Alcanna Inc. ("
Alcanna" or the
"
Company") (TSX: CLIQ) announces today that all
regulatory requirements under applicable provincial liquor and
cannabis legislation have been satisfied for completion of the
previously announced plan of arrangement (the
"
Arrangement") with Sundial Growers Inc.
("
Sundial") (NASDAQ: SNDL) under section 192 of
the Canada Business Corporations Act pursuant to the terms of the
arrangement agreement between Alcanna and Sundial dated October 7,
2021, as amended by the amending agreement dated January 6, 2022
(the "
Arrangement Agreement").
Sundial and Alcanna have mutually agreed to extend the outside date
for closing of the Arrangement to March 31, 2022. Completion of the
Arrangement remains subject only to customary closing conditions as
further described in the Arrangement Agreement. If the Arrangement
is completed on March 31, 2022, the Alcanna Shares are expected to
be de-listed from the Toronto Stock Exchange (the
"
TSX") on or about April 4, 2022.
Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement and the
amended terms of the plan of arrangement attached thereto, Sundial
has agreed to acquire all of the issued and outstanding common
shares in the capital of Alcanna (the "Alcanna
Shares") from the holders of Alcanna Shares
("Alcanna Shareholders").
Pursuant to the Arrangement Agreement, each Alcanna Shareholder
will be entitled to receive, in exchange for each Alcanna Share
held: (i) 8.85 common shares (each whole share, a "Sundial
Share") in the capital of Sundial (the "Share
Consideration"); and (ii) $1.50 in cash (together with the
Share Consideration, the "Revised
Consideration").
SUNDIAL FILING OF ANNUAL
DISCLOSURE
Sundial has announced a delay in filing its
audited consolidated financial statements for the year ended
December 31, 2021, annual management's discussion and analysis for
the same period and management certifications of annual filings
(collectively, the "Sundial Filings") beyond the
deadline of March 31, 2022 prescribed by Canadian securities laws.
Sundial has announced that it expects to file its Annual Report on
Form 20-F within the applicable U.S. filing deadline and to report
fourth quarter and full year 2021 earnings on or before April 14,
2022.
Sundial's press release stated the following
with respect to the delay of the Sundial Filings:
The principal reason for the delay is the
significant amount of additional work and in-depth procedures
required to be performed by the Company and its external auditor as
2021 is the first year that [Sundial] is required to have an
auditor attestation report on its internal controls over financial
reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
(“SOX”). This requirement to be SOX compliant is a
function of the rapid growth in scale and level of corporate
activity Sundial has achieved over the last two years. SOX
compliance requires heightened levels of corporate controls and
processes that will ultimately benefit Sundial shareholders through
best practices in risk management.
[Sundial]’s auditor is completing its external
audit and will be unable to issue an audit opinion before the end
of March 2022 as previously expected. [Sundial] believes that there
will be no restatement of previously released financial statements
of Sundial.
[Sundial] has informed the staff of the Alberta
Securities Commission (the "ASC") about its
anticipated delay of the Filings and has applied to the ASC
pursuant to Part 4 of National Policy 12-203 – Management Cease
Trade Orders ("NP 12-203") for a Management Cease
Trade Order ("MCTO") pending the release of the
Filings. If an MCTO is issued, Sundial intends to satisfy the
provisions of the "alternative information guidelines" set out in
NP 12-203, including the requirement to file bi-weekly status
reports in the form of news releases containing prescribed updating
information, until the Filings are made. An MCTO would not
generally affect the ability of persons who are not directors,
officers, or insiders of [Sundial] to trade in securities of
[Sundial].
Alcanna Shareholders are encouraged to read the
full text of Sundial's press release in respect of the Sundial
Filings.
SUBMISSION OF AMENDED AND RESTATED
LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL
Following completion of the Arrangement, each
Alcanna Shareholder will cease to be an Alcanna Shareholder and to
have any rights in respect of their Alcanna Shares other than to
receive the Revised Consideration payable to such Alcanna
Shareholder pursuant to the Plan of Arrangement.
As previously announced, Alcanna has mailed an
amended and restated letter of transmittal to registered Alcanna
Shareholders to receive the Revised Consideration upon completion
of the Arrangement. The amended and restated letter of transmittal
is also available under Alcanna's profile on SEDAR at www.sedar.com
and on Alcanna's website at
https://www.alcanna.com/ALCANNA-Special-Meeting-Materials.
The amended and restated letter of transmittal
is for use by registered Alcanna Shareholders. Alcanna Shareholders
that do not have their Alcanna Shares registered in their name
(rather, such Alcanna Shares are registered in the name of a broker
or other intermediary) should contact their broker or other
intermediary for instructions and assistance regarding receipt of
the Revised Consideration to which they are entitled upon
completion of the Arrangement.
In order to receive the Revised Consideration
under the Arrangement, registered Alcanna Shareholders must
complete the amended and restated letter of transmittal and submit
it to Odyssey Trust Company, the depositary, in accordance with the
instructions set out in the amended and restated letter of
transmittal. If Alcanna Shareholders have questions about
submitting the amended and restated letter of transmittal, please
contact Odyssey Trust Company by email at
corp.actions@odysseytrust.com or at 1-587-885-0960.
NASDAQ LISTING OF SUNDIAL
SHARES
On August 12, 2021, Sundial disclosed that it
was notified by the NASDAQ Capital Market
("NASDAQ") on August 9, 2021 that the bid price
for the Sundial Shares did not meet the NASDAQ minimum bid price
requirement of US$1.00 per Sundial Share for the 30 consecutive
business days from June 25, 2021 to August 6, 2021. At that time,
the NASDAQ required Sundial to regain compliance by February 7,
2022. On February 8, 2022, Sundial announced that it had received
an extension of 180 calendar days to meet this requirement of the
NASDAQ. The extension will allow Sundial to regain compliance if
the bid price for the Sundial Shares closes at or above US$1.00 per
share for a minimum of 10 consecutive trading days before August 8,
2022. Sundial has disclosed that it intends to monitor the closing
bid price of the Sundial Shares and will, if necessary, implement
available options to regain compliance with the NASDAQ minimum bid
price requirement, including a reverse stock split.
The Arrangement Agreement, including further
information on the conditions precedent to completion of the
Arrangement, are described in the management information circular
and proxy statement of Alcanna dated November 9, 2021
(collectively, the "Circular"), and the material
change report of Alcanna dated January 6, 2022, copies of which
have been filed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and are available on
Alcanna's website at
https://www.alcanna.com/ALCANNA-Special-Meeting-Materials.
ABOUT ALCANNA INC.
Alcanna is one of the largest private sector
retailers of alcohol in North America and the largest in Canada by
number of stores – operating locations in Alberta and British
Columbia. The Company's strategic partner, Nova Cannabis Inc. (TSX:
NOVC), also operates 78 cannabis retail stores in Alberta, Ontario,
and Saskatchewan. Alcanna Shares trade on the TSX under the symbol
"CLIQ". Additional information about Alcanna is available on SEDAR
at www.sedar.com and the Company's website at www.alcanna.com.
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This news release contains forward-looking
statements or information (collectively "forward-looking
statements") within the meaning of applicable securities
legislation, relating to, among other things, the satisfaction or
waiver of all of the remaining conditions precedent to completion
of the Arrangement; the anticipated completion of the Arrangement
and timing thereof; the rights of Alcanna Shareholders upon
completion of the Arrangement; the de-listing of the Alcanna Shares
from the TSX and the timing thereof; the anticipated delay of the
Sundial Filings; the anticipated timing of release of the Sundial
Filings; the timing of release of Sundial's Annual Report on Form
20-F and report of Sundial's fourth quarter and full year 2021
earnings; Sundial's expectations with respect to SOX compliance and
benefits thereof; the ability of Sundial to obtain a MCTO and
intentions with respect to compliance with NP 12-203; the continued
ability to trade securities of Sundial prior to the release of the
Sundial Filings; prior to the the continued listing of the Sundial
Shares on the NASDAQ; Sundial's intentions with respect to attempts
to re-gain compliance with the minimum bid price requirement of the
NASDAQ; and Sundial's ability to re-gain compliance with the
minimum bid price requirement of the NASDAQ. Forward-looking
statements are typically identified by words such as "continue",
"anticipate", "will", "should", "plan", "intend", and similar words
suggesting future events or future performance. All statements and
information other than statements of historical fact contained in
this news release are forward-looking statements.
The risk factors and uncertainties related to
the Arrangement include, among other things: risks related to the
completion and the timing of the Arrangement; the ability to
complete the Arrangement on the terms and timeline contemplated by
the Arrangement Agreement, or at all; the ability and expectation
that following completion of the Arrangement, Sundial will continue
to experience enhanced market liquidity and growth; that Alcanna's
cash flow and retail operations expertise will accelerate Sundial's
growth; the ability of the consolidated entity to focus more
management effort on its investment arm; the ability of the
consolidated entity to realize the anticipated benefits from the
Arrangement and the timing thereof; the inability of the parties to
fulfill or waive any conditions precedent to the completion of the
Arrangement Agreement, including obtaining required regulatory
approvals; interloper or other stakeholder risk; risks related to
the operations of Alcanna's liquor retail business upon completion
of the Arrangement; risks related to new issuances of Sundial
Shares that could affect the Alcanna Shareholders' pro forma
ownership of Sundial; the risks and uncertainties related to the
ability of the consolidated entity to successfully integrate the
respective businesses, execute on the strategic opportunity, as
well as the ability to ensure continued performance or market
growth of its products; the duration and severity of the COVID-19
pandemic on the business, operations and financial condition of the
consolidated entity; the risk that the consolidated entity will be
unable to execute its strategic plan and growth strategy, including
the capital allocation and retail cannabis strategy, as planned or
at all; dependence on suppliers; potential delays or changes in
plans with respect to capital expenditures and the availability of
capital on acceptable terms; risks inherent in the liquor retail
and cannabis industries; competition for, among other things,
customers, supply, capital and skilled personnel; changes in labour
costs and markets; inaccurate assessments of the value of
acquisitions; general economic and provincial and national
political conditions in Canada and globally; industry conditions,
including changes in government regulations; fluctuations in
foreign exchange or interest rates; unanticipated operating events;
failure to obtain regulatory and third‐party consents and approvals
when required; changes in tax and other laws that affect us and our
security holders; the potential failure of counterparties to honour
their contractual obligations; stock market volatility; and risks
associated with existing and potential future lawsuits, shareholder
proposals and regulatory actions.
Readers should not place undue reliance on
forward-looking statements included in this news release.
Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to change and do
not guarantee future performance and actual results may differ
materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking
statements. A number of risks, uncertainties and other factors that
may cause actual performance and results to differ materially from
any estimates, forecasts or projections, or could cause our current
objectives, strategies and intentions to change.
In addition, if the Arrangement is not
completed, and each of the parties continues as an independent
entity, there are risks that the announcement of the Arrangement
and the dedication of substantial resources of each party to the
completion of the Arrangement could have an impact on such party's
business relationships, and could have a material adverse effect on
the current and future operations, financial conditions and
prospects of such party. Readers should refer to the discussion of
risks set forth in the Circular under the heading "Risk Factors". A
comprehensive discussion of other risks relating to Alcanna's
business are contained under the heading "Risk Factors" in
Alcanna's annual information form for the financial year ended
December 31, 2020 dated March 25, 2021 which is available on SEDAR
at www.sedar.com. Additional information regarding risks and
uncertainties relating to Sundial's business are contained under
"Item 3D Risk Factors" in Sundial's Annual Report on Form 20-F,
which was filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on
March 17, 2021 which is available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and
EDGAR at www.sec.gov. Readers are cautioned that this list of risk
factors should not be construed as exhaustive.
The forward-looking statements contained in this
news release are made as of the date hereof. Except as expressly
required by applicable securities legislation, Alcanna does not
undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise. The forward-looking statements
contained in this news release are expressly qualified by this
cautionary statement.
CONTACT INFORMATION
James BurnsVice Chair & Chief Executive
Officer Alcanna Inc. (587) 460-1026
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