ORIGINAL: Cease Trade Order Issued by the Ontario Securities Commission
2021-08-09 09:00 ET - News Release
SHERMAN OAKS, CA / ACCESSWIRE / August 9, 2021 / Petroteq Energy Inc. ("Petroteq" or the "Company") (TSXV:PQE)(OTC PINK:PQEFF)(FSE:PQCF), an oil company focused on the development and implementation of its proprietary oil-extraction and remediation technologies, announced today that, in lieu of the management cease trade order that the Company had applied for, it has been issued a Cease Trade Order ("CTO") by the Ontario Securities Commission as a result of its failure to file its quarterly report on Form 10-Q (and related certifications) for the period ended May 31, 2021 on or before July 30, 2021, as required under Canadian National Instrument 51-102 - Continuous Disclosure Obligations, as previously disclosed.
Reference is made to the Company's news release dated July 16, 2021 and its current report on Form 8-K filed with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on July 16, 2021. We currently believe that the liability represented by the secured promissory note issued to Redline Capital Management S.A. on December 27, 2018, in the principal amount of US$6,000,000, should be classified as a contingent liability based on legal counsel's preliminary assessment that the note is not valid and is unenforceable. We have instructed legal counsel to prepare a formal legal opinion upon which we will rely to make our final determination in this regard.
The Company intends to file restatements of its Periodic Financial Statements (as defined in the Company's news release and Form 8-K of July 16, 2021), and to amend and restate other disclosure in the affected periodic reports as appropriate. Once the Periodic Financial Statements are refiled, and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q (and related certifications) for the period ended May 31, 2021 is filed, the CTO should automatically be lifted. Investors who hold restricted securities of the Company are reminded that the resale safe harbor provided by Rule 144 under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, remains unavailable while the Form 10-Q remains outstanding.
The Company continues to operate normally and is working diligently with the auditors, Hay & Watson, to be in a position to file its Documents as soon as practicable. As it was previously announced, the Company intends to file updated financial statements on or before August 13, 2021.
Dr. R.G. Bailey, Chief Executive Officer, commented, "I have been with the Company for many years and throughout my vast experience in the industry, I have seen bumps on the road to success with small companies. I believe that our Company will overcome this event and we will continuously strive to deploy our proprietary eco-friendly technology while doing utmost to enhance our shareholders value".
Despite the CTO, a beneficial security holder of the Company who is not, and was not at the date of the CTO, an insider or control person of the Company, may sell securities of the Company acquired before the date of the CTO if (i) the sale is made through a "foreign organized regulated market", as defined in section 1.1 of the Universal Market Integrity Rules of the Investment Industry Regulatory Organization of Canada ("UMIR"), and (ii) the sale is made through an investment dealer registered in a jurisdiction of Canada in accordance with applicable securities legislation. The OTC Pink Market does not qualify as a "foreign organized regulated market" under UMIR. Holders of Petroteq securities are urged to consult with their own investment advisors or legal counsel about the implications of the CTO.
A copy of the CTO has been posted on the website of the Canadian Securities Administrators at cto-iov.csa-acvm.ca.
About Petroteq Energy Inc.
Petroteq is a clean technology company focused on the development, implementation and licensing of a patented, environmentally safe and sustainable technology for the extraction and reclamation of heavy oil and bitumen from oil sands and mineable oil deposits. The versatile technology can be applied to both water-wet deposits and oil-wet deposits - outputting high-quality oil and clean sand.
Petroteq believes that its technology can produce a relatively sweet heavy crude oil from deposits of oil sands at Asphalt Ridge without requiring the use of water, and therefore without generating wastewater which would otherwise require the use of other treatment or disposal facilities which could be harmful to the environment. Petroteq's process is intended to be a more environmentally friendly extraction technology that leaves clean residual sand that can be sold or returned to the environment, without the use of tailings ponds or further remediation.
For more information, visit www.Petroteq.energy.