VANCOUVER, British Columbia, March 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- PRESS RELEASE -- Emerald Health Therapeutics, Inc. has signed a letter of intent under which Sigma Analytical Services Inc., a full-service GMP-compliant testing laboratory for cannabis, hemp and derived products, may acquire Emerald’s Avalite cannabis analytical testing operation. The companies also intend to establish a preferred partner relationship. Terms of the deal have been agreed to in principle and will be announced upon completion. Execution of definitive agreements is subject to due diligence and board approval of both companies and is expected to occur on or before April 19, 2020. Completion of the transaction will be subject to a number of conditions including settlement of final documentation and receipt of applicable regulatory and third-party approvals.

“We are very pleased to expand our testing services in Western Canada. We see many benefits in being physically close to our clients (licensed producers and processors) and building true partnerships with them to enhance the quality of products. This is the main reason why we also started expanding to Colombia in 2019,” said Dr. Kaveh Kahen, president and CEO of Sigma. “We believe having a complete analytical and microbiology testing lab for cannabis in BC would give us the opportunity to establish similar partnerships with the thriving craft cannabis sector, as well as large producers, in British Columbia and Alberta.”

Riaz Bandali, president and chief executive officer of Emerald, said, "We believe the analytical marketplace has excellent growth dynamics based on the positive global trend to legalize cannabis. However, it is necessary to have a critical mass of scientific expertise and scale. In our view, the best growth opportunity for our Avalite operation is to integrate it with a dedicated analytical services company. We are very pleased with the opportunity to move forward with a constructive relationship with Sigma and its group of experts in this segment."