Clearford Announces Results for the First Quarter of Fiscal 2019 plus Short-Term Financing Arrangements
OTTAWA, June 3, 2019 /CNW/ - Clearford Water Systems Inc. ("Clearford" or the "Company"), (TSXV: CLI), today released results for its three months ended March 31, 2019. The unaudited consolidated financial statements are presented in accordance with IFRS (all figures in Canadian dollars).
Kevin Loiselle, President and CEO of Clearford, expressed enthusiasm for the future of Clearford: "With the completion of the acquisition of ASI Group Limited Water Division through our new subsidiary Clearford ASI Inc., we expect revenue to continue to grow. The acquisition is expected to bring synergies to the Company that will allow us to begin to focus on the earnings line. Clearford continues to execute on its new business model transitioning into a full-service utility that will benefit from the full value of our product offerings. Along with our existing operations and management services group, the acquisition now provides us with a significant revenue source from long-term contracts and puts us in strong position to service existing and future customers in Ontario extending from Eastern Ontario and down the 401 corridor to Southern Ontario".
Additionally, the Company announced that it has arranged $1 million in short-term financing from multiple private arm's length lenders effective May 31, 2019. The Loans were provided by Ace Mortgage Corporation ("ACE") in the amount of C$500,000 and Morebath Limited in the amount of US$375,000 (C$500,000). Both loans bear interest of 10% and with an initial due date of December 15, 2019 and are expected to be replaced by new long-term financing in December 2019. The ACE loan has the option to be extended until May 31, 2019. A 10% setup fee is payable on each loan at maturity. Mr. Rod Bryden, a significant shareholder and deemed insider of the Company has provided a personal guarantee of both loans. Clearford's President and CEO has also provided a personal guarantee for the ACE loan. Clearford Koester Canada Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company provided a corporate guarantee of the ACE loan. The Company's significant lenders have provided a subordination agreement to one lender and the Company has provided a general security agreement as well as the assignment of a long-term receivable as collateral for that loan. The funds will be used for working capital purposes including interest repayments to existing unrelated lenders.
Revenue for the quarter was $2,011,437 compared with $1,668,881 for the prior year's quarter. The operating loss before net financing costs was $1,127,096 for the quarter compared with $1,776,946 for the prior year's quarter and included a $152,807 foreign exchange gain on the Company's US dollar denominated debt. Net financing costs for the quarter were $1,277,389 compared with $937,546 for the prior year's quarter, with net loss for the quarter of $2,404,485 or $0.02 per share compared with $2,714,492 or $0.03 per share for the prior year's quarter.
Costs of sales increased to $1,405,125 during the quarter from $922,602 in the prior year's quarter primarily due to the increase in revenues.
Sales and marketing costs decreased to $282,635 from $375,790 in the prior year's quarter reflecting a reduction in rebranding costs and less travel as the Company focused primarily on the Ontario market.
Costs of engineering and research and development decreased slightly to $192,744 from $212,829 in the prior year's quarter. The drop related primarily to UV Pure as it had substantially completed the Generation 3 product development stage and began to move the new generation products into certification and pre-production stage.
General and administration costs increased to $1,420,622 from $1,201,314 in the prior year's quarter primarily reflecting the additional resources to support the growth of the business.
Clearford ended the March 31, 2019 quarter with unrestricted cash of $466,835 compared with $228,468 on December 31, 2018. The Company's quarterly unaudited consolidated financial statements and MD&A are available at www.SEDAR.com.
Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.
About Clearford Water Systems Inc.
Clearford Water Systems is a provider of unified water management solutions for the design, deployment, finance and operation of water infrastructure systems. The Company's technology-based water solutions include Clearford One® wastewater infrastructure systems, Clearford M‑brane™ packaged treatment solutions, and a full range of UV Pure® water disinfection products. Clearford is the winner of the Frost & Sullivan 2017 Enabling Technology Leadership Award for Global Decentralized Water & Wastewater Treatment. For more information, visit www.clearford.com.
About Clearford Koester Canada Inc. (a Clearford subsidiary)
Clearford Koester Canada Inc. is a manufacturer of packaged water and wastewater treatment systems for municipal, commercial and industrial applications. The company designs and builds custom modular and containerized treatment systems that integrate advanced technologies like membrane filters, ultraviolet disinfection, and smart instrumentation and control systems for highly efficient treatment solutions that address any site constraints and water quality challenges. The company's M-brane™ membrane bioreactor (MBR) treatment plant has been installed at sites in Ontario and New York State.
About Clearford Waterworks Inc. (a Clearford subsidiary)
Clearford Waterworks Inc. is a full-service provider of water and wastewater systems management including in-field operations and maintenance, emergency operations, regulatory compliance support, technical assistance and troubleshooting, and asset management services. The company operates over 80 treatment plants, water distribution and wastewater collection systems in Ontario for private developments, golf courses, camps and campgrounds.
About UV Pure Technologies Inc. (a Clearford subsidiary)
UV Pure Technologies is a manufacturer of advanced ultraviolet water disinfection systems for residential, commercial, industrial, public, and municipal applications. The company's patented Crossfire Technology® is an innovative water disinfection solution with over 18,000 installations worldwide. UV Pure has earned an Artemis Top 50 Clean Tech Company award, Going Green Global Top 200 award, two Frost & Sullivan Best Practices Awards, and a Canadian Drinking Water Association award for innovation. For more information, visit www.uvpure.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This news release contains certain statements that constitute forward-looking statements as they relate to the Company and its management. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts but represent management's current expectation of future events, and can be identified by words such as "believe", "expects", "will", "intends", "plans", "projects", "anticipates", "estimates", "continues" and similar expressions. Although management believes that the expectations represented in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, there can be no assurance that they will prove to be correct.
By their nature, forward-looking statements include assumptions and are subject to inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future results, conditions, actions or events to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. If and when forward-looking statements are set out in this news release, Clearford will also set out the material risk factors or assumptions used to develop the forward-looking statements. Except as expressly required by applicable securities law, the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward looking statements. The future outcomes that relate to forward-looking statements may be influenced by many factors, including, but not limited to: industry cyclicality; the ability to secure third party agreements; successful integration of Clearford's system with third party technology; competition; reduction in demand for products; collection from customers; relationships with suppliers; product liability; intellectual property; reliance on key personnel; environmental; interest rates; uninsured and underinsured losses; operating hazards; risks of future legal proceedings; income tax matters; credit facilities; availability and terms of financing; distribution of securities; restrictions on potential growth; effect of market interest rates on price of securities; and potential dilution.
SOURCE Clearford Water Systems Inc.
Kevin Loiselle, President & CEO, Clearford Water Systems Inc., Phone: (613) 599-6474 ext. 303
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