CannTrust to Proceed Immediately With Phase III Construction in Town of Pelham

VAUGHAN, Ontario, January 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ --

CannTrust Holdings Inc. ("CannTrust" or the "Company", TSX: TRST), one of Canada's leading, most trusted licensed producers of cannabis and the 2018 Canadian Cannabis Awards "Top Licensed Producer of the Year", is pleased to announce it has obtained the necessary permitting from the Town of Pelham to proceed with its Phase III expansion with the construction process set to commence immediately.

The revised Phase III expansion is permitted for a footprint of up to 390,000 square feet, compared to the 600,000 square feet in the Company's initial application. However, with enhancements to the Phase III facility above and beyond the specifications initially contemplated, CannTrust maintains its total production capacity forecast of 100,000 kg per year after completion of the Phase III construction.

The enhancements to the Phase III expansion include investing in automation and a higher level of climate control. Given these enhancements and the time it has taken to obtain permitting, construction of the Phase III expansion is expected to be complete in the third quarter of 2020. Initial harvest from the Phase III expansion is expected in the second quarter of 2020 and full production capacity is expected in the second half of 2020. In order to address local concerns from the emission of light from its facilities, CannTrust is proceeding to add additional fan ventilation so its shades can be completely closed, at minimal incremental cost.

"We are pleased with the outcome of the discussions with the Town of Pelham," said Peter Aceto, CEO of CannTrust. "We believe this decision reflects our view that we are a trusted member of the community and that we are intent on listening to our stakeholders. The demand for our medical and recreational products continues to be well in excess of supply and we are keen to move ahead with the Phase III expansion and meet our capacity targets. We also continue to evaluate several strategic alternatives to meet and increase our initial production capacity goals. We are actively pursuing strategic acquisitions of land and facilities, both inside and outside Ontario and hope to update shareholders with these initiatives in due course. Our active patient count continues to increase, and the recreational market is currently undersupplied. We intend to make every effort to serve these markets with our award-winning products."