The firm said the collaboration will result in expanded capacity and product lines at Copperstate’s facilities to service growing Arizona cannabis demand
() () (FRA:AC4) announced that through its majority-owned subsidiary ALPS, it has struck an agreement with Arizona's largest cannabis wholesaler, Copperstate Farms Management LLC for expanded capacity and expanded product lines.
Copperstate Farms operates a 40-acre, 1.7 million-square-foot greenhouse in Snowflake, Arizona, cultivating medical and adult-use cannabis. The contract with ALPS will have an initial term of two years and is expected to consist of two phases. “Total contract value over two years is anticipated to be up to $6 million,” said the company.
During the first phase of the expansion, Copperstate has contracted ALPS to implement “a full technology and workflow upgrade” of its facility with industrial greenhouse management solutions, cultivation practices, compliance upgrades and computerized maintenance management services through the firm's APIS offering. This is expected to boost yield and product quality, enabling Copperstate to meet growing demand in the Arizona market, said the company.
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Phase 1 will also include engineering support for the construction of a world-class processing and manufacturing facility operated by Copperstate Farms in Tempe, Arizona. This facility is in the same building as the Sol Flower dispensary, noted the company. As part of the contract, ALPS will support Copperstate Farms in achieving GMP compliance for the facility.
In Phase 2 of the project, Copperstate will channel ALPS for “design, construction management and post-commissioning services” in relation to the expansion of its greenhouse facility by an additional 40 acres. The new facility will benefit from the “latest in IP and know-how” developed by ALPS to deliver high-quality cannabis produced at “exceptionally low operating costs,” said the company.
In a statement, Australis CEO Terry Booth said: "The existing facility upgrade and the new cultivation facility in Snowflake, will position Copperstate Farms as one of the largest producers in all of the United States.”
“Add to that the new manufacturing facility in Tempe, these projects solidify Copperstate Farms' lead in the Arizona market and position them for potential interstate and international sales once regulations will permit this.”
Booth noted that the agreement between ALPS and Copperstate accelerates the company’s revenue growth, providing funds to “fuel the expansion of our cannabis operations across the US and beyond.”
Fife Symington, who is the co-founder and managing director of Copperstate Farms, said his company did a “thorough due diligence” in which it assessed various offerings globally.
“We are delighted to have signed with industry leader ALPS … The current project will include control systems that eliminate crop risk and deliver high-quality cannabis for our medical and adult-use customers in Arizona," added Symington.
In addition to its 40-acre greenhouse facility in Snowflake, Copperstate operates four dispensaries under the Sol Flower banner, a mixed-use dispensary established in 2019.
Australis Capital’s assets include a 51% ownership interest in ALPS, along with investments in Cocoon, Body and Mind, Quality Green and land assets in Washington.
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
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