Lodestone Energy announces IPO to fund next stage of solar and retail growth
NZX’s first significant IPO in five years and first ever New Zealand listing centred on utility-scale solar generation
MEDIA RELEASE:
Lodestone Energy is seeking to raise between $75 million and $100 million via an initial public offer (IPO) on the New Zealand Stock Exchange.
The offer opens on 29 September 2026 and closes on 14th October 2026. Shares are priced at $2.25 per share, implying the post IPO market capitalisation will be a range of $440 to $465 million.
No shareholders are selling through the offer and capital raised will support the construction of additional solar farms, the expansion of Lodestone Energy’s customer base and general corporate purposes.
Lodestone Energy is a vertically integrated renewable electricity generator currently selling electricity to commercial and industrial customers and expanding to serve mass market retail customers.
The business already owns and operates five utility-scale solar farms across New Zealand, generating enough electricity to power more than 33,000 average New Zealand homes annually. Its sixth farm is under construction, and the company is targeting 16 to 18 operating solar farms by FY32.
An established platform for growth
Lodestone Energy Managing Director Gary Holden says the IPO is about continuing the growth of a business the team has spent the past six years building.
“We founded Lodestone Energy in 2019 with a vision to build a solar farm in every community. Since then, we have built the capability to identify and develop high-quality sites, construct and operate solar farms, and sell the electricity they generate directly to customers. The IPO allows us to continue doing what we have been doing, but at greater scale.
“We currently sell electricity to commercial and industrial customers across New Zealand and have begun selling electricity to household and small-business customers in Hawke’s Bay. As we continue to develop and build more solar farms, we expect our customer base and retail footprint to grow alongside them,” says Mr Holden.
Lodestone Energy’s commercial and industrial customers include The Warehouse Group, Inghams, Halls, Pink Batts, Open Country Dairy and Briscoes. The majority of the volume supplied under its commercial Virtual Rooftop Contracts is contracted on longer-term agreements, with terms ranging from five to 20 years, compared with the one to three-year industry norm.
“Over the past six years we have progressively built the capabilities needed to support that growth, bringing together solar farm development, construction and operation with the direct sale of electricity to customers.
“That integrated model is already operating today. It gives us greater control over how we develop and deliver new projects and how the electricity they produce is matched with customers. The IPO is intended to provide additional capital to continue growing that model, adding more solar farms and more customers over time,” says Mr Holden.
Capital for the next stage
Lodestone Energy’s growth plan comes as electricity demand in New Zealand is expected to rise. MBIE expects demand to increase 21% between 2025 and 2035, driven by population growth, greater electrification of industry and transport, and data centre growth.
Holden says its increasingly standardised approach to designing, procuring and building solar farms is reducing costs as the business gains experience. Its sixth farm, Ongaonga Road in Hawke’s Bay, is expected to be built at a cost of approximately $0.95 million per GWh, around 11% below the average construction cost of its first five solar farms.
“The IPO is one part of how we are proposing to fund growth. We also use project level debt financing, strategic partnerships and cash generated by the business, which means the capital we’re raising can support a much larger build programme,” says Mr Holden.
New investors joining existing shareholders
Holden says the IPO marks an exciting new chapter and he welcomes new shareholders on this journey.
“Every existing shareholder is staying invested through this IPO and has agreed to escrow periods after listing. That means new shareholders will be coming into the business alongside the people that backed it through its first stage of growth.”
The PDS and further information about the offer are available at ipo.lodestone.co.nz.
Offer timetable:
• Offer opens: 29 September 2026
• Offer closes: 14 October 2026
• Bookbuild: 14 October 2026
• Expected commencement of trading on NZX Main Board: 22 October 2026.
Disclaimer
Lodestone Energy Limited is the issuer of the shares to be issued under the offer to which this advertisement relates. A product disclosure statement for the offer, which sets out the terms and conditions of the offer, is available, and can be obtained by visiting https://ipo.lodestone.co.nz/ . Prospective investors should consider the product disclosure statement before deciding whether to acquire Shares and will need to apply in accordance with the instructions in the product disclosure statement.
Nothing in this media release constitutes an invitation to subscribe for, or an offer of shares, securities or financial products to any person, in any country in which it would be unlawful to do so.