EDMONTON, Alberta, July 25, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Radient Technologies Inc. (“Radient” or the “Company”) (TSX Venture:RTI) has released its financial results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018. The audited financial statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2018 are available on www.SEDAR.com under the Company’s profile.

Key Highlights for the 2018 Year:

• Financials

The balance sheet significantly strengthened from 2017 to complete a successful turnaround for the Company.  The cash balance as of March 31, 2018 was approximately $21.9 million, up from $11.4 million on March 31, 2017. Long-term debt of over $8.1 million as of March 31, 2017 was extinguished through a series of pay-downs and restructuring initiatives. The working capital position swung to a surplus of $22.1 million from $6.7 million during the same time frame due to the following initiatives:

• The Company completed a private placement with Aurora Cannabis Inc.  (TSX:ACB) (OTCQX:ACBFF) (Frankfurt:21P) (WKN:A1C4WM) (“Aurora”) for gross proceeds of $6.2 million. Aurora also converted its $2 million convertible debenture into 14.2 million units comprising of one common share and one common share purchase warrant.
• In addition to the financing completed with Aurora, the Company raised $13.5 million  through warrant exercises, and $2.2 million through stock option exercises.
• Long-term debt on account of the accrued royalty financial liability (inclusive of interest) from AVAC was extinguished, as $6.2 million of liability was converted to 9,424,330 Radient common shares.
• The Company’s repayable contribution obligation with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada was restricted into a long-term agreement repayable over an 8-year term.

As a result, the Company has a strong working capital balance to support its business activities going forward.

• Corporate Update
   
  • Construction Update: The previously announced construction and renovation phase of the expansion of the manufacturing facility located at 4035-101 Street in Edmonton is substantially complete, with the final testing and commissioning of security features and equipment now underway.
     
  • License Status Update: The Company received its Dealer’s License from Health Canada’s Office of Controlled Substances for its research and development laboratory in February 2018. Regarding the Company’s application for an ACMPR License from Health Canada, having completed the construction of the expansion and with the subsequent testing of security features underway, the Company anticipates it will submit its Confirmation of Readiness (“COR”) request to Health Canada in early August. Upon successful review of the Confirmation of Readiness package by Health Canada, the Company will be eligible to receive the initial  ACMPR Producer’s License. The Company also anticipates submitting the completion of construction notification for the Dealer’s License for the expanded facility within the same timeframe.
     
• Funding for Growth
   
  • Radient will be aggressively expanding its operational capacity in Canada and Europe in the near future. In order to fund these growth plans, on July 5 2018, the Company entered into an underwriting agreement with a syndicate of underwriters for a bought deal offering of 18,000,000 units of the Company at a price of $1.20 per unit. The aggregate gross proceeds from this offering will be $21.6 million, and it is anticipated to close on July 31, 2018.
  • Concurrently with the bought deal offering, the Company also arranged a private placement for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $15 million.
     
• Additional Milestones
   
  • Real Estate Expansion: The Company successfully closed a series of transactions to strengthen its real estate footprint to execute on its business plans and consolidate its position as an industrial-scale processor for extracts from both cannabis and hemp. The Company completed the acquisition of a 100% interest in 1631807 Alberta Ltd., a joint venture company, from the Amnor Group Inc. (“Amnor”) to secure the 23,000 sq. ft. facility in Edmonton, Alberta. Subsequent to the acquisition, 1631807 Alberta Ltd. also acquired two parcels of land adjacent to Radient’s manufacturing facility (the “Adjacent Lands”) from Amnor to add an additional 80,000 sq. ft. for further capacity expansion for cannabis and hemp processing. These acquisitions will enable the Company to add significant processing capacity for its partners including Aurora, which upon completion of its previously announced acquisition of MedReleaf Corp., will have approximately 570,000 kg per annum of funded capacity in Canada and the EU.
     
  • Nicotine Initiative: In June 2018, the Company completed a submission to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to consider the Company’s unique MAP technology as a method to reduce nicotine levels in tobacco. This was followed by the Company’s filing of a provisional patent application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for innovation related to methods to obtain nicotine depleted tobacco, without altering certain desirable properties of tobacco.
     
  • TSX Venture 50: Radient was named to the 2018 TSX Venture 50 list of companies, ranked #1 within the diversified industries sector. The TSX Venture 50 is a ranking of the top-performing companies listed on the TSX Venture Exchange based on market capitalization growth, share price appreciation, and trading volume.

Denis Taschuk, President & CEO of Radient Technologies commented, “This has been a watershed year for Radient Technologies, marked by several major milestones that have facilitated unprecedented levels of growth for the Company. This year alone, we have completed the expansion of our Edmonton-based manufacturing facility, strengthened our accretive partnership with one of the largest Cannabis producers in the world, were named one of the Top 50 performing companies of the year by the TSX Venture Exchange, and successfully submitted our application to the FDA for our method of extracting nicotine from tobacco biomass. With our next steps being the expansion of our presence in the European market, Radient is rapidly becoming a global leader in the commercial-scale production of cannabis and hemp products worldwide. 

We have increased our talent pool substantially this year, adding a number of leading scientists and researchers to our team along with technical staff. Financially, the Company has strengthened its balance sheet by eliminating its debt, which will position it for near-term and long-term success. With our strong working capital surplus, and having hit our targets successfully over the last year, Radient is in a superior position to continue executing on its long-term vision to become the leading industrial-scale cannabis processor in the world.”

About Radient

Radient extracts natural compounds from a range of biological materials using microwave assisted processing (“MAP™”), a patented technology platform which provides superior customer outcomes in terms of ingredient purity, yield, and cost. From its 23,000 square-foot manufacturing plant in Edmonton, Alberta, Radient serves market leaders in industries that include pharmaceutical, food, beverage, natural health, personal care and cannabis. Visit www.radientinc.com for more information.

Denis Taschuk, Chief Executive Officer, [email protected]; (780) 465-1318

Prakash Hariharan, Chief Financial Officer, [email protected]; (780) 465-1318

Forward Looking Information:

This press release contains “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, without limitation, statements regarding the growth of the Company’s business operations; the Company’s ability to extract nicotine from tobacco, the Company’s financial results, the Company’s ability to complete the renovations and expansion of its facilities; the timing of receiving the ACMPR license, the Company’s ability to close its previously announced financings and the Company’s future plans. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “plans”, “expects” or “does not expect”, “is expected”, “budget”, “scheduled”, “estimates”, “forecasts”, “intends”, “anticipates” or “does not anticipate”, or “believes”, or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results “may”, “could”, “would”, “might” or “will be taken”, “occur” or “be achieved”. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Radient, as the case may be, to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Although Radient has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Radient does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

NEITHER THE 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.