Green tech company BacTech Environmental Corp. (BAC:CSE;BCCEF:OTC;OBT1:FRA) has started trading on the OTCQB Venture Market in the United States under the ticker symbol BCCEF.
The move will enable easier electronic clearing and settlement of the company’s common shares in the U.S., said Chris Temple, editor and publisher of The National Investor.
The company is building a bioleaching plant in Tenguel, Ecuador, and has opened a pilot facility to recover valuable minerals from pyrrhotite concentrates in Ontario.
The company will continue to be traded on the Canadian Stock Exchange under BAC.
The move will enable easier electronic clearing and settlement of the company’s common shares in the U.S., said Chris Temple, editor and publisher of The National Investor.
“A lot of systems won’t support the so-called gray market or pink sheet activities anymore for U.S. accounts,” Temple said. “It gives them greater liquidity in the U.S.”
The OTCQB Venture Market is the middle tier of the over-the-counter market for U.S. stocks. Companies must meet financial reporting standards and complete verification and certification processes to maintain a listing on the exchange, which was created in 2010.
The process of getting listed is not difficult, but it is “tedious,” Temple said.
The Catalyst
The move improves the accessibility of the company’s equities in the U.S., BacTech President and Chief Executive Officer Ross Orr said.
The company and the government in May signed an Investment Protection Agreement (IPA), giving the company a 12-year income tax holiday and international arbitration for disputes.
“This is really about raising our visibility and legitimacy in the eyes of U.S. investors,” Orr told Streetwise Reports.
Using naturally occurring bacteria, bioleaching makes it possible to work with lower-grade ore and recover metals from tailings sites as well as mines.
As the company likes to say on its website, “Our bugs eat rocks.”
The bacteria chew and oxidize the sulfides in the rock like mortar in a brick wall. Once that mortar is gone, the wall crashes down.
Bioleaching was attempted commercially in South Africa in 1986. There have been more than 20 plants built globally since then.
In Ecuador, BacTech has a construction permit for its plant but is waiting for the environmental permit, which could come from the government at any time.
The company and the government in May signed an Investment Protection Agreement (IPA), giving the company a 12-year income tax holiday and international arbitration for disputes.
Covered in the IPA is US$95.5 million in plant construction and gold activity through 2024 and additional investments and expansions.
The company has also opened a pilot facility to recover nickel, cobalt, iron, and a geopolymer product from pyrrhotite concentrates produced over the last century in Ontario.
Ownership and Share Structure
Nearly half of the company, 49%, is held by insiders, management, and strategic shareholders, the biggest of which is Option Three Advisory Services Ltd., which owns 9.05%, or 15.57 million shares, according to Reuters. That also includes CEO Orr, who owns 3.8% or 6.54 million shares, and Board Director Timothy Lewin, who owns 0.57% or 0.98 million shares.
The company has 173.3 million shares outstanding, including 147.7 million free floating. Its market cap is CA$13.76 million, and it trades in a 52-week range of CA$0.17 and CA$0.08.
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Disclosures:
1) Steve Sobek wrote this article for Streetwise Reports LLC. He or members of his household own securities of the following companies mentioned in the article: None. He or members of his household are paid by the following companies mentioned in this article: None.
2) The following companies mentioned in this article are billboard sponsors of Streetwise Reports: BacTech Environmental Corp. Click here for important disclosures about sponsor fees. The information provided above is for informational purposes only and is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. As of the date of this article, an affiliate of Streetwise Reports has a consulting relationship with BacTech Environmental Corp. Please click here for more information.
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