Cosan plans $180 million private placement of shares; Oxigene completes $2.48 million PIPE sale

By Devika Patel

Knoxville, Tenn., Oct. 2 - Brazil's Cosan Ltd. arranged Thursday's largest private placement, raising $180 million from a stock sale to support the ethanol company's growth, despite reporting losses in the last quarter.

Company shares (NYSE: CZZ) declined 10.7%, or 89 cents, to close at $7.43 Thursday.

Meanwhile, Oxigene Inc. settled a $2.48 million private placement of shares after the close Wednesday, giving the company funds it will use for clinical trials.

Riverstone Resources Inc. also announced a private placement after the close Wednesday in which it will sell C$1.98 million of units to International Finance Corp., raising proceeds for exploration.

The company's shares (TSX Venture: RVS) reacted well to the news, jumping 12.5%, or 2 cents, to close at C$0.18 Thursday.

Cosan to get $180 million

Sao Paulo-based Cosan has arranged a $180 million private placement of shares, the proceeds of which will be used to strengthen the capital structure of the Cosan Group to support its growth, including for possible future acquisitions and other general corporate purposes.

Cosan posted weak results in the last quarter, which it blamed on "excess supply [that] compressed sugar prices in the free market," according to an August presentation.

The company said that ethanol production has been growing faster than new markets have been opening lately, despite the fact that many countries are seeking an alternative to fossil fuels. The company said that import barriers by developed countries have hurt Cosan's bottom line.

In addition, depreciation of the Brazilian real, exceptionally heavy rainfall in April and May resulting in lower yields, higher costs for fertilizers and declining prices for sugar contributed to the company's declining profit margins.

But Cosan still plans to expand its production capacity, and plans to use the funds from its sale of 22,784,810 class A common shares at $7.90 per share to reach its goals.

The placement's investors are the Gávea Funds, which will buy $130 million of the shares, and Rubens Ometto Silveira Mello, who will buy $50 million of the shares.

Oxigene wraps $2.48 million

Oxigene concluded a $2.48 million private placement of shares after the close Wednesday.

The company sold 2,231,636 common shares at $1.11 per share to Symphony ViDA Holdings LLC.

Symphony also received warrants exercisable for 11,281,877 shares at $1.11 for 10 years.

Oxigene's share price (Nasdaq: OXGN) rose 3.1% Thursday, or 4 cents, to close at $1.33.

Proceeds will support pre-clinical and clinical development of Oxigene's product candidates, ZYBRESTAT and OXi4503.

"The Symphony partnership significantly enhances Oxigene's financial position, augments our drug development expertise, and helps accelerate the development and commercialization of our three clinical-stage VDA drug programs: ZYBRESTAT for oncology, OXi4503 and ZYBRESTAT for ophthalmology," the company's chief operating officer, John Kollins, said in a news release. "Importantly, Oxigene retains exclusive rights to all programs and gains further flexibility to partner its programs at a more advanced stage of development and from a position of greater strength."

Oxigene is a pharmaceutical company located in Waltham, Mass.

Riverstone aims for C$1.98 million

Riverstone, a Vancouver, B.C.-based gold exploration company, said after the close Wednesday that it will raise C$1.98 million in a private placement of units.

The company will sell 8.25 million units of one share and one warrant at C$0.24 per unit to International Finance Corp. Each warrant will be exercisable at C$0.42 for three years.

Proceeds will be used for working capital and further exploration of the company's gold projects in Burkina Faso.

"We are extremely pleased that this highly regarded international financial organization has chosen to support Riverstone and its gold exploration activities in Burkina Faso," company president M.D. McInnis said in a news release. "This financing will provide Riverstone with a strong cash position to advance our key projects in Burkina Faso and also to evaluate acquisition opportunities that may arise in this uncertain market."

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