Australis Capital Inc (CSE:AUSA, OTCQB:AUSAF), doing business as AUDACIOUS, said its Conditional Class 1-Cultivator and Conditional Class 2-Manufacturer licenses issued by the state of New Jersey on 25 October 2022, can now be submitted for conversion to Annual Adult Usage Cultivation and Manufacturing licenses.
Once received, the annual licenses will allow AUDACIOUS to grow, manufacture, sell and distribute adult-use cannabis in New Jersey. The state is expected to soon open the application process to allow Class 1&2 holders to officially apply for Class 3&4 licenses.
Leah Bailey, the company's chief business development officer said in a statement: "AUDACIOUS is very pleased with our progress towards obtaining our formal and full adult-use licenses in New Jersey.
READ: Australis Capital announces start of cannabis cultivation in Broome County, New York
“While we were waiting for the final notification to submit, we were able to progress on the project by entering in high-level discussions with potential partners. We are very bullish on our prospects in New Jersey and look forward to informing the market on our further progress there."
LarssenGC
The company said LarssenGC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of ALPS - itself majority owned by AUDACIOUS - continues to win clients with its innovative approaches to cultivation with significant project wins in India and the US. The project in India, to be located in Pune near Mumbai, will be a 64-acre greenhouse for the cultivation of vegetables.
Thomas Larssen, LarssenGC's president, commented: "This is a significant project by itself, but we believe that the backers of the Pune development have their intentions set on further expansion within India, and we intend to be part of that."
LarssenGC was also engaged by a large US-based vegetable grower for end-to-end consulting and construction management services for a greenhouse complex of up to 70 acres. This is a significant project, with up to $2 million in contract fees for LarssenGC.
On the back of prior successful collaboration with a middle eastern partner on a major greenhouse project, the companies have now further cemented their relationship through the signing of a Master Services Agreement whereby LarssenGC becomes the partner of choice for all of this company's intended projects.
LarssenGC's president added: "Our partner is ambitious, delivers quality and has significant financial resources to pursue its objective of becoming a major supplier of foodstuffs in their region. With this agreement, we will become the de-facto design, construction management and post-commissioning service provider on all of their intended projects. This is a major partnership for us that will have us be busy for many years to come."
First harvest in New York
The first harvest in New York with partner Hempire has been pre-processed. Its cannabis will now be further processed into vapes and edible products, to be sold to social equity dispensaries. The company is in discussions with many of the applicants, with licenses anticipated to be granted shortly.
Terry Booth, the company;'s CEO commented: "This marks a very important milestone for AUDACIOUS, our focus on the east coast is now being executed."
LOOS sells out
Its shot brand, LOOS, continues to do well in California, driven by the quality of its offering, as well as the fact that the company's products are available through EAZE, the world's largest legal cannabis delivery service.
The most recent product batch has now sold out, with a new product run planned shortly. The company has also engaged a new distributor, YBL, who was behind the Kwikeaze shot brand achieving market leadership.
Anthony Bendana, LOOS co-founder, commented: "With the switch to YBL and new planned production runs, we are well positioned to target the number one market position in shots in California. We already are building strong brand recognition, and with these new developments, we should be well positioned to grow, not only in California but also in other jurisdictions as the company continues to expand."
Mr Natural
The company said it is sourcing new raw material suppliers to scale up sales of the Mr Natural brand to meet continuously growing demand.
The Mr Natural brand's most recent production run was the largest to date and is expected to be sold out shortly.
Both the RSO and flower products have been in great demand with veterans and other medical cannabis consumers suffering from PTS and similar conditions.
Alternative funding
The company, which had secured a funding relationship with LDA in December 2021, said it has utilized some of the facility but has switched gears to secure alternative sources of capital, including the recently announced credit facility provided by Terry Booth-owned Lola Ventures.
Booth said: "I have nothing but good to say about our funding partners at LDA. They have come through for us on the terms discussed. However, the nature of the instrument is such that we were able to secure terms better suited for our shareholders at this time.
“The company is also pursuing other major sources of capital to accelerate our growth. We are grateful to the LDA team and do not exclude further collaboration with them in the future."
In addition, the company announced that it has expanded its facility with Lola Ventures to provide funding of up to $4 million from the previous $2.5 million facility.
AUDACIOUS is a next-generation MSO growing the cannabis industry of tomorrow from the ground up.
Contact the author at jon.hopkins@proactiveinvestors.com