AuEx says C$4.4 million should last into 2009; Ardea takes loan; Nexxus sells preferreds; Raser plans deal

By Kenneth Lim

Boston, Nov. 13 - AuEx Ventures, Inc. said its plan to raise up to C$4.4 million should last the company into the early part of 2009.

Meanwhile, Ardea Biosciences, Inc. will sell an $8 million note to Oxford Finance Corp. and Silicon Valley Bank as part of a growth capital loan agreement.

Nexxus Lighting, Inc. sold $7.57 million of convertible preferred stock through a private placement to raise working capital.

Raser Technologies, Inc. is selling up to $20 million of its common stock in a two-tranche placement.

AuEx to place units

AuEx plans to sell up to C$4.4 million of stock and warrant units through a private placement.

The company is offering between 3 million and 4 million units of one common share and one half-share warrant at C$1.10 per unit. The whole two-year warrants are exercisable at C$1.38 in the first year and at C$1.65 thereafter.

AuEx common stock (TSX: XAU) closed at C$0.98 on Thursday, down by 6.67% or C$0.07.

The warrants may expire sooner if the company's shares close at C$2.06 or higher for 20 consecutive trading days in the first year or at C$2.48 or higher for 20 consecutive trading days in the second year.

Proceeds will be used to fund the company's participating interest in the Long Canyon Venture, maintenance and exploration of existing projects and general working capital purposes.

Based in Vancouver, B.C., AuEx is a precious metals exploration company.

The Long Canyon project remains capital intensive, and the additional capital will be important for AuEx over the next few months, AuEx president and chief executive Ronald L. Parratt told Prospect News.

"We have about US$2 million, a little bit less now, and this financing will generate on the order of US$3.5 million, given the current conversion," Parratt said. "Those funds will be sufficient to carry us into the early part of 2009."

The new capital will also allow AuEx to maintain its share in the significant Long Canyon project, which the company is partnering with Fronteer Development.

"In our project, if we fail to provide our share of capital or exploration, our position in the property will be diluted based on the amount of money that we don't contribute," Parratt said. "Obviously we're taking some shareholder dilution in the process, but the project is one where we add gold resource with every hole that we drill."

Parratt is confident that the financing will be successful, citing industry excitement about the Long Canyon deposits.

"We have a very good project," he said. "The Long Canyon property is a new discovery, it's recognized as a potentially significant deposit of good grade gold mineralization...People are, I wouldn't say they're standing in line, but it is easier to raise money when you have a quality project and a good business plan. We're finding good support in the market."

He acknowledged that the capital raising market was going through tough times, adding that "everyone's disappointed with the share prices."

"I'm told I should feel pretty good because our share price hasn't dropped as much as the others," Parratt said. "When we did our first private placement - we're a 3.5-year-old company - when we had our IPO we did it at about C$0.40, then we had a placement at C$0.90, we're doing one now at C$1.10. You would wish that you could do it at a higher price to reduce dilution for shareholders, but I'm confident if we weren't under these market conditions...we could raise the same amount of money for half the amount of shares."

Ardea borrows $8 million

Ardea Biosciences entered into an $8 million loan agreement with Oxford Finance and Silicon Valley Bank.

The note will have a three-year term and a 12% interest rate.

Additionally, the investors will receive warrants for 56,000 shares, exercisable for seven years.

The proceeds will provide working capital.

Carlsbad, Calif.-based Ardea specializes on the discovery and development of small-molecule therapeutics.

"We are pleased to have closed this financing under very challenging market conditions on favorable terms," Ardea president and chief executive Barry D. Quart said in a statement. "The proceeds from this loan, together with our existing cash reserves, provide greater flexibility in ongoing partnering discussions and allow us to fund operations into the second half of 2009."

Oxford president and chief executive J. Alden Philbrick added: "Ardea Biosciences is focused on treatments for some of our most life-threatening and debilitating diseases, including HIV, gout and cancer. Oxford and Silicon Valley Bank appreciate the opportunity to provide capital to further the development of Ardea's exciting pipeline candidates."

Nexxus wraps stock sale

Nexxus Lighting closed a $7.57 million private placement of its series A convertible preferred stock.

The preferreds were sold in exchange for $4 million in cash and the cancellation of about $3.6 million in debt.

The company sold the preferreds in units. Each $5,000 unit consists of one preferred and a warrant for 750 common shares. The company sold about 1,500 units.

The preferreds are initially convertible into common stock after four years at the greater of $6.59 or the market value of the company's stock on the conversion date. The warrants are exercisable at $6.50 for three years. The company issued a total of 1,135,083 warrants.

Nexxus common stock (Nasdaq: NEXS) gained 1.72% or $0.12 to close at $7.08 on Thursday.

Proceeds will be used for working capital and general corporate purposes, to support the launch of the company's new Array Lighting product and to expand the use of its Selective Heat Sink technology.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Nexxus designs, manufactures, markets and sells new light-emitting diode lighting products and systems.

"Over the course of the last eighteen months we have been working very hard to execute our strategy," Nexxus president and chief executive Mike Bauer said in a press release. "Through internal changes and recent acquisitions, we have created a dynamic company which we believe is well positioned to capitalize on the growing demand for white light LED lighting systems for general lighting applications. This infusion of capital is expected to support our operations and growth objectives."

"We are pleased to be able to complete a transaction with several existing investors who are excited about our company, our potential and our new Array Lighting LED lamp line that features Nexxus Lighting's patent-pending Selective Heat Sink technology," he added.

Raser to raise $20 million

Raser Technologies plans to raise up to $20 million through a private placement of its common stock to a single investor.

The company will sell 2 million common shares at $5 apiece in the initial tranche on Nov. 14 for $10 million. The remainder will settle for $10 million at a price to be determined. Raser common stock (NYSE: RZ) ended at $21.43 on Thursday after climbing 21.43% or $0.75.

The investor will also receive 10-year warrants for up to $20 million in shares, with half of them exercisable at $6 in the first tranche and the remainder exercisable at a price to be determined within the market context in the second tranche.

Proceeds will be used to further Raser's geothermal development program and for general corporate purposes.

Provo, Utah-based Raser is a technology licensing and development company focused on geothermal power generation.

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