VANCOUVER, BC, May 17, 2021 /CNW/ - GreenFirst Forest Products
Inc. (TSXV: GFP) ("GreenFirst" or the "Company")
today announces its preliminary operating results for the three
months ended March 31, 2021 as set
out below. GreenFirst is also pleased to announce its intention to
apply to list its Rights (as defined below) on the TSX Venture
Exchange (the "TSXV") and the appointment of Marty Proctor and William G. Harvey to the board of directors of
GreenFirst (the "Board"). Michael
Powell and Lewis Johnson have
also resigned from the Board, effective today.
Summary of Preliminary First Quarter Results
Based on preliminary financial information, the Company expects
to report a net loss attributable to common shareholders of
$1.6 million, or $0.07 loss per share, and a total comprehensive
loss of $1.7 million in the quarter
ended March 31, 2021. This is
compared to a net loss attributable to common shareholders of
$0.3 million, or $0.01 loss per share, and total comprehensive
income of $0.8 million (as a result
of a currency translation gain) in the first quarter of
2020. The expected increased net loss for the quarter was due
to higher professional fees associated with the previously
announced Asset Purchase Agreement (as defined below).
As at March 31, 2021, the Company
expects to report a consolidated cash balance of $4.2 million and net working capital of
$2.9 million.
The Company will provide full details of its financial results
when it releases its first quarter results for the interim period
ended March 31, 2021 on or before
May 30th, 2021, after market
close.
All amounts are in Canadian dollars unless otherwise
indicated.
Rights Offering Update
GreenFirst is pleased to announce that it intends to apply to
have the Rights listed for trading on the TSXV.
In connection with the previously announced asset purchase
agreement (the "Asset Purchase Agreement") dated
April 10, 2021 pursuant to which a
wholly-owned subsidiary of GreenFirst agreed to acquire (the
"Acquisition") a portfolio of forest and paper product
assets from Rayonier A.M. Canada G.P. and Rayonier A.M. Canada
Industries Inc., each a subsidiary of Rayonier Advanced Materials
Inc., GreenFirst announced that it intends to file a prospectus to
conduct a backstopped rights offering to finance a portion of the
purchase price payable pursuant to the Asset Purchase Agreement.
GreenFirst intends to issue three rights (each a "Right")
for each of its outstanding common shares with each Right being
exercisable, at a subscription price of $1.50 to acquire a subscription receipt (each a
"Subscription Receipt"). Each Subscription Receipt will,
upon closing of the Asset Purchase Agreement and without any
further consideration, automatically be exchanged into a common
share of GreenFirst.
Changes to the Board
GreenFirst is pleased to announce the appointment of
Marty Proctor and William G. Harvey to the Board effective
Monday, May 17, 2021.
Marty Proctor is the Vice-Chair
of ARC Resources Ltd. and served as President and CEO of Seven
Generations Energy for four years prior to its merger with ARC
Resources. Previously, Marty was President and Chief Operating
Officer of Seven Generations Energy from May
2014 to mid-2017, and Chief Operating Officer of Baytex
Energy Corp. from January 2009 until
May 2014. Marty has more than 30
years of experience in the Canadian and international oil and
natural gas industries. Before Baytex, Marty was Senior Vice
President responsible for upstream operations at Statoil Hydro
Canada, and previously Senior Vice President of North American Oil
Sands Corporation and Vice President of Murphy Oil Company. Earlier
in his career, Marty held technical and management positions at
Maxx Petroleum, Central Resources (USA), BP Resources Canada and Husky Oil. His
international work included assignments in Russia, Kazakhstan, China, Norway
and the United States. A
professional engineer and a member of APEGA and the Society of
Petroleum Engineers, Marty earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees
in Petroleum Engineering from the University
of Alberta.
William G. Harvey is a Chartered
Financial Analysts and holds a Master of Business Administration
degree from the University of Toronto
and a degree in mechanical engineering from Queens University. He has served as Executive Vice
President – Finance of Kirby Corporation since February 2018. Prior to joining Kirby, Mr. Harvey
served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of
Walter Energy, Inc. from 2012 to 2017, Senior Vice President and
Chief Financial Officer of Resolute Forest Products Inc. from 2008
to 2011, and as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer of Bowater Inc., a predecessor company of Resolute, from
2004 to 2008.
GreenFirst also announces that Michael
Powell and Lewis Johnson have
resigned from the Board effective today. Larry G. Swets, Jr., Chief Executive Officer,
stated "On behalf of GreenFirst, I would like to thank Michael and
Lewis for their valuable contributions to our progress and, in
particular, during this transformational phase of GreenFirst's
growth and development. We wish them both all the best in their
future endeavours."
About GreenFirst
GreenFirst is a forest-first business, focused on
environmentally sustainable forest management and lumber
production. We believe that sustainable forest planting and
harvesting, coupled with the long-term green advantage of lumber,
provide GreenFirst with significant cyclical and secular advantages
in building products. GreenFirst's long-term pursuit is to be a
global leader in environmentally sustainable lumber. For more
information, please visit: www.gffp.ca.
Forward Looking Information
Certain information in this news release constitutes
forward-looking statements under applicable securities laws. Any
statements that are contained in this news release that are not
statements of historical fact are forward-looking statements.
Forward looking statements are often identified by terms such as
"may", "should", "anticipate", "expect", "potential", "believe",
"intend", "estimate" or the negative of these terms and similar
expressions.
Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are
not limited to statements regarding: the expected financial results
of the Company; the timing for the expected filing of the financial
results; the details of the proposed offering of Rights; the
expectation of the Rights being listed on the TSXV; and details
with respect to the shares for debt transaction. Forward-looking
statements are based on certain assumptions and, while GreenFirst
considers these assumptions to be reasonable, based on information
currently available, they may prove to be incorrect. In addition,
forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown
risks, including those set out in GreenFirst's public disclosure
record filed under its profile on www.sedar.com. Readers are
further cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking
statements as there can be no assurance that the plans, intentions
or expectations upon which they are placed will occur. Such
information, although considered reasonable by management at the
time of preparation, may prove to be incorrect and actual results
may differ materially from those anticipated. Forward-looking
statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified
by this cautionary statement and reflect our expectations as of the
date hereof, and thus are subject to change thereafter. GreenFirst
disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events or otherwise, except as required by law.
Neither TSXV nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that
term is defined in policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for
the adequacy or accuracy of this news release.
SOURCE GreenFirst Forest Product Inc.