Aurora Cannabis expands German facility, expects more than double flower output
Saxony-Anhalt licensed new production areas in Leuna, but Aurora gave no tonnage or timetable for deliveries from the expanded site.
Theo Marchetti
Germany's State Office for Social Affairs, Youth and Health of Saxony-Anhalt has extended an EU-GMP manufacturing licence to newly built sections of a medical-cannabis facility in Leuna, according to an Oct. 8 company announcement. Aurora Cannabis Inc. TSEACB NASDAQACB said the expanded facility is expected to lift annual flower output by more than 100 per cent, adding room to supply Germany and other European medical markets.
Aurora completed the Leuna expansion after what it called a multi-million-dollar investment. The company has renamed the site Aurora Horizon, but its release gives neither annual production tonnage nor a date for the first shipment from the added space.
The TSEACB quote shows Aurora shares closed at C$6.37 in Toronto at 4 p.m. EDT on Oct. 7, down 2.15 per cent. That close preceded the Oct. 8 expansion announcement and does not measure the market's response to it.
Newly Built Areas Receive EU-GMP Coverage
The state office issued the expanded licence for newly built areas, Aurora said on Oct. 8. The release does not give the grant date, a licence number or a separate effective date. It also does not state how much flower the Leuna facility produced before construction, so the percentage gain cannot be translated into kilograms.
The changes draw on Aurora's Canadian cultivation and post-harvest practices, including lighting, irrigation and harvesting processes. Leuna has also adopted genetics from Aurora Coast, the company's British Columbia research facility. Aurora said the expanded site is already meeting its network's performance thresholds, although it supplied no yield or cost figures for comparison.
"Now known as Aurora Horizon, the EU GMP-licensed facility strengthens our ability to serve patients in Germany, while advancing our broader European growth strategy," Aurora executive vice-president of operations and supply chain Alex Miller said in the Oct. 8 release.
Aurora described itself on Oct. 8 as one of three domestic medical-cannabis producers in Germany. It expects the extra Leuna capacity to help meet demand there and across Europe, while supporting jobs in Saxony-Anhalt. The release does not attach a sales forecast, hiring count or shipment schedule to that expectation.
Tilray Also Expands European Supply
Tilray Brands, Inc. NASDAQTLRY TSETLRY is another listed supplier with German cultivation. In an Aug. 20 company release, Tilray said its Aphria RX facility in Germany was fully utilized and increased output at its Portugal facility would also supply the German market.
Tilray put its worldwide annual cultivation capacity at approximately 275 metric tonnes in that Aug. 20 release, up from 210 metric tonnes. Those are company-wide figures across several facilities; Aurora has given no Leuna tonnage against which to compare them.
Read more: Tilray Brands revenue rises 23% to US$257.1M as cannabis sales fall
The Oct. 8 announcement confirms completion of construction and the expanded licence's coverage of the new areas. Aurora has not dated the licence's grant or said when the additional German-grown flower will reach customers.
