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CANN GROUP LIMITED — AGM Information 2017
Nov 21, 2017
64603_rns_2017-11-21_001b3fc3-905d-43ae-9913-90617ab4dbf9.pdf
AGM Information
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22 NOVEMBER 2017
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ASX ANNOUNCEMENT
AGM ADDRESSES FROM THE CHAIRMAN & CEO
22 November 2017 – Cann Group Limited (ASX: CAN) is pleased to provide the following addresses to be delivered by its Chairman Allan McCallum and CEO Peter Crock at the company’s Annual General Meeting held in Melbourne today.
CHAIRMAN’S ADDRESS
Good morning and welcome to the Cann Group Limted Annual General Meeting.
I am very proud to be presenting this Chairman’s report to the 2017 Cann Group AGM – the first of our AGMs as a publicly listed company.
Cann Group has achieved a number of very significant milestones over the past 12 months, and I will touch on a few of those, as will Peter in his CEO address shortly. But, for all of what has already been achieved, this company is still in the early stages of its development and I am extremely confident that we can achieve even greater things in the years ahead.
Australia is ideally positioned to build a first-class medicinal cannabis industry supplying safe, high quality products to Australian patients and – in due course – to overseas markets. Here in Victoria – with the support of the State Government – we have the opportunity to establish the epicentre of the Australian medicinal cannabis industry, and Cann Group’s objective is to remain at the very forefront in terms of leadership in the industry.
Financial year 2017 – and the subsequent months leading up to this AGM – will be remembered as a period in which Cann took a number of critical steps to establish that leadership.
Some of the highlights in this process include:
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Being the first company in Australia to secure the necessary licences and permits under the Narcotic Drugs Amendment Act 2016 (Cth) to undertake research and to cultivate cannabis for human medicinal and research purposes under the Australian Government’s new medicinal cannabis regulatory system.
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Operating under those approvals, we were the first company to cultivate and harvest a medicinal cannabis crop.
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We have subsequently received approval from the Office of Drug Control to extend our licences to cover both our recently expanded Southern cultivation facility and our new Northern cultivation and research facility, which is on track to be
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commissioned within the next few months.
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We have entered into a technical services agreement with our strategic shareholder, Canada-based Aurora Cannabis, which is facilitating a valuable exchange of technology and resources between the two companies; and
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We established important and valuable partnerships with other organisations, including the CSIRO; La Trobe University; and Agriculture Victoria. The AgVic relationship is already proving to be extremely important, having facilitated the supply of cannabis varieties that are now the basis for our current cultivation program.
Of course, one of our most important achievements during the year was the highly successful initial public offering which secured tremendous support and the capital required to execute on our business plan. It’s extremely satisfying to me and the Board that shareholders have been rewarded with what has been a very strong share price performance since the listing in May.
The company has also benefitted from the strategic shareholding taken in the IPO by Canada-based Aurora Cannabis. Aurora is a market leader in Canada, where the industry is at a more advanced stage of development than here in Australia. The shareholding has provided the basis for close co-operation and an exchange of technical information and support, and I would like to acknowledge Aurora’s support and assistance over the past six months.
Shareholders have a resolution before them today to elect an Aurora representative, Mr Neil Belot, to the Board of Directors. Neil’s experience and expertise will be of great value to the Board and to the company.
The achievements of the past year represent many hours of hard work by our staff, partners and consultants and I would like to publicly acknowledge the Board’s appreciation for that work. We have a tremendous team of committed and talented people around this business.
We set out with a clear objective to build a credible business whilst demonstrating a commitment to meet the regulatory requirements of Federal and State Governments and work with other stakeholders to help promote and advance this industry.
Let me now briefly mention some future developments that will help to further consolidate our position in the industry:
PHASE 3
In our prospectus for the IPO we mentioned that we would be undertaking a scoping study to construct a purpose-built cultivation and GMP manufacturing facility, which will be our Phase 3 expansion.
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That study is well advanced with potential sites undergoing climatic modelling. While we had indicated that approximately 5000 square metres was a size that would deliver efficiencies, it has become clear that to be competitive on a global scale and take full advantage of potential export market opportunities, a larger facility will offer important additional efficiencies. We will continue with our detailed assessment and communicate plans to shareholders in due course.
EXPORTS
On a global basis, the medicinal cannabis supply and demand equation is about to get a severe shock with the pending regulatory change in Canada on the 1[st] of July next year. This change will see adult recreational use legalised in Canada and may result in a global shortage of medicinal cannabis, opening potential export markets for Australian producers.
The Federal Government, through the Office of Drug Control, has called for submissions in regard to exports and Cann Group is closely engaged in that process. The future prospect of export markets – in Canada, Europe and elsewhere – opening up to Australian producers will result in a step-change in the potential markets that we can address. This will also provide greater incentive for further investment in research and development in Australia and will benefit Australian patients.
EDUCATION
While there are numerous examples of positive responses to medicinal cannabis treatment across the medical spectrum, there remains a lack of properly constructed clinical trials to give specialists and doctors the confidence to prescribe cannabis.
Cann is committed to support and participate in trials and educational programs to help build that body of evidence so doctors have the information and products to suit individual patient needs. While additional clinical data is being generated, there is also a need for a compassionate program for people with late stage cancers suffering side effects of chemotherapy, and for other indications where cannabis has been shown to be effective.
In closing, I would like to acknowledge my fellow directors for their support and counsel. To our management team, thank you again for the quality of your work. And our shareholders and stakeholders, we very much value your support.
I am sure that the next twelve months will be every bit as exciting as the last twelve months as Cann continues to execute on its business plan and contributes to the delivery of high quality medicinal cannabis to patients in Australia and – subject to the relevant approvals – to overseas markets.
Thank you.
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CEO’S ADDRESS
Thank you Mr Chairman, welcome, and thank you all for your attendance.
The last twelve months have been remarkable, and I am extremely proud of what the Cann team has achieved, with the support of the board, advisors, and our partners.
I would like to take the opportunity today to update you on the progress we are making as we continue to develop and expand our operations.
After securing the first licence in Australia under the new federal regulations, we were also the first commercial operator to have been issued with a permit to cultivate medicinal cannabis. Our third crop, destined for use in the Victorian Government trial program for paediatric epilepsy, is now in the final stages of cultivation and will be harvested in the coming weeks.
In February this year – when our licence was issued – we had four staff members, who carried a huge workload as we progressed our business plan while completing Cann’s initial public offering on the ASX. Throughout the year, we have recruited additional team members across a range of functions who are adding their skills and expertise to the business and helping ensure our expansion program continues on target.
We have just commissioned the last of three new flowering rooms at our Southern Facility, and just this week we hosted the Office of Drug Control for an audit of both our Southern and Northern facilities, required prior to the transfer of the first plant material to our new Northern Facility, which we still expect prior to the end of this year.
As we scale up and bring new staff on board, we are seeing significant value from the regular contact we are having with Canadian shareholder and partner Aurora Cannabis. Having recently been granted our import/export licence, the process of importing Aurora product and genetics is also underway. We also have genetics and analytical technology arrangements progressing with Anandia Laboratories of Vancouver.
Locally we have projects underway with CSIRO and La Trobe University, and our most significant body of work is under a series of technical service agreements with Agriculture Victoria. In our opinion, Victoria is poised to become a global leader in medicinal cannabis agricultural and medical technology.
With respect to medical developments, Cann is in discussions with several leading clinicians who are planning medicinal cannabis trials. Our ability to reliably supply locally produced, well characterised cannabinoid products is key to our ability to support and participate in those trials.
Cann is also working diligently to ensure supply is available as soon as possible for Australian patients under the TGA Special Access Scheme. To this end, we have engaged with the Medicinal Cannabis Medicines Portal, which will streamline the connection between authorised prescribers, participating pharmacies and patients. In the first instance, we plan
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to import a number of Aurora’s oil extract products to make available via the portal, and in due course we will supply Australian manufactured products, including the CannaKorp pod based Whisp® vaporiser system that Cann is developing for Australia.
Cann Group is one of 43 respondents to the Office of Drug Control request for comment on the establishment of an export pathway. As the Chairman has alluded to, there is a recognition that while domestic medicinal cannabis demand is still evolving, allowing licenced operators to set up at scale, and export to an under-supplied global market, will allow a world competitive industry to establish in Australia. This will accelerate access for Australian patients to cost effective and potentially life changing medicinal cannabis treatments.
In light of this, Cann’s Phase 3 development program planning is now well underway, with preferred site selection well progressed. As the Chairman has mentioned, we are adjusting our Phase 3 plans to involve a larger scale and accelerated timeline than originally contemplated, so that we have the capacity to meet what we believe will be a significant opportunity.
With this year’s rapid growth and expansion, Cann Group has established a new corporate head office at La Trobe University’s Technology Enterprise Centre. Our relationship with La Trobe is one of our most valuable partnerships and our relocation to the Technology Enterprise Centre will help ensure we extract maximum benefit from that relationship.
It is an incredibly exciting time to be at the forefront of an important new industry in Australia, and the energy and enthusiasm of all those involved with Cann is a great encouragement as we progress our plans.
Having a common focus of providing life changing treatment options for Australian patients makes this an invigorating challenge for all of us at Cann, and we look forward to your ongoing interest and support.
Thank you.
For further information please contact:
Peter Crock Matthew Wright Cann Group Limited NWR Communications +61 (0) 3 9095 7088 +61 (0) 451 896 420 [email protected] [email protected]
About Cann Group
Cann Group is building a world-class business focused on breeding, cultivating and manufacturing medicinal cannabis for sale and use within Australia. The company has established research and cultivation facilities in Melbourne and is striving to provide access to medicinal cannabis for Australian patients. Cann Group has executed collaboration agreements that will enable it to establish a leading position in plant genetics, breeding,
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extraction, analysis and production techniques required to facilitate the supply of medicinal cannabis for a range of diseases and medical conditions. It was issued with Australia’s first medicinal cannabis research licence in February 2017, in addition to Australia’s first medicinal cannabis cultivation licence in March 2017. Aurora Cannabis Inc – Canada’s second largest listed medicinal cannabis company – is a cornerstone investor in Cann, with a 19.9% shareholding.
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