In their first foray into Latin America, British Columbia, Canada-based Cannabis Wheaton Income Corp. is set to acquire Uruguayan hemp producer Inverell S.A. in a deal worth $15 million. Inverell is licensed in Uruguay to cultivate and harvest a proprietary hemp strain containing 0.5 percent THC and 8 percent CBD.
Inverell also owns a genetic bank with three additional hemp strains with differing levels of THC and CBD. It currently operates 16 hectares (about 1.72 million square feet) and has another 574 hectares available for cultivation.
“This transaction helps us secure a significant amount of CBD-rich hemp production that can be exported to other federally legal jurisdictions for further processing into nutritional and pharmaceutical products. We expect to see a significant increase in global CBD demand over the course of the coming years and believe that low-cost jurisdictions with favorable climates for outdoor cultivation will be key sources of CBD supply. As we continue to execute our international strategy, we are thrilled to have identified Inverell as our first international production operation.” – Hugo Alves, Wheaton president, in a press release
Upon closing of the deal, Wheaton will pay $2 million in cash, $3,562,500 in Wheaton common shares, and $9,437,500 upon successful registration of Inverell’s genetics and successful exportation of CBD products.
Inverell founder, Dr. Raúl Urbina, will remain as CEO and head the Innovation Department.