Curaleaf to Acquire Europe’s Largest Vertically Integrated Cannabis Firm for $286M

Massachusetts-based Curaleaf Holdings announced on Tuesday it will acquire Europe’s largest vertically integrated cannabis company, EMMAC Life Sciences Limited for approximately $286 million, to be paid 85% in Curaleaf subordinate voting shares and 15% in cash.

Contingent consideration of up to $57 million will be paid in Curaleaf subordinate voting shares and cash in the same ratio based upon the successful achievement of performance milestones, the company said in a press release.

EMMAC operates in Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom across processing, distribution, cultivation, and research and development operations. The company said its Portugal-based cultivation facility is an industry leader in cannabis flower production cost.

Curaleaf Executive Chairman Boris Jordan said the deal “provides an advanced base to reach scale within the nascent European cannabis market and transform Curaleaf into a truly international cannabis consumer packaged goods company.”

“The consumer and political liberalization trends around cannabis that are sweeping the U.S. are also increasingly taking hold in Europe. Curaleaf will seek to leverage our branded cannabis consumer packaged goods strategy across Europe, a market which provides for cross-border cannabis distribution. The European cannabis market has the potential to exceed the U.S. cannabis market over the long-term and will help fuel our growth for years to come.” – Jordan in a statement

Joseph Bayern, Curaleaf CEO, said the company believes the total “addressable market opportunity” in Europe could reach $120 billion.

EMMAC plans to increase its cultivation capacity this year and anticipates exceeding 10 tons per year by 2022, “in order to accommodate future growth related to the expansion of access to cannabis across the major European medical and adult-use, as well as export markets,” the company said