Nanjing High-Speed and Accurate Gear Group, which has added gears for wind turbines to its line of power-generation equipment, plans to raise at least US$100 million in an initial public offering in Hong Kong before the end of this year, market sources said.
Founded in 1969, Nanjing Gear mostly makes high-speed gears for power generation and heavy engineering applications. More recently, however, the company has moved into the green energy field with gears for wind turbines, including the 600- and 800-kilowatt models designed for low wind-speed environments.
Green energy companies have already become a favourite of venture capitalists in the United States and Europe.
Nanjing Gear is 'betting that soaring oil prices will continue to encourage the alternative-energy bulls. Clean energy is the hottest investment theme at the moment, with global government support. No one wants to miss out on it,' a fund manager said.
The central government wants the country to meet 10 per cent of its energy needs from green sources by 2020.
A number of mainland alternative energy companies are lining up to raise funds in Hong Kong, where the green investment concept is relatively new.
Nanjing Gear is likely to be the second clean energy company to list in Hong Kong after the proposed US$200 million share sale of mainland biodiesel producer Gushan Group in the third quarter.