Aurora Cannabis and Reliva have entered into an agreement pursuant to which Aurora will acquire all of the issued and outstanding membership interests of Reliva. Under the terms of the agreement, members of Reliva will receive approximately US$40 million of Aurora common shares. The transaction also includes a potential earn-out of up to a maximum of US$45 million payable in Aurora shares, cash or a combination thereof, over the next two years contingent upon Reliva achieving certain financial targets. The structure of the earn-out is designed to align risk and reward between Aurora shareholders and Reliva management to focus on continued strong operational and financial execution. The transaction is expected to close, subject to customary closing conditions, in June 2020. It is anticipated that the transaction will be immediately accretive to Aurora on an Adjusted EBITDA basis, consistent with Aurora's objective to drive towards Adjusted EBITDA profitability in its fiscal first quarter of 2021.
The transaction will combine Aurora's leading Canadian recreational brands, and Canadian and European medical market position with the leading U.S. hemp-derived CBD brand in retail stores. Consistent with the announcement of Aurora's business transformation plan in February 2020, the Company has aligned its U.S. investment strategy with the goals of the transformation plan, namely: financial discipline, operational focus, and strong execution. The transaction represents the culmination of a multi-month strategic evaluation of the U.S. hemp-derived CBD industry. Reliva stood out among a lengthy list of potential partners for its: (1) focus on regulatory, testing and compliance protocols; (2) proven management team with extensive experience selling and marketing regulated consumer packaged goods; (3) deep relationships with critical trade partners that provide a U.S. national distribution footprint; and (4) financial discipline and track record of growth and profitability. Together with Reliva, Aurora is expected to be positioned as a meaningful player in the United States, the world's largest cannabinoid market.
"Together, Aurora and Reliva will partner to create an international cannabinoid leader that we believe can deliver robust revenue and profitable growth," said Michael Singer, Executive Chairman and Interim CEO of Aurora. "We have taken the time necessary to carefully assess the Company's entry into the U.S. market and we firmly believe that the combination with Reliva will create significant long-term value as Reliva provides us options to grow in hemp-derived CBD internationally. Similar to Aurora, Reliva has a strong entrepreneurial spirit and successful track record of transforming categories and creating growth brands. We welcome Miguel Martin and his team to Aurora, and look forward to the opportunity to increase our operating scale, international reach, and product and brand diversity as we drive to Adjusted EBITDA profitability. We plan to capitalize on each company's market leadership and sales infrastructure to drive higher revenue growth than either company could independently accomplish."
Miguel Martin, CEO of Reliva commented, "We're excited to join Aurora's leading platform as we combine our highly complementary businesses and brands to build an even stronger company for future international success. We were fortunate enough to be able to choose our long-term partner and believe this partnership provides a significant opportunity to accelerate sales growth for Reliva in the United States and internationally. I am particularly pleased about the benefits that this combination will have for current and future trade partners. With the assistance of Aurora, we believe enhancements to Reliva's innovation, consumer insights and marketing systems will allow our portfolio of hemp-derived CBD products to become even more attractive to retailers and consumers in this exciting new category."
For more information:
Aurora
P.O. Box 209
Cremona, AB. T0M0R0
1-844-928-7672
auroramj.com