TSX | NYSE: ACB
EDMONTON, Nov. 28, 2018 /CNW/ - Aurora Cannabis Inc.
("Aurora" or the "Company") (NYSE: ACB) (TSX: ACB) (Frankfurt: 21P; WKN: A1C4WM) announced today
that the company, through a selling broker, has completed the sale
in the open market of the Australis Capital Inc. ("Australis")
units on behalf of non-resident shareholders. Payment of the net
cash proceeds from the sales of Australis units to the non-resident
shareholders of record as of August 24,
2018 was completed by the custodian on November 27, 2018. In total, 11,222,349 units of
Australis were sold in the public markets.
The Company originally completed the spin out of its U.S. assets
through the distribution of Australis units to Canadian resident
shareholders on September 19, 2018.
The units consisted of one common share and one common share
purchase warrant of Australis, with each warrant having an exercise
price of $0.25 and being valid for 12
months following the distribution. As described in further detail
in the Final Prospectus of Australis dated August 14, 2018, and to satisfy certain tax
related considerations, the Company transferred the units issued to
shareholders who were (or were deemed to be) non-residents of
Canada to a trustee for a
controlled sell-off of units in the open market by a designated
selling broker subsequent to the listing of Australis on the CSE in
Canada.
Management Commentary
"With this final distribution of net cash proceeds to
non-resident shareholders, Aurora has completed its commitment to
return capital to all of our shareholders," said Terry Booth, CEO of Aurora. "Since its public
listing, the team at Australis have hit the ground running,
executing on a number of investments with strong growth potential.
Through our contingent interest in Australis, we'll keep a close
eye on the exciting U.S. market, and look to exercise our back-in
right as soon as federal regulations permit."
Scott Dowty, CEO of Australis,
added, "Investor interest in the U.S. market continues to grow, but
access to the kind of opportunities we are able to execute on is
extremely limited for most investors. Australis is well positioned
to continue creating high-growth opportunities for our
shareholders, and we look forward to providing frequent updates on
our progress to the market. At the same time, our historical
connection to Aurora, one of the undisputed leaders in the global
cannabis industry, provides us with significant brand equity to
execute on our mandate."
While Aurora currently holds no direct ownership interest in
Australis, the Company owns warrants that will allow Aurora to
acquire an ownership interest once regulations in the U.S. permit
the Company to do so.
Australis is an investment vehicle with a special focus on
opportunities in the U.S. cannabis industry. Since becoming
publicly listed on the CSE, Australis has completed three strategic
investments to add to its portfolio of assets:
- November 5, 2018:
Completed the acquisition of Rthm Technologies Inc., the number one
health app in 26 countries, which holds several brand-associated
trademarks and has developed the world's first mobile genetics and
circadian rhythm mapping platform for both iOS and Android
devices.
- November 5, 2018:
Completed an investment agreement with Body and Mind Inc. ("BaM"),
a publicly traded, vertically integrated company that invests in
high quality medical and recreational cannabis cultivation and
production and retail. BaM products include dried flower, edibles,
topicals, extracts as well as GPEN Gio cartridges.
- November 19, 2018:
Completed purchase of a 15% ownership interest in Wagner Dimas, a
market leader in the development of unique, patented technology and
proprietary processes that enable large-scale production for the
higher-margin pre-rolled segment of the cannabis market.
Since its inception, Australis has successfully raised
$49 million to fund its growing
investment portfolio. Australis expects to close additional
strategic acquisitions by the end of 2018 and enter into 2019 with
a dynamic portfolio of complementary assets. Recently, Australis
expanded its senior management team to include three new
professionals with strong backgrounds in cannabis, gaming and
consumer goods and relocated its headquarters into its new
corporate offices in Las Vegas,
Nevada.
About Australis
Australis Capital identifies and invests in the cannabis
industry predominately in the United
States, a highly regulated, fragmented, rapidly expanding
and evolving industry. Investments may include and are not limited
to equity, debt or other securities of both public and private
companies, financings in exchange for royalties or other
distribution streams, and control stake acquisitions. Australis
Capital adheres to stringent investment criteria and will focus on
significant near and mid-term high-quality opportunities with
strong return potentials while maintaining a steadfast commitment
to governance and community. Australis Capital's Board, Management
and Advisory Committee members have material experience with, and
knowledge of, the cannabis space in the U.S., extensive backgrounds
in highly regulated industries, adherence to stringent regulatory
compliance, public company and operational expertise. In addition
to the Company's expertise and strong execution on strategic
M&A, which to date includes Body and Mind Inc. and Rthm
Technologies Inc., Australis has developed strategic partnerships
with companies such as Wagner Dimas. Australis' Common shares trade
on the CSE under the symbol "AUSA".
About Aurora
Headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta,
Canada with funded capacity in excess of 500,000 kg per
annum and sales and operations in 21 countries across five
continents, Aurora is one of the world's largest and leading
cannabis companies. Aurora is vertically integrated and
horizontally diversified across every key segment of the value
chain, from facility engineering and design to cannabis breeding
and genetics research, cannabis and hemp production, derivatives,
high value-add product development, home cultivation, wholesale and
retail distribution.
Highly differentiated from its peers, Aurora has established a
uniquely advanced, consistent and efficient production strategy,
based on purpose-built facilities that integrate leading-edge
technologies across all processes, defined by extensive automation
and customization, resulting in the massive scale production of
high- quality product at low cost. Intended to be replicable and
scalable globally, our production facilities are designed to
produce cannabis of significant scale, with high quality,
industry-leading yields, and low per gram production costs. Each of
Aurora's facilities is built to meet EU GMP standards, and its
first production facility, the recently acquired MedReleaf Markham
facility, and its wholly owned European medical cannabis
distributor Aurora Deutschland, have achieved this level of
certification.
In addition to Aurora's rapid organic growth and strong
execution on strategic M&A, which to date includes 15 wholly
owned subsidiary companies – MedReleaf, CanvasRX, Peloton
Pharmaceutical, Aurora Deutschland, H2 Biopharma, Urban Cultivator,
BC Northern Lights, Larssen Greenhouses, CanniMed Therapeutics,
Anandia Labs, HotHouse Consulting, MED Colombia, Agropro, Borela,
and ICC – Aurora is distinguished by its reputation as a partner
and employer of choice in the global cannabis sector, having
invested in and established strategic partnerships with a range of
leading innovators, including: Radient Technologies Inc. (TSXV:
RTI), Hempco Food and Fiber Inc. (TSXV: HEMP), Cann Group Ltd.
(ASX: CAN), Micron Waste Technologies Inc. (CSE: MWM), Choom
Holdings Inc. (CSE: CHOO), Capcium Inc. (private), Evio Beauty
Group (private), Wagner Dimas (private), CTT Pharmaceuticals (OTCC:
CTTH), and Alcanna Inc. (TSX: CLIQ).
Aurora's Common Shares trade on the TSX and NYSE under the
symbol "ACB", and are a constituent of the S&P/TSX Composite
Index.
For more information about Aurora, please visit our investor
website, investor.auroramj.com
Terry Booth, CEO
Aurora Cannabis Inc.
Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements
This news release includes statements containing certain
"forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable
securities law ("forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking
statements are frequently characterized by words such as "plan",
"continue", "expect", "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate",
"estimate", "may", "will", "potential", "proposed" and other
similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions
"may" or "will" occur and include, but are not limited to the
variety of cannabis products that Aurora will supply to the adult
use market.. These statements are only predictions. Various
assumptions were used in drawing the conclusions or making the
projections contained in the forward-looking statements throughout
this news release. Forward-looking statements are based on the
opinions and estimates of management at the date the statements are
made, and are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and
other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ
materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements.
The Company is under no obligation, and expressly disclaims any
intention or obligation, to update or revise any forward-looking
statements, whether as a result of new information, future events
or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.
Neither TSX nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term
is defined in the policies of Toronto Stock Exchange) accepts
responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
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SOURCE Aurora Cannabis Inc.