- Happy Valley Nutrition (HVM) has secured NZ$20 million (roughly A$18.57 million) in funding
- The funding package is made up of a NZ$12.7 million (around A$11.7 million) senior secured debt facility from a related entity of Merricks Capital, and NZ$7.4 million (around A$7 million) from the issue of secured convertible notes
- Proceeds will be used for the acquisition of strategic farmland and the completion of further earthworks
- Happy Valley Nutrition shares are up 3.13 per cent, trading at 16.5 cents
Happy Valley Nutrition (HVM) has secured NZ$20 million (roughly A$18.57 million) to fund the acquisition of strategic farmland and the completion of further earthworks.
The funding package is made up of a NZ$12.7 million (around A$11.7 million) senior secured debt facility from a related entity of Merricks Capital and NZ$7.4 million (around A$7 million) from the issue of secured convertible notes.
The convertible notes were subscribed by new and existing institutional and sophisticated investors.
The company is currently in the process of developing a state-of-the-art processing plant in the Waikato Region of New Zealand to make infant milk formula and speciality dairy ingredients.
The company first entered into a conditional purchase agreement for the acquisition of the farmland in 2020 for wastewater irrigation from the plant. The conditional purchase agreements were subject to consent under the NZ Overseas Investment Act, which was granted in October 2020.
Proceeds will allow the company to purchase of Woolly Farm, Waipa Meadows and a lot on Redlands Road this year. In December 2020, the company also commenced the preliminary earthworks for the plant and associated road realignment works.
On top of this, the company signed four non-binding heads of agreements with global dairy distributors and customers for product types such as skim milk powder, infant formula grade skim powder and agglomerated skim powder.
“This funding package primarily allows the company to add value to its asset base by enabling it to settle the strategic farmland properties and continue earthworks in preparation for the construction of the facility. The terms of the senior secured debt facility and the convertible notes are a strong endorsement of the company’s potential and we look forward to working with such highly regarded investors,” said CEO Greg Wood.
Preliminary discussions with other global ingredient customers have now begun as the company looks to expand.
Happy Valley Nutrition shares are up 3.13 per cent, trading at 16.5 cents at 4:00 pm AEDT.