Cann Group Mildura medicinal cannabis site gets licences
Victoria’s northwest is soon to be home to a $112 million medical cannabis facility, with key hurdles cleared.
Mildura
Don't miss out on the headlines from Mildura. Followed categories will be added to My News.
A medicinal cannabis site in Mildura is closer to reality after key licence and funding announcements.
Building of the cultivation facility’s $112 million first stage, which faced significant challenges this year, was now set to resume in February.
The first product was expected to be processed and released by March 2022.
ASX-listed Cann Group told investors on Wednesday that three licenses tied to a subsidiary had been varied to enable those activities to take place in Mildura.
The licences relate to cultivation and production of medicinal cannabis, research activities and manufacturing of products.
Cann Group will now apply to the federal health department’s Office of Drug Control to extend the licences, which were due to expire next year.
It followed the announcement on Monday that a $50 million bank loan from NAB had been secured for the project.
This funding, together with cash reserves, will allow stage one to be completed.
As recently as July, Cann Group – which had already plunged $50 million into the build – were forecasting the need for $65 million to $75 million to finish it.
Construction had been halted and COVID-19 restrictions meant specialist contractors based in Europe couldn’t visit the site.
After ending June with $1.6 million in cash, the company in August raised $40 million from investors.
The Mildura site, projected to have a capacity of 12,500kg of dry flower equivalent, was expected to create 130 new jobs once commissioned.
Cann Group chief executive Peter Crock said there was confidence production would ramp up quickly once the facility is ready.
“The commissioning of production at Mildura is an important step in Cann’s plan to produce GMP certified medicinal cannabis at scale,” Mr Crock said.
“The facility will utilise world-leading technology, providing Cann with a globally competitive unit price based on substantial economies of scale.”
Check out more stories at The Mildura News here
Contact reporter Michael DiFabrizio
Follow us on Facebook here
Mildura footy player grub posts nude pics of woman on Instagram
A Mildura football player uploaded explicit images of a woman to Instagram before creating a fake account to harass her new partner, a court has heard.
Luxury Audi test drive ends with arrest on Victorian highway
A Queensland man who took a $100,000 Audi RS4 for a test drive from a South Australian dealership ended up in Victoria after he got “a bit carried away”.