Whitewater raises $7.1m from Leon Recanati

Whitewater, a water technology investment company owned by Ori Yogev and Hana Gertler, announced today that it will raise NIS 24m ($7.1m) from Gmul Investment Co. Gmul is controlled by Leon Recanati, a leading Israeli investor.

The investment is for 18.2% of Whitewater, at a company value of NIS 108 million ($40 million).

The money to be invested in Whitewater will be used to further the company's strategy to increase its holdings in a number of its Israeli subsidiaries: Galcon, which specializes in computerized irrigation systems; Checklight, which specializes in real-time water quality monitoring; and Whitewater Well, which specializes in water-drilling technology.

Whitewater also intends to invest in water technology companies in North America and Europe with significant growth potential.

Commenting on the investment, Ori Yogev told "Globes" that "Gmul has an asset that we're very interested in: a stake in the Nahariya sewage treatment plant, which is a very modern facility. It's very important for us to be able to use this facility as beta site for our sewage treatment technologies. This part of the deal isn't final, however."

As part of the deal, Whitewater has undertaken to acquire 23% of TGA Western Galilee Infrastructures LP, in which Gmul owns 44.9%, for NIS 10 million. TGA owns the Nahariya sewage treatment plant.

Yogev notes, "The growing global water crisis has generated unprecedented demand for innovative Israeli water technologies. The present investment will speed up the company's penetration into the North American and European markets, and will enable us to exploit potential opportunities in the global water technology market."

Gmul Investment's Chairman, Moddi Keret, said: "The water technology field is benefiting presently from huge investments, and is expected to become one of the growth forces in the world's economy."