William Sumner
Aurora Cannabis Inc. (ACBFF) today announced that it has entered into a letter of intent to acquire HotHouse Consulting Inc. Founded in 2004, HotHouse provides greenhouse consulting services and specializes in hybrid greenhouse growing techniques. Initially, the company focused primarily on agricultural clients, but in the ensuing years has shifted towards the cannabis industry.
Under the agreement, the company has granted 1,940,000 options to buy shares of Aurora to officers of HotHouse, which will vest annually over the next three years and are exercisable at $7.39 per common share. Aurora has also granted HotHouse officers a total of 345,000 restricted stock units of the company, which will also vest annually over the next three years. Once the acquisition is complete, HotHouse founder Laust Dam will join Aurora Larssen Projects (ALPS) as its VP of Horticultural Development.
ALPS is a subsidiary of Aurora that provides unique turn-key services to the company and its domestic and international partners; services include facility design, engineering, construction, support, maintenance, security, regulatory support, cultivation, genetics, and consulting and assistance in meeting requirements for GACP cultivation and EU GMP certification.
Aurora will use this acquisition to enhance ALPS services by providing ongoing customer support and consulting, which will be provided by HotHouse’s crop specialists, as well as ensure that ALPS designed facilities continue to run at optimal efficiency following client handover.
“Developing efficient and technologically advanced greenhouses allows Aurora to produce and harvest the highest quality cannabis at incredible scale while maintaining unmatched, ultra-low costs per gram, per square foot, per year,” said Thomas Larssen, President of Aurora Larssen Projects. “Through the addition of Laust and the entire team at HotHouse, ALPS gains significant insight and experience that we can apply to our industry-leading cultivation design, engineering, and consulting projects. With the significant exposure and strategic support gained through the backing of Aurora, ALPS has emerged as the cannabis industry’s preeminent hybrid greenhouse engineering and consulting partner.”
