Aurora Announces Major Production Cut & Layoffs at Sky Facility

Aurora Cannabis announced they are cutting production at their Aurora Sky facility to 25 percent of its previous capacity, after closing their Aurora Sun facility in November.

According to a Global News report, the move cuts 214 positions. In June, Aurora laid off 700 workers and announced plans to halt operations at five facilities in Saskatchewan, Ontario, Alberta, and Quebec. Despite the layoffs and losses exceeding $3 billion for the 2020 fiscal year, company executives received a 58 percent boost to their compensation awards — totaling $9.8 million — and cash bonuses amounting to $700,000, the firm outlined in a circular earlier this year.

CEO Miguel Martin said the “hard decisions” would “improve cashflow and provide agility” for Aurora “in the long-term best interests” of shareholders.

“Our substantial liquidity position has enabled us to revise our credit facility terms by extending maturity and transitioning us from a minimum EBITDA covenant to a minimum liquidity covenant, thereby providing us with the financial flexibility we need to execute our business transformation plan. We are already seeing progress with improving cashflow and product successes such as the recent relaunch of our vapor portfolio. We are also driving our consumer strategy that will serve as a foundation for sustainable revenue growth and profitability over the long-term.” – Martin in a press release

Martin added that the Sky facility would be transformed “into a high-value cultivation center for … premium strains” which will help the company “better align production with current demand for premium flower.”

The firm broke ground on the 800,000-square-foot facility in 2016 and it received an operator’s license two years later.

In February, the company announced a “business transformation plan” which included workforce cuts of 10 percent.