VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Feb. 20,
2018 (InvestorsHub NewsWire) -- Cannabis Wheaton
Income Corp. (d/b/a Wheaton Income) (TSX.V:CBW) ("Wheaton
Income" or "Wheaton" or the
"Company") is pleased to announce that it has
entered into a joint venture with Peter Quiring, one of Canada’s
largest greenhouse builders and operators, via a newly formed
subsidiary ( “GreenhouseCo”), to develop,
construct and operate a state-of-the-art purpose-built greenhouse
for cannabis cultivation in Leamington, Ontario with Mr. Quiring
acting as Chief Executive Officer of GreenhouseCo (collectively,
the “Transaction”).
As the founder and owner of 4
vertically-integrated companies, all of which have greatly
influenced the North American greenhouse ecosystem, Peter has over
25 years of experience designing, fabricating, building and
operating greenhouses across North America. He has developed over
2,000 acres of greenhouses and currently owns and operates 175
acres of computer-controlled, state-of-the-art greenhouses with
over 600 employees in Southern Ontario. Operating one of the
largest bell pepper and tomato greenhouses in North America, he is
currently growing over 15 million kilograms of peppers and 25
million kilograms of tomatoes each year that are shipped across
Canada and the United States. In addition, his fabrication company
South Essex Fabricating constructed the Double Diamond Farms
facility which is currently being converted for cannabis
cultivation.
Pursuant to the Transaction,
GreenhouseCo initially plans to develop 1.4 million square feet of
greenhouse (“Phase I”) on 102 acres of fully owned
land located in Leamington, Ontario (the
“Facility”). The Facility will be constructed by
South Essex Fabricating and will be built on a fully serviced site
with access to approximately 27 megawatts of electricity. The
Facility will be purpose-built with state-of-the-art automation and
operate under a 100% closed-loop water recycling system.
The Company estimates that the Phase I
build-out will result in approximately 120,000,000 grams of
cannabis per annum and believes there is further potential to
increase the Facility’s output with additional technological
improvements that will be adapted from Mr. Quiring’s existing
greenhouses. GreenhouseCo also has the ability for additional
expansion up to a total of 2.8 million square feet of greenhouse
cultivation. The Company will assist GreenhouseCo in obtaining its
ACMPR license for the cultivation and sale of cannabis (the
“License”) through its Wheaton Licensing Program
by providing GreenhouseCo with all of the resources and expertise
necessary to achieve the License.
Mr. Quiring and the Company have also
agreed to jointly pursue international cannabis-related greenhouse
cultivation opportunities for joint development and opportunities
to license GreenhouseCo’s intellectual property relating to
facility design and operation know-how.
Hugo Alves, President and Director of
Cannabis Wheaton, stated “This is a huge milestone for the Cannabis
Wheaton story and we couldn’t be happier to pursue this venture by
partnering with Peter. In getting to know Peter during this
transaction it has become clear that he possesses exceptional
greenhouse and operational knowledge and his track-record as one of
North America’s most accomplished greenhouse builders and operators
speaks for itself. We believe that our leading cannabis industry
expertise and platform combined with Peter’s proven capabilities
will be a recipe for success. This joint venture is another example
of the quality of partners and breadth of production
diversification that Cannabis Wheaton is building out for its
upstream production platform. This is an exciting project both in
terms of its scale and technological sophistication and we are
honoured to be partnering with the best in the business to ensure
that this facility becomes one of the largest and best run
greenhouse cultivation facilities in the country.”
Peter Quiring, Founder and President of
NatureFresh and South Essex commented, “Over the past 25 years I
have had the pleasure of building four integrated companies,
including NatureFresh™ Farms, and South Essex Fabricating. These
four companies have been founded on driving innovation and
utilizing new technology, but I have learned that empowering people
and building strong relationships is the most valuable part of
being a leader. Today, I am pleased to announce my new exciting
joint venture with Cannabis Wheaton and have full confidence in the
management and teams that we have built together within my existing
companies. I know that these teams will continue to perform beyond
my expectations and serve our community and customers with the same
exceptional quality. I look forward to bringing my experience and
values to this new partnership with Chuck, Hugo and their team at
Cannabis Wheaton.”
The Transaction remains subject to
certain conditions precedent including receipt of applicable
regulatory approvals and the execution of a definitive agreement
which the parties expect to occur within 60 days.
ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD
"Chuck
Rifici" Chairman & CEO
About Wheaton Income. (TSX.V:CBW)
Wheaton Income is a collective of
entrepreneurs with a passion for the cannabis industry past,
present and future. Our mandate is to facilitate growth for our
partners by providing them with financial support and sharing our
collective industry experience. Our partners all have
different visions, voices and brand values, and all share a common
goal—to build a world-class industry based on ethics, diversity,
quality and innovation.
Stay Connected:
For more information about investing in
Cannabis Wheaton, please visit: http://www.wheatonincome.com
or contact our investor relations team
at: 800.980.1314 or IR@wheatonincome.com.
Follow up on Twitter @WheatonIncome.
Media Contact:
Sarah Bain, VP External Affairs
Email: sarah@cannabiswheaton.com
Phone: 613.230.5869
Notice Regarding Forward Looking
Statements:
This news release contains certain
"forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable
Canadian securities law. Forward-looking information is frequently
characterized by words such as "plan", "continue", "expect",
"project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "may",
"will", "potential", "proposed" and other similar words, or
information that certain events or conditions "may" or "will"
occur. This information is only a prediction. Various assumptions
were used in drawing the conclusions or making the projections
contained in the forward-looking information throughout this news
release. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited
to: the ability to consummate transactions which are currently in
discussions, the Company’s ability to obtain the License, the
Company’s ability to obtain a sales authorization for the License
and the related timing considerations, the Company’s ability to
generate revenue through the streaming agreements, requirements to
obtain additional financing, timeliness of government approvals for
granting of permits and licenses, including licenses to cultivate
and sell cannabis, completion of the facilities, where applicable,
actual operating performance of the facilities, regulatory or
political change, competition and other risks affecting the Company
in particular and the cannabis industry generally. Forward-looking
information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at
the date the information is made, and is subject to a variety of
risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual
events or results to differ materially from those projected in the
forward-looking information. The Company is not under any
obligation, and expressly disclaims any intention or obligation, to
update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a
result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as
expressly required by applicable law.
Neither 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 release.