Electra receives extension to avoid delisting
Canadian battery supply chain firm given September deadline to remain listed on Nasdaq
Canadian battery material firm Electra has received a 180-day extension to reverse the downward trajectory of its stock price, after the company fell out of compliance with Nasdaq listing rules.
Electra was given a noncompliance notice in September due to having an insufficient bid price on its shares. The company now has until 16 September to regain Nasdaq's minimum bid requirement of $1/share.
The firm's stock is currently trading just shy of $0.50/share.
"The extension has no immediate effect on the listing or trading of the company’s common shares on the Nasdaq, and the company’s operations are not affected by the receipt of the extension," Electra says.
If Electra fails to regain the minimum bidding price by the new deadline its stock will be delisted, making it difficult for the company to issue equity to raise capital.
Electra is seen as a key player in the emerging North American battery value chain. It has raised several rounds of funding to support battery refining and recycling operations in the Ontario technology cluster, which supplies several OEMs across the US border in Michigan.
Electra recently converted $400,000 worth of debt into equity by issuing shares to holders of convertible notes in place of interest payments.
The company says the move will shore up its balance sheet amid the ramp-up of two major battery material projects in Canada – a black mass recycling operation and North America’s first cobalt sulphate refinery.
The refinery facility – located in Temiskaming Shores, Ontario – will produce approximately 5pc of the global supply of battery grade cobalt needed for EVs, according to the firm.