Nemaska Lithium Announces Court Order for Interim Distribution of Nominal Amount of USD 350M Senior Secured Bonds

QUÉBEC CITY, Dec. 05, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Nemaska ​​Lithium Inc. (“Nemaska Lithium” or the “Corporation”) (TSX: NMX) (OTCQX: NMKEF) (Frankfurt: N0T) informs the market that the Superior Court of Québec has ordered the Corporation and the Nordic Trustee of the USD 350M nominal amount of the Senior Secured Bonds issued pursuant to the bond offering announced on May 10, 2018 (the “Bonds”), to cooperate so as to cause the escrow manager of the Bonds to distribute to Bondholders from the amounts held in the USD escrow account the USD 350M nominal amount.  The distribution to Bondholders is expected to occur within 15 business days of November 27, 2019 and shall be made in accordance with the Bond Terms and without prejudice to any right of the Bond Trustee under the Bond Terms to withhold funds from, and previously to, such distribution to cover fees, costs, expenses, indemnity or any other amount payable to the Nordic Trustee under the Bond Terms, as the case may be. In connection with the Court Order, it was also agreed to cause the principal amount of the claim under the Bond Terms that is secured on a first-ranking basis to be reduced from USD 350M to USD 100M.

The Court Order has been issued further to the Corporation’s application filed on September 16, 2019 with the Superior Court of Québec, in connection with its arrangement proceedings under the Canada Business Corporations Act, which seeks the discharge of the security which secured the Bonds. The hearing of such application is set for January 2020, in Montréal. It is the Corporation’s view that the Bonds were discharged. The Nordic Trustee considers that the Bonds were not discharged, and that the Corporation owes penalties to Bondholders.

Nothing in the Court order constitutes a ruling of the Court as to the positions raised in or by the ongoing litigation under the Bond Terms and does not constitute an admission of any parties as to the positions or issues raised or any remedy that may be ordered by the Court.

About Nemaska Lithium

Nemaska Lithium Inc. is a developing chemical company whose activities will be vertically integrated, from spodumene mining to the commercialization of high-purity lithium hydroxide. These lithium salts are mainly destined for the fast-growing lithium-ion battery market, which is driven by the increasing demand for electric vehicles and energy storage worldwide. With its products and processes, the Corporation intends to facilitate access to green energy, for the benefit of humanity.