REG - Agronomics Limited - Liberation Labs secures US$ 25 million loan

AgronomicsAnnouncement

01/12/2023 07:00

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RNS Number : 2952V  Agronomics Limited  01 December 2023

1 December 2023

Agronomics Limited

("Agronomics" or the "Company")

Liberation Labs secures US$ 25 million loan for biomanufacturing facility

Agronomics (ANIC:LSE), a leading listed company focused on the field of
cellular agriculture, is pleased to announce that the United States Department
of Agriculture ("USDA") has awarded Ameris Bancorp ("Ameris Bank") a US$ 25
million "Business and Industry" loan guarantee to help the continued build and
the completion of Liberation Labs Holdings Inc ("Liberation Labs")'s
biomanufacturing facility in Indiana, USA.

Liberation Labs is currently constructing a commercial-scale, purpose-built,
precision fermentation biomanufacturing facility with a capacity of 600,000
litres and a fully dedicated downstream process. The facility is a significant
step forward in addressing the critical lack of fermentation capacity facing
the industry. It will allow companies to produce at the necessary
commercialisation scales, the capacity required to achieve favourable unit
economics. The awarded loan guarantee - made available to businesses working
to spur local economic development - ensures that Liberation Labs has the
necessary capital to complete the build-out of the remainder of the facility
over the next year. Commercial production is expected to commence by Q1 2025.

Once completed, the facility will be purpose-built for precision fermentation
products that can be delivered at an optimised cost, with increased yield
production and improved efficiency for a variety of novel bio-based proteins
such as precision fermentation-derived egg and dairy proteins. A 3D rendering
of the sophisticated 600,000L launch facility, designed to address the acute
shortage in precision fermentation capacity, can be seen here
(https://liberationlabsltd.com/precision-fermentation/) .

Agronomics has invested US$ 7.6 million into Liberation Labs since its
inception, which is currently carried at £18.4 million. Subject to audit,
this position accounts for approximately 10.5% of Agronomics' last published
Net Asset Value (30/09/2023)
(https://polaris.brighterir.com/public/agronomics/news/rns/story/rdlm2px) ,
including post-balance sheet date adjustments. Agronomics has an equity
ownership of 37.4% on a fully diluted basis.

Mark Warner CEO and Co-founder of Liberation Labs said: -

"Award of this USDA loan guarantee is continued confirmation of the importance
of adding US biomanufacturing capacity and the strength of our business plan.
Our project underwent significant due diligence and risk rating, and to come
out the other end with a loan guarantee is a strong reflection of the quality
of our team, our vision and our ability to execute."

Jim Mellon, Executive Director of Agronomics said:-

"Liberation Labs is developing state-of-the-art purpose-built fermentation
infrastructure which will transform the existing fermentation capacity and
help build a future in which precision fermentation proteins reach the
industrial scale needed to meet growing demand in the US and across the world.
With continued progress being made and key delivery timelines on track, we
look forward to the operational launch in 2025."

 

 

 

About Liberation Labs

Liberation Labs is commercializing precision fermentation with a global
network of purpose-built manufacturing facilities that enable the next wave of
biotechnology advancements to produce bio-based consumer products at scale. We
combine modern technology with fit-for-purpose design to bring reliable and
cost-effective solutions that meet customer demand across the world. More
information is available at (http://www.liberationlabs.com/)
www.liberationlabs.com (http://www.liberationlabs.com/) .

About Ameris Bancorp

Ameris Bancorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
The Company's banking subsidiary, Ameris Bank, had 164 locations in Georgia,
Alabama, Florida, North Carolina and South Carolina at the end of the most
recent quarter.

About Agronomics

 

Agronomics is a leading listed company with a focus on cellular agriculture
and cultivated meat. The Company has established a portfolio of over 20
companies in this rapidly advancing sector. It seeks to invest in companies
owning technologies with defensible intellectual property that offer new ways
of producing food and materials with a focus on products historically derived
from animals. These technologies are driving a major disruption in
agriculture, offering solutions to improve sustainability, as well as
addressing human health, animal welfare and environmental damage. This
disruption will decouple supply chains from the environment and animals and
improve food security for the world's expanding population. A full list of
Agronomics' portfolio companies is available at https://agronomics.im/
(https://agronomics.im/) .

For further information please contact:

 Agronomics           Beaumont              Canaccord Genuity Limited       Cavendish Securities Plc  Peterhouse Capital    SEC Newgate

 Limited              Cornish Limited                                                                 Limited
 The Company          Nomad                 Joint Broker                    Joint Broker              Joint Broker          Public Relations
 Richard Reed         Roland Cornish        Andrew Potts                    Giles Balleny             Lucy Williams         Bob Huxford

 Denham Eke           James Biddle          Harry Rees                      Michael Johnson           Charles Goodfellow    George Esmond

                                            Alex Aylen (Head of Equities)                                                   Anthony Hughes

                                                                                                                            Alice Cho
 +44 (0) 1624 639396  +44 (0) 207 628 3396  +44 (0) 207 523 8000            +44 (0) 207 397 8900      +44 (0) 207 469 0936  agronomics@secnewgate.co.uk

 info@agronomics.im

 

 

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