Titan Global Holdings Announces $15 Million Sale Leaseback Transaction of Appalachian Oil Company Real Estate
DALLAS--Titan Global Holdings, Inc. (OTCBB:TTGL), a high-growth diversified holding company, announced today that in connection with its planned acquisition of Appalachian Oil Company, Inc. (“Appco”), Titan and an institutional investor (“Buyer”) reached an agreement in principal wherein the Buyer will pay $15 million for the 13 properties owned and operated by Appco and four properties owned by Appco but leased to third parties simultaneous with Titan’s acquisition of Appco.
Titan and the sellers of Appco agreed to a closing date of September 12, 2007.
Under the Appco purchase agreement, Titan is to pay Appco’s sellers $30 million in cash and assume certain debts. The sale leaseback transaction of Appco’s real estate will substantially de-leverage Titan’s acquisition of Appco by reducing approximately half its cash requirements to close the transaction. Under the terms of the leaseback, Appco will lease the properties on a conventional twenty-year term with extension options.
Appco will be the first acquisition of the Company’s recently announced Titan Global Energy, which has been formed to aggregate underutilized assets that can provide significant opportunities for revenue and earnings growth, such as the continued vertical integration of the supply chain, as well as future acquisitions to complement Appco’s existing retail and wholesale distribution footprint.
Titan’s management anticipates Appco will generate record revenues in excess of $410 million with increased positive cash flow for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2007. Appco generated $403 million in revenue and was positive cash flow in its fiscal year 2006. Titan projects Appco will maintain or grow revenue from $410 million and generate stronger cash flow and margins for fiscal 2008 as it increases the distribution of biofuels through its established distribution channels. The extent of the improvement in Appco’s cash flow and margins will be subject, among other things, to the availability and deployment of such biofuels which Titan’s management is confident that it is poised to fully exploit.
Titan intends to further Appco’s penetration into the ethanol market through the distribution of biodiesel products. These strategies can increase Appco’s margins while aiding in the protection and preservation of our environment.
Appco, formed in 1923 and based in Blountville, Tennessee, is a privately held petroleum company that owns and operates an extensive petroleum product distribution network. Appco distributes petroleum products to more than 160 dealers in the southeastern United States and owns and operates 56 convenience store locations. Appco has more than 550 employees and maintains long-standing partnerships with strategic terminal operators and major oil companies.
“I have extensive experience in the real estate leaseback space,” said David Marks, Chairman of Titan Global Holdings. “In an effort to de-leverage the acquisition for Titan, strategic Titan investor Frank Crivello and I have structured a leaseback transaction with an institutional investor. We anticipate closing that transaction simultaneously with Titan’s closing of Appco. This is a classic win-win transaction for the Company, the institutional investor and ultimately for Titan shareholders.”
The Buyer has reached an agreement in principal to hire Mr. Marks as the unsalaried President of the special purpose entity that will acquire the real estate. In connection with the management and re-sale of the real estate, Phoenix Investors, LLC, a real estate investment and management firm managed by Mr. Marks, will be retained as a consultant. Under the consulting agreement, Phoenix Investors will be compensated with 20% of the net profits from the eventual re-sale of the properties purchased from Appco as realized.
“I am so pleased that David and Frank were able to engineer this leaseback transaction for Titan. Given our opportunities for growth, be it acquisitions or organic growth, real estate isn’t the best place for us to invest or tie up our capital,” said Bryan Chance, President and Chief Executive Officer of Titan Global Holdings. “With this transaction, which will close simultaneously with our purchase of Appco, we have substantially cut our cash needs. This makes an already compelling transaction exceptional.”
About Titan Global Holdings
Titan Global Holdings, Inc. is a high-growth diversified holding company with a dynamic portfolio of companies engaged in emerging telecommunications markets, advanced technologies and energy. In its last fiscal year Titan generated in excess of $109 million in revenues on a consolidated basis.
Titan’s Oblio Telecom Inc. (“Oblio”) telecommunications subsidiary, based in Richardson, Texas, is a market leader in prepaid telecommunications products and the second largest publicly-owned international telecommunications company focused on the prepaid space. Oblio leverages strategic agreements with Tier 1 telecommunications leaders Sprint and Level3 to supply its brand-name prepaid calling cards. Annually Oblio sells an estimated 35 million of its brand-name prepaid calling cards through its established distribution channels estimated at more than 60,000 retail outlets.
Titan Wireless, Inc. (“T Wireless”) is Titan’s wireless subsidiary and is a mobile virtual network operator (“MVNO”). T Wireless sells its MVNO prepaid wireless products and wireless services through Oblio’s established distribution channels. Titan’s Electronics and Homeland Security division specializes in advanced manufacturing processes to provide commercial production runs and quick-turn delivery of printed circuit board prototypes for high-margin markets including Homeland Security and high-tech clients.
For more information, please visit: www.titanglobalholdings.com. For investor-specific information and resources, visit http://www.trilogy-capital.com/tcp/titan/ or http://www.b2i.us/irpass.asp?BzID=1314&to=ea&s=0. To view current stock quotes and news, visit http://www.trilogy-capital.com/tcp/titan/quote.html. To view an investor fact sheet about the company, visit http://www.trilogy-capital.com/tcp/titan/factsheet.html.
Forward-Looking Statements
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