLD), and digital solutions for plant performance optimization. Gradiant offers flexible models for the design-build, operate-maintain, and financing of projects based on customers’ specific needs and situations.

The funding will enable Gradiant to further expand into strategic markets and industries; finance the equity contribution into new project assets; accelerate the deployment of Gradiant’s innovation and technology offerings; and strategically acquire complementary and synergistic companies in cleantech water and sustainability. The company plans to grow its business in key sectors such as food and beverage, microelectronics, pharmaceuticals, and mining, from its already established geographies in the Asia Pacific, the United States, and the Middle East.

“Gradiant is on an exciting growth trajectory, led by a strong management team with a deep understanding of the water solutions required for their customers to increase sustainability in the supply chain,” said Roy Ben-Dor, Managing Director at Warburg Pincus. “Gradiant’s consistent success is a reflection of the progress the team has made in offering differentiated and effective cleantech water solutions to the top brands in the world,” added Jeff Luse, a Principal at Warburg Pincus who will also join the company’s Board of Directors.

Gradiant has experienced tremendous growth, with 2021 revenue expected to triple versus the prior year and the near-term financial forecast expected to continue to expand at an accelerated pace through its growing backlog of design-build (DB) and design-build-own-operate-manage (DBOOM) contracts. Recent strategic acquisitions of Sigma Water (Malaysia) and CRS Water (Australia) have created opportunities to access new customers, applications, and geographies when coupled with Gradiant’s clean water technologies and project development and financing capabilities. Gradiant’s recent growth is driven by significant project wins in Asia Pacific, where the region’s rapid industrialization and population growth have been driving the demand for clean water and sustainable technologies.

“Our customers are global Fortune 100 brand owners in core markets and industries,” said Anurag Bajpayee, Co-Founder and CEO of Gradiant. “With the common theme that they consume and treat incredible amounts of water for mission-critical operations that make the world go round for their essential products and services. Our customers are increasingly facing financial and social pressures to lead sustainable development by maximizing water reuse & resource recovery and minimizing discharges to the environment and energy usage. They look to Gradiant for innovation, leadership, and execution. Our solutions are in the sweet spot for enabling our customers to reach their sustainability goals to meet the expectations of the stakeholders and communities they serve.”

“We look forward to collaborating with Gradiant’s expertise in resource management & recovery and advanced wastewater treatment through synergies in technology and strategic markets,” said Ashok Belani, Executive Vice President, Schlumberger New Energy. “Gradiant offers game-changing clean water solutions which we can leverage moving towards our shared vision for a sustainable future.”

Gradiant is a leading global solutions provider and developer of cleantech water projects for advanced water and wastewater treatment. Gradiant’s robust, end-to-end solutions and proven technical delivery and operations expertise enable sustainable and cost-effective treatment of the most complex water challenges. Gradiant was founded at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to solve the most challenging water treatment problems through sustainable technologies to make a positive impact on the environment, society, and economy. Gradiant serves its clients around the world from its corporate headquarters in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, regional headquarters and R&D center in Singapore, and its subsidiaries Gradiant India (Chennai), Gradiant China (Shanghai, Ningbo), Sigma Water (Malaysia), Gradiant Australia (Sydney), Gradiant Energy Services (Houston and Midland, Texas, USA) and Gradiant Middle East (Saudi Arabia). For more information, please visit www.gradiant.com.

Warburg Pincus LLC is a leading global growth investor. The firm has more than $67 billion in private equity assets under management. The firm’s active portfolio of more than 215 companies is highly diversified by stage, sector, and geography. Warburg Pincus is an experienced partner to management teams seeking to build durable companies with sustainable value. Founded in 1966, Warburg Pincus has raised 20 private equity funds, which have invested more than $97 billion in over 960 companies in more than 40 countries. The firm is headquartered in New York with offices in Amsterdam, Beijing, Berlin, Hong Kong, Houston, London, Luxembourg, Mumbai, Mauritius, San Francisco, São Paulo, Shanghai, and Singapore. For more information, please visit www.warburgpincus.com.

Schlumberger is the world's leading provider of technology to the global energy industry. Schlumberger New Energy explores new avenues of growth by leveraging Schlumberger’s intellectual and business capital in emerging new energy markets, with a focus on low-carbon and carbon-neutral energy technologies. Its activities include ventures in the domains of hydrogen, lithium, energy storage, carbon capture and sequestration, geothermal power and geoenergy for heating and cooling buildings. Find out more at www.slb.com/newenergy.

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Gradiant, VP of Marketing

fwang@gradiant.com