Aurora says it’s ready to meet market demands

Edmonton-based licensed marijuana producer Aurora Cannabis Inc. says it is “unequivocally” ready for the legalization of recreational pot in Canada next month, with enough supply to meet all its commitments to provinces and territories.

Aurora’s chief corporate officer Cam Battley adds that the cannabis firm doesn’t foresee the need for supply agreements with other licensed producers to bridge inventory gaps.

“We’ve got all of our product categories ready,” he told analysts on a conference call discussing its latest quarterly earnings on Tuesday.

We’re not going to be dumping old, stockpiled, stale product on the market.

“So, we’re more than ready for consumer legalization. And more than that, our ramp-up in production is happening at exactly the right time,” he added.

“We’re not going to be dumping old, stockpiled, stale product on the market.”

Aurora’s comments come as Canada prepares to legalize recreational cannabis for adult use on Oct. 17.

Company executives would not disclose the current size of its inventory in kilograms, but said it has been ramping up its production capacity.

Aurora anticipates that by the end of 2018 it will be able to produce 150,000 kilograms of cannabis per year.

The company has eight licensed production facilities, compared with one fully licensed facility and two under construction one year ago, Battley said.

Aurora has $88 million in pro forma inventory and biological assets, including that of MedReleaf Corp., chief financial officer Glen Ibbott said.

Aurora signed a $3.2-billion deal to acquire MedReleaf in May.

Aurora’s latest quarterly earnings capped off a busy year with fourth-quarter revenues of $19.1 million, more than triple the $5.9 million in revenues it saw a year ago.

For the full year, revenues increased to $55.2 million from $18.1 million in 2017.

Net income attributable to shareholders for the quarter was nearly $80 million, up from a $4.82 million loss a year ago.