- Received confirmation of Colombian GMP Certification for
Phytotherapeutics manufactured with proprietary PharmaCielo
extracts and cultivars.
- Currently working toward EU-GMP certification, expected to
be achieved in the first half of 2022.
- Executing on opportunities to streamline the business – In
the three months ended September 30,
2021, the Company reduced its Adjusted EBITDA loss from
$7.2 million to $4.3 million.
- PharmaCielo's upstream and downstream scale and quality
uniquely position the Company to be a dominant competitor with
current suppliers of psychoactive flower to the EU and other
markets. The Colombian government is solidifying the final rules
that will govern dried flower export and the Company expects sales
to begin in early 2022, growing through the year.
- The Company has already ramped-up THC flower production and
is prepared to shift this product into the dry flower export market
as the government finalizes the rules governing dried flower
exports.
All figures are in Canadian dollars ($) unless otherwise
specified
TORONTO and RIONEGRO,
Colombia, Nov. 29, 2021 /CNW/ - PharmaCielo
Ltd. ("PharmaCielo" or the "Company") (TSXV:
PCLO) (OTCQX: PCLOF), the Canadian parent of Colombia's premier cultivator and producer of
medicinal-grade cannabis extracts, PharmaCielo Colombia Holdings
S.A.S., today announced financial results for the third quarter
ended September 30, 2021.
Summary of Recent Developments
On August 20, 2021, PharmaCielo
announced that Bill Petron, the
Company's Chairman and a global operations and cannabis veteran,
had been appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Company. Since
that time, the Company has received confirmation of Colombian GMP
Certification for Phytotherapeutics manufactured with proprietary
PharmaCielo extracts and cultivars. Under Mr. Petron's leadership,
the Company has been focused on:
- Strengthening the Company's sales team to support its
go-to-market strategy: PharmaCielo has grown its global
business development organization; recruited Technical Business
Developers in Europe and appointed
a President of Sales, EU., and while the global export market is
still in its early days, the team is making promising early
progress in developing long-term relationships.
- Streamlining the business to minimize operating costs:
In the three months ended September 30,
2021, the Company reduced its Adjusted EBITDA loss from
$7.2 million to $4.3 million. In the nine months ended
September 30, 2021, consulting fees
and professional fees were lower by 61% and 38%, respectively,
compared to the same period in 2020. Since the end of Q3,
management has further reduced discretionary expenses to lower the
Company's use of cash and ensure a leaner organization with a lower
cost base.
- Preparing for the transition to dried flower export in
2022: With PharmaCielo's upstream and downstream scale and
quality, the Company is uniquely positioned to be a solid
competitor with psychoactive flower currently being imported into
the EU and other markets from Canada and other producing countries.
PharmaCielo expects dried flower exports to begin in early 2022 and
to grow throughout 2022, as the Colombian government publishes
regulations and guidelines to govern these exports. The Company has
already ramped-up THC flower production and is prepared to shift
this product into the dry flower export market as the government
finalizes the rules governing dry flower exports.
- Solidifying the path to EU-GMP certification: The
Company is currently working toward EU-GMP certification of all of
its products and has accelerated its efforts. As a result,
management expects the Company to achieve certification during the
first half of 2022. This will better position PharmaCielo to sign
larger, longer term supply agreements with global pharmaceutical
and cosmetics customers.
- Re-focusing the Company's product strategy: With a
growing business development organization, and the short-term
potential to sell dried flower into several markets globally,
management has re-focused PharmaCielo's product strategy to
emphasize THC and broad-spectrum products, which are expected to
have more sustainable long-term margin profiles than CBD
isolate.
Summary Financial Information*
|
For the three months
ended September 30
|
|
2021
|
2020
|
Revenue
|
$485,165
|
$25,193
|
Adjusted
EBITDA*
|
($4.308)
million
|
($7.232)
million
|
Net loss
|
($8.751)
million
|
($9.794)
million
|
Basic and diluted
loss per
common share
|
($0.06)
|
($0.08)
|
|
For the nine months
ended September 30
|
|
2021
|
2020
|
Revenue
|
$1.606
million
|
$1.773
million
|
Adjusted
EBITDA*
|
($12.247)
million
|
($14.719)
million
|
Net loss
|
($22.517)
million
|
($23.832)
million
|
Basic and diluted
loss per
common share
|
($0.16)
|
($0.22)
|
- The Company had cash and cash equivalents of $6.0 million at September
30, 2021, compared to $8.9
million at December 31,
2020.
- For further detailed information and analysis, please see the
financial statements and management's discussion and analysis for
the period ending September 30, 2021,
as posted at sedar.com and pharmacielo.com
Management Commentary
Bill Petron, Chairman and CEO
of PharmaCielo commented, "Since I assumed the CEO
position in late August, we have re-focused the team from a
strategic sales perspective, taken the necessary steps to ensure we
are prepared for the opening of dried flower exports, moved to 100%
in-house cultivation, made significant progress streamlining the
operating cost structure and accelerated our efforts to achieve
EU-GMP certification."
Mr. Petron continued, "Having relocated to
Colombia to lead this
organization, I am even more impressed by our team and facilities
than I was on my initial visits to site. PharmaCielo's Rionegro
complex is one of the largest, lowest cost cannabis cultivation and
processing facilities in the world today, and our team is highly
motivated to build PharmaCielo into a global leader. I have been
involved in the cannabis industry since its inception in the U.S.,
and we are reaching a point globally where the supply chains more
typical of other CPG industries are going to become not only more
common, but necessary, to meet the demand of patients and
consumers, and the needs of brand and distribution companies. I
expect 2022 to be a pivotal year as we leverage our core assets and
with a re-focused strategy and team, build what we expect will be
one of the most important B2B companies in the global cannabis
supply chain."
*Non-IFRS Financial Measures
The discussion of
financial results in this press release includes references to
"Adjusted EBITDA", (earnings before interest, taxes,
depreciation, and amortization) and "All-in operating cost",
which are non-IFRS performance measures. The Company presents these
measures to provide additional information regarding the Company's
financial results and performance. Please refer to the Company's
MD&A for the three and nine-month periods ended September 30, 2021, for a reconciliation of these
measures to reported IFRS results.
About PharmaCielo
PharmaCielo Ltd. (TSXV: PCLO,
OTCQX: PCLOF) is a global company, headquartered in Canada, with a focus on ethical and
sustainable processing and supplying of all natural,
medicinal-grade cannabis oil extracts and related products to large
channel distributors. PharmaCielo's principal (and wholly owned)
subsidiary is PharmaCielo Colombia Holdings S.A.S., headquartered
at its cultivation and processing centre located in Rionegro,
Colombia.
The board of directors and executive team of PharmaCielo are
comprised of a diversely talented group of international business
executives and specialists with relevant and varied expertise.
PharmaCielo recognized the significant role that Colombia's ideal location plays in building a
sustainable business in the medical cannabis industry, and the
Company, together with its directors and executives, is executing
on a business plan focused on supplying the international
marketplace.
Forward-Looking Statements:
This news release contains certain "forward-looking
information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively
referred to as "forward-looking statements"). These forward-looking
statements relate to future events or the Company's future
performance. All statements other than statements of historical
fact are forward-looking statements. Particularly, information
regarding our expectations of future results, targets, performance
achievements, prospects or opportunities is forward-looking
information. Forward-looking statements in this news release
include, but may not be limited to, statements about: the future
execution on the Company's growing sales pipeline; the building-out
of the Company's global sales organization; the ability of the
Company to close on sales opportunities; the Company's ability to
gain access to more and better B2B sales opportunities; the ability
of the Company to continue building its revenue base; the ability
of the Company to leverage higher volumes more effectively through
a more efficient cost structure; and the ability of the Company to
continue progressing its plans through the remainder of the year.
Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be
identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "is
expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "continues",
"forecasts", "projects", "predicts", "intends", "anticipates" or
"believes", or variations of, or the negatives of, such words and
phrases, or state that certain actions, events or results "may",
"could", "would", "should", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be
achieved.
Forward-looking statements are based on management's
assumptions at the date the forward-looking statements are
provided, including assumptions regarding: the Company's
ability to execute its business plan, including the growth of its
global sales team, as currently contemplated; the Company's ability
to obtain necessary governmental, regulatory, and TSXV approvals
for the export of its products from Colombia and import of its products into other
countries; there being sufficient demand for the Company's
products; that the Company's development plans will not change as a
result of unforeseen events; that the Company's business generally
and shipping logistics are not disrupted by COVID 19 or other
factors; that the Company will be able to maintain its customer
contracts in good standing; that the Company will be able to obtain
GMP and EU-GMP certification for the Company's Processing and
Extraction Center ("PEC"); that potential customers will be
satisfied with the results of audit processes; that any changes to
Colombian cannabis legislation will not negatively impact the
Company's business; that the Company will be able to locate and
retain necessary personnel to achieve its business goals; the
Company's ability to maintain its distribution contracts in good
standing; and the accuracy of the Company's projections regarding
the market for cannabinoid products; currency exchange rates; and
competition in the Company's markets.
Though management believes that its assumptions are
reasonable in the circumstances, forward-looking statements involve
known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may
cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to
differ materially from all or any of the future results,
performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking
statements. Factors that could cause the Company's actual results,
performance, or achievements to differ from the forward-looking
statements in this news release include, but may not be
limited to the risk that: any of the assumptions referred
to above proves not to be valid or reliable, and
additional risks described in the Company's Annual Information Form
for the year ended December 31, 2019
filed with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities under the
Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com.
Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements.
The Company undertakes no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements, other than as required by applicable
law.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation
Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the
TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or
accuracy of this press release.
SOURCE PharmaCielo Ltd.