by Christoph Steitz and Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Shares of Nucera, the hydrogen subsidiary of Thyssenkrupp, rose late Friday morning for its first trading session, after making the biggest IPO in Frankfurt since the start of the ‘year. Around 09:15 GMT, the stock was trading at 21.58 euros, an increase of around 7% compared to the price of 20 euros set for its launch, which values ​​the company at more than 2.5 billion euros. euros. “The IPO marks the start of an exciting new phase in our company’s history,” said Werner Ponikwar, Managing Director of Nucera, adding that the joint venture between Thyssenkrupp and De Nora will “accelerate the adoption of green hydrogen”.

The theme of energy transition has been represented in several recent IPOs, including that of EuroGroup Laminations in Italy.

Nucera, ThyssenKrupp and De Nora hope to raise up to 605 million euros through this IPO, making it the largest in Germany this year. “Although the company has yet to achieve profitability, investors have bought into the company’s technology and strong growth prospects for its green hydrogen business,” said Christof Muerb, director at Deutsche Bank.

Green hydrogen is produced by splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen using renewable electricity such as solar and wind power. It is considered a clean source of energy, but the technology is still in its infancy.

The stock market listing marks Thyssenkrupp’s latest effort to simplify its structure after splitting off other divisions such as its elevator and stainless steel business.

(Christoph Steitz in Frankfurt and Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro in London London; Laetitia Volga, editing by Blandine Hénault)

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