The Vancouver-based company said it will focus efforts on the establishment and expansion of its Portuguese and European operations
Inc () announced Wednesday it has struck loan agreements to provide it with up to $2,356,000 in financing as the cannabis producer responds to the coronavirus (COVID19) pandemic.
The company said the loan agreements with various arms-length parties will be used for general working capital purposes. The loan is repayable within 18 months and bears an interest rate of 12% per annum, Also, the company has agreed to issue to the lenders' common shares equal in value to 20% at a price of $0.50 apiece.
In a statement, EXMceuticals said: “Our operation has moved quickly to protect our staff and make sure their families are safe. We have also taken several proactive measures to preserve and maximize working capital while keeping operations as active as possible by having our teams work from home. We are committed to managing working capital and will adjust our plans as necessary.”
READ: EXMceuticals in the final stages of planning for an industrial-scale cannabis extraction facility in Portugal
The Vancouver-based company said its board has agreed to focus company efforts on the further establishment and expansion of its Portuguese and European operations, namely the planned refinery south of Lisbon.
Portuguese operations will continue its focus on developing, testing and commercializing high-grade medical cannabis ingredients for the global market.
EXMCeuticals said it has a clear path to produce and distribute the highest quality medical cannabis ingredients under license from the Portuguese authorities. The company will produce cannabinoid distillates, isolates and active pharmaceutical ingredients (API's) for distribution on a B2B basis throughout Europe and beyond inside the next 12 months.
The company said it expects the EU market of 750 million people to expand exponentially in the coming years as more European countries legalize cannabis for medical purposes, and medical use becomes more established.
Regulation and consumer tastes will both increasingly require the highest standard of cannabis ingredients. With EU-GMP certification becoming a standard, there is a clear need for highly certified and pure medical production, the company said.
EXMCeuticals said it has a compelling opportunity to build an industrial-scale commercial refining business. The company said it is in the final stages of planning for this industrial-scale EU-GMP extraction and refinery operation targeting the high margin pharmaceutical, medicinal and nutraceuticals markets. It plans to start commercial production before the end of 2020.
This 1,400 square-meter facility will be able to process cannabis raw material in all forms (biomass, extract and distillate) produced by compliant domestic or international suppliers. The facility, once licensed, will produce a full range of medical ingredients.
The company has already obtained the licence for its Portuguese science subsidiary to perform cannabis research, science and development at its lab in Lisbon.
Discussions are well underway with leading Portuguese cosmetics company, and a prominent Portuguese food & beverage companies. The R&D unit will now begin to translate its research and science works into creating real-life wellness products within a focused go-to-market strategy, the company said.
African operations
While focusing all resources on its Portuguese operations, the company said it has delayed the development of its farming operations in Uganda. And Comexaf, EXMceutical's existing joint-venture company in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has an annual renewal requirement which will not be pursued in April 2020, the company said.
"These strategic developments means EXM will focus primarily on its existing science and refining operations, inside Portugal, creating product formulations and cannabis molecules for end buyers,” said CEO Jonathan Summers.
“EXM is seeking funds or partners in order to build a sizeable state-of-the-art pharmaceutical-grade factory, and every aspect of the project has been exhaustively detailed. The business opportunity this refinery facility represents is immense and the modeled financial outcomes for the refinery are extremely attractive. EXM also has a fantastic local management team already in place in Portugal, which can really deliver this facility.”
Contact the author: [email protected]
Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham