| ☒ | ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
| ☐ | TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
Delaware | 85-3514078 | |
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) | |
700 Milam Street Suite 3300 Houston, Texas | 77002 | |
(Address of principal executive offices) | (Zip Code) | |
Title of Each Class: | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered: | ||
Units, each consisting of one share of Class A common stock and one-half of one warrant | FLME.U | The New York Stock Exchange | ||
Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share | FLME | The New York Stock Exchange | ||
Warrants, each whole warrant exercisable for one share of Class A Common Stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share | FLME.WS | The New York Stock Exchange |
| Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ☐ | |||
Non-accelerated filer | ☒ | Smaller reporting company | ☒ | |||
| Emerging growth company | ☒ | |||||
Auditor Firm ID: 688 | Auditor Name: Marcum LLP | Auditor Location: New York, NY |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Unless otherwise stated in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, references to:
| • | “we,” “us,” “company” or “our company” are to Flame Acquisition Corp.; |
| • | “Board” refers to our board of directors; |
| • | “common stock” are to our Class A common stock and our Class B common stock, collectively; |
| • | “equity-linked securities” are to are to any securities of our company which are convertible into or exchangeable or exercisable for, shares of Class A common stock of our company, issued in a financing transaction in connection with our initial business combination, including but not limited to a private placement of equity or debt; |
| • | “FL Co-Investment” are to FL Co-Investment LLC, an affiliate of Cowen and Company, LLC; |
| • | “founders” are to our sponsor, FL Co-Investment and Intrepid Financial Partners; |
| • | “founder shares” are to shares of our Class B common stock initially purchased by our founders in a private placement prior to our initial public offering, and the shares of our Class A common stock issued upon the conversion thereof as provided herein; |
| • | “initial stockholders” are to our founders and any other holders of our founder shares prior to our initial public offering; |
| • | “Intrepid Financial Partners” are to Intrepid Financial Partners, L.L.C., an affiliate of Intrepid Partners, LLC; |
| • | “management” or our “management team” refers to our officers; |
| • | “private placement warrants” are to the warrants issued to our initial stockholders in a private placement simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering; |
| • | “public shares” are to shares of our Class A common stock sold as part of the units in our initial public offering (whether they were purchased in the initial public offering or thereafter in the open market); |
| • | “public stockholders” are to the holders of our public shares, including our initial stockholders and members of our management team, Board to the extent any of them purchases public shares, provided that each such initial stockholder’s and individual’s status as a “public stockholder” shall only exist with respect to such public shares; |
| • | “public warrants” are to our warrants sold as part of the units in our initial public offering (whether they were purchased in our initial public offering or thereafter in the open market) and to any private placement warrants or warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans that are sold to third parties that are not initial purchasers or officers or directors (or permitted transferees) following the consummation of our initial business combination; |
| • | “specified future issuance” are to an issuance of a class of equity or equity-linked securities to specified purchasers that we may determine to make in connection with financing our initial business combination; |
| • | “sponsor” are to Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC, a Delaware limited liability company; |
| • | “Trust Account” are to our trust account that holds the proceeds from our initial public offering; |
| • | “units” are the units sold in our initial public offering (whether they were purchased in our initial public offering or thereafter in the open market) and the units sold upon the underwriters’ exercise of their over-allotment option; and |
| • | “warrants” are to our warrants, which includes the public warrants as well as the private placement warrants. |
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
Some of the statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the federal securities laws. Our forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements regarding our or our management team’s expectations, hopes, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future. In addition, any statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions, are forward-looking statements. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. Forward-looking statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may include, for example, statements about:
| • | our ability to select an appropriate target business or businesses; |
| • | our ability to complete our initial business combination, including our recently announced business combination with Sable Offshore Corp., a Texas corporation (“SOC”), and Sable Offshore Holdings, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and the parent company of SOC (“Holdco” and, together with SOC, “Sable”); |
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| • | our success in retaining or recruiting, or changes required in, our officers, key employees or directors following our initial business combination; |
| • | our ability to consummate an initial business combination due to economic uncertainty and volatility in the financial markets; |
| • | our expectations around the performance of a prospective target business or businesses; |
| • | our officers and directors allocating their time to other businesses and potentially having conflicts of interest with our business or in approving our initial business combination, as a result of which they would then receive expense reimbursements; |
| • | our potential ability to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination; |
| • | our pool of prospective target businesses; |
| • | failure to maintain the listing on, or the delisting of our securities from, NYSE or an inability to have our securities listed on NYSE or another national securities exchange following our initial business combination; |
| • | the ability of our officers and directors to generate a number of potential investment opportunities; |
| • | our public securities’ potential liquidity and trading; |
| • | the lack of a market for our securities; |
| • | the use of proceeds not held in the Trust Account or available to us from interest income on the Trust Account balance; |
| • | the Trust Account not being subject to claims of third parties; or |
| • | our financial performance. |
The forward-looking statements contained in this annual report are based on our current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on us. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting us will be those that we have anticipated. These forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) or other assumptions that may cause actual results or performance to be materially different from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, those factors described under the section of this annual report entitled “Risk Factors.” Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary in material respects from those projected in these forward-looking statements. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required under applicable securities laws.
PART I
| Item 1. | Business |
Overview
We are a blank check company incorporated on October 16, 2020 as a Delaware corporation and formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, which we refer to throughout this report as our initial business combination. Although we may pursue our initial business combination in any business, industry or geographic location, we currently intend to focus on opportunities that capitalize on the expertise and ability of our management team, particularly our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, James C. Flores, to identify, acquire and operate a business in the energy industry, primarily targeting the upstream exploration and production sector, midstream sector and companies focused on new advancing technologies that are transformative and provide the potential for and means to achieve greater profitability in the broader energy sector.
Initial Public Offering
On March 1, 2021, we consummated our initial public offering of 28,750,000 units, including 3,750,000 additional units to cover over-allotments. Each unit consists of one share of Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value per share (“Class A common stock”), and one-half of one warrant, each whole warrant entitling the holder to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. The units were sold at an offering price of $10.00 per unit, generating gross proceeds of $287,500,000. Simultaneously with the consummation of the initial public offering and the sale of the units, we consummated the private placement (“private placement”) of an aggregate of 7,750,000 warrants to our sponsor, FL Co-Investment, Intrepid Financial Partners and certain individuals at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, generating total proceeds of $7,750,000.
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A total of $287,500,000 of the net proceeds from our initial public offering (including the over-allotment) and the private placement with our sponsor, FL Co-Investment, Intrepid Financial Partners and certain individuals were deposited in a trust account established for the benefit of our public stockholders.
Our units began trading on February 25, 2021 on the NYSE under the symbol “FLME.U”. On April 19, 2021, the securities comprising the units began separate trading. The common stock and warrants trade on the NYSE under the symbols “FLME” and “FLME.WS,” respectively.
Potential Business Combination
Merger Agreement
On November 2, 2022, we entered into an agreement and plan of merger, dated as of November 2, 2022 (as it may be amended, supplemented, or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Merger Agreement”), with Sable Offshore Corp., a Texas corporation (“SOC”), and Sable Offshore Holdings, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and the parent company of SOC (“Holdco” and, together with SOC, “Sable”). The Merger Agreement provides for, among other things, the following transactions at the closing: (i) Holdco will merge with and into the Company, with the Company surviving the merger (the “Holdco Merger”), and (ii) immediately following the effective time of the Holdco Merger, SOC will merge with and into the Company, with the Company surviving the merger (the “SOC Merger”). The Holdco Merger together with the SOC Merger are referred to as the “Merger,” and the Merger and other transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement are referred to as the “Business Combination.” In connection with the Business Combination, the Company will change its name to Sable Offshore Corp. The independent members of the board of directors of the Company (the “Board”) approved, and recommended that the Board approve, the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby. Subsequently, the Board approved the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby.
The obligations of the parties to consummate the Business Combination are subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain customary closing conditions. The closing of the Merger is expected to occur on the third business day after the satisfaction or waiver (if legally permissible) of the conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement, except as otherwise mutually agreed by the parties. The Merger Agreement may be terminated under certain customary and limited circumstances at any time prior to the Closing and the Company can provide no assurance that the Business Combination will be consummated at the expected time, or at all.
On November 10, 2022, we filed a preliminary proxy statement relating to the Business Combination (as amended, the “Proxy Statement”), which included a recommendation of the Board to the Company’s stockholders that they approve the proposals included in the Proxy Statement. For more information on the Business Combination and the transactions contemplated thereby, please refer to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022 and the Company’s preliminary proxy statement on Schedule 14A filed with the SEC on November 10, 2022 (as amended from time to time, including on December 23, 2022 and January 27, 2023).
PIPE Subscription Agreements
In connection with the Business Combination, Holdco, during the year ended December 31, 2022, and through the date of the filing of this Annual report on Form 10-K, has entered into subscription agreements (the “Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements”) with certain investors (such investors, the “Sable PIPE Investors”), pursuant to which the Sable PIPE Investors agreed to purchase, in the aggregate, 74,500,000 limited liability company membership interests in Holdco designated as Class B shares at $10.00 per share, for an aggregate commitment amount of approximately $74,500,000 (the “Sable PIPE Investment”).
The Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements provide that, in the event the Merger is consummated, the Sable PIPE Investors will be deemed to have subscribed for and will purchase our Class A common stock at the same price per share and, by operation of law pursuant to the Merger, we will have succeeded to Holdco’s obligations under the Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements. The Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements provide that, if the Merger is consummated, we must file a registration statement within 30 calendar days after consummation of the Merger registering the resale of the shares of our Class A common stock issued to the Sable PIPE Investors, and must use our commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC by the earlier of (i) the 90th calendar day (or 120th calendar day if the SEC notifies us that it will review the registration statement) following the closing of the Merger and (ii) the 10th business day after the date we are notified (orally or in writing, whichever is earlier) by the SEC that the registration statement will not be reviewed or will not be subject to further review. We thereafter will be required to maintain a registration statement that is continuously effective and to cause the registration statement to regain effectiveness in the event that it ceases to be effective.
We intend to pursue additional private placement subscriptions under substantially similar subscription agreements (with revisions to reflect that we are entering into such subscription agreements and the subscribers will be subscribing for our Class A common stock directly) prior to the closing of the Business Combination (the “Flame PIPE Subscription Agreements”), provided that such additional subscriptions, together with the Sable PIPE Investment, will not exceed $400 million. The Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements and the Flame PIPE Subscription Agreements are referred to collectively as the “PIPE Subscription Agreements,” and the Sable PIPE
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Investors and any investors who enter into Flame PIPE Subscription Agreements are refereed to collectively as the “PIPE Investors.” The foregoing description of the Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the form Sable PIPE Subscription Agreement filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022.
Registration Rights Agreement
The Merger Agreement provides that, at the closing of the Business Combination, the holders of Holdco Class A shares immediately prior to the effective time of the Holdco Merger will enter into a registration rights agreement with us (the “Registration Rights Agreement”) pursuant to which the holders will be granted certain registration rights with respect to the Flame Class A common stock to be received as consideration in the Merger.
Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, we will agree to file a registration statement within 30 calendar days after the consummation of the Merger registering the resale of the registrable securities under the Registration Rights Agreement, and we must use our commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC by the earlier of (i) the 90th calendar day (or 120th calendar day if the SEC notifies us that it will review the registration statement) following the closing of the Merger and (ii) the 10th business day after the date we are notified (orally or in writing, whichever is earlier) by the SEC that the registration statement will not be reviewed or will not be subject to further review. We thereafter will be required to maintain a registration statement that is continuously effective and to cause the registration statement to regain effectiveness in the event that it ceases to be effective. At any time the registration statement is effective, any holder signatory to the Registration Rights Agreement may request, one time in any 12-month period, to sell all or a portion of its securities that are registrable in an underwritten offering pursuant to the registration statement for a total offering price reasonably expected to exceed, in the aggregate, $25 million. In addition, the holders will have certain “piggyback” registration rights with respect to registrations initiated by us and other Flame stockholders. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any registration statements pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, subject to limited exceptions.
Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, the holders of Holdco Class A shares immediately prior to the effective time of the Holdco Merger, subject to limited exceptions, will agree to a lock-up on their shares of our Class A common stock, pursuant to which such parties will agree to not transfer shares of our Class A common stock held by such parties for a period of three years following the closing of the Business Combination.
The foregoing description of the Registration Rights Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the form Registration Rights Agreement filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022.
Recent Events
On February 21, 2023, to mitigate the risk of us being deemed to have been operating as an unregistered investment company (including under the subjective test of Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act), the investments in U.S. government securities or money market funds held in the Trust Account were liquidated to thereafter be held in cash (which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank) until earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination and (ii) the distribution of the funds in the Trust Account to the Company’s stockholders.
On February 27, 2023, at a special meeting of stockholders, the Company’s stockholders voted to approve an amendment (the “Extension Amendment Proposal”) to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation to extend the date by which the Company must complete a business combination (the “Extension”) from March 1, 2023, to September 1, 2023 (the “Extended Date”). In connection with the Extension, stockholders holding 20,317,255 shares of Class A Common Stock exercised their right to redeem such shares for a pro rata portion of the funds in the Trust Account, representing approximately 70.67% of our issued and outstanding Class A ordinary shares. As a result, $206,121,060 (approximately $10.15 per share) was removed from the Trust Account to pay such redeeming holders on March 2, 2023.
On February 27, 2023, in connection with the Extension, we filed an amendment (the “Extension Amendment”) to our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware. The Extension Amendment extends the date by which we must consummate our initial business combination from March 1, 2023 to September 1, 2023.
Acquisition Criteria
Consistent with our strategy, we have identified the following general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses and, in evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct a thorough due diligence review that will encompass, among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews and inspection of facilities, as applicable, as well as a review of financial and other information that will be made available to us.
| • | Attractive Returns. Acquire a business at a valuation that will offer attractive long-term risk-adjusted equity returns for our shareholders. |
| • | Significant Free Cash Flow. Assets located in the United States with significant reserves classified as “proved developed producing” that have a history of free cash flow generation after capital requirements while holding production levels flat or growing them on a year-over-year basis. |
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| • | Low Risk Development Upside. Assets within a high-quality reservoir that has proven to be productive with undeveloped or underdeveloped inventory that would be economic to develop based on forward strip pricing. |
| • | High Operational Control. Assets over which we will have significant operational control that will allow our management team to utilize its operational expertise to reduce costs, increase production or otherwise optimize operations that will result in improved economics and returns to shareholders. We expect this operational control to allow our management team to control future capital deployment based on market conditions and risk-adjusted returns on capital. |
| • | Conservative Leverage Profile. Acquiring a business with conservative leverage profile would allow us to be opportunistic and to weather commodity price cycles. |
| • | Bolt-on Acquisition Opportunities. Assets in areas of operation where there could be follow-on acquisition opportunities that allow us to leverage its initial operating platform and realize operating and financial synergies associated with consolidation. |
| • | Access to Infrastructure and End Markets. Gathering and processing infrastructure and favorable contracts that are not expected to overly burden cash flows when prices are at low levels and allow our company to have sufficient capacity to develop future reserves and grow our production volumes when market conditions warrant. |
| • | Health, Safety and Environmental Stewardship. Historical track record of successful performance in the health, safety and environmental aspects of operating a business or the ability to reach such standards by using our team’s operating experience and track record. |
These criteria are not intended to be exhaustive. Any evaluation relating to the merits of a particular initial business combination may be based, to the extent relevant, on these general guidelines as well as other considerations, factors and criteria that from time to time our management may deem relevant. In the event that we decide to enter into our initial business combination with a target business that does not meet the above criteria, we will disclose that the target business does not meet the above criteria in our shareholder communications related to our initial business combination, which, as discussed in this annual report, would be in the form of proxy solicitation or tender offer materials that we would file with the SEC.
Our Business Strategy
Our acquisition and value creation strategy is to identify and acquire businesses with high quality assets with substantial upside potential supported by substantial free cash flow, and significant operational control that we believe provide attractive long-term capital returns. Fundamentally sound businesses can underperform their full potential due to numerous factors, including periods of dislocation in the markets in which they operate, excessive operating cost structures, over-levered capital structures, underinvestment, lack of access to capital, general mismanagement and/or misguided business strategies. Our team has extensive experience in identifying and executing such acquisitions in the energy industry across multiple energy market cycles.
We expect to develop our pipeline of opportunities for a potential business combination through our team’s substantial experience, deep relationships and extensive network of corporate executives, board members, private equity firms, family offices, investment bankers, lawyers, investors, lenders and other service providers to the industry. By utilizing this approach in the past, members of our team have helped build large public and private platforms in the energy space.
Our selection process will leverage our team’s broad and deep relationship network, distinct industry experiences and extensive deal-sourcing capabilities to access a broad spectrum of differentiated target opportunities. We expect to utilize this network which was developed through our team’s broad experience, with demonstrated success in both investing in and operating businesses in the E&P and midstream sectors and at various stages of these companies’ life cycles. We have developed a distinctive combination of capabilities, which includes:
| • | an established track record of building industry-leading companies; |
| • | growing companies with accretive acquisitions under various market conditions by leveraging our extensive deal-sourcing network and employing our proven transaction execution/structuring capabilities; |
| • | deploying value creation strategies, including delivering operating efficiencies through balanced cost reduction and production growth and allocating capital spending to high-return opportunities; and |
| • | extensive capital markets experience across various business cycles, including financing businesses and assisting companies with transition to public ownership. |
We intend to focus our efforts on opportunities where our team’s strategic vision, operating expertise, deep relationships and capital markets experience can be catalysts to enhance the growth, competitive position and financial upside in an initial business combination. We intend to identify and execute an initial business combination within the energy value chain in the United States, although we may pursue targets in any business, industry, sector or geographical location. Our team has an established history in identifying and capitalizing on key trends that have shaped the energy industry and has helped build leading platforms to scale within the marketplace.
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Industry Opportunity
We believe our team’s extensive and diversified experience in the energy industry will help us to effectively evaluate acquisition targets. We believe that assets in the energy value chain continue to be compelling and attractive for a number of reasons:
| • | Strong Core Industry Fundamentals. Despite current market sentiment, projections for crude oil and natural gas suggest demand growth for many years before reaching its peak, while E&P companies have reacted to low commodity prices as a result of oversupply and the COVID-19 pandemic by reducing growth capital spending. Natural gas is also viewed as a bridge fuel to more sustainable and environmentally-friendly forms of electricity generation. The United States has recently become a global leader in natural gas resource development and is a growing LNG exporter. We believe investors have fundamentally changed their investment criteria for the E&P industry from high production growth targets to disciplined growth, focusing primarily on total returns and returns of cash to investors. |
| • | Large Target Market. The energy industry, and the E&P industry in particular, is highly fragmented with hundreds of companies ranging from start-ups to large corporations. Many non-investment grade companies have struggled with excess leverage and have been forced to restructure their operations. Other companies have looked to reduce their leverage through asset sales. Historically, the E&P industry has used asset sales as one of its key funding sources for capital spending. The absence of capital availability and an active M&A market to raise vital cash proceeds leads us to believe that many public and private companies currently lack the financial health and operating capabilities to succeed in this environment. |
| • | Lack of Competition. Sustained low commodity prices have deeply impacted the financial health and access to capital for many public and private energy companies, combined with many public and private equity and debt investors exiting the industry. We believe the exodus of capital providers creates a distinct window of opportunity for energy focused SPACs to fill the void and pursue acquisitions in a buyer’s market. |
| • | Management Experience Through Cycles Required to Succeed. With investors leaving the energy industry and a need for substantial consolidation given the new operating environment, we believe there is a need for managers that have M&A experience, who can manage the demands of operating a public company and have the experience of successfully navigating and taking advantage of the various commodity price cycles that the industry has seen in the past and will likely see in the future. |
Initial Business Combination
So long as our securities are then listed on the NYSE, our initial business combination must occur with one or more target businesses that together have an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in the Trust Account (net of amounts disbursed to management for working capital purposes and excluding the amount of any deferred underwriting commissions held in the Trust Account) at the time of our initial business combination. We refer to this as the 80% of net assets test. If our Board is not able to independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or an independent valuation or appraisal firm with respect to the satisfaction of such criteria. While we consider it unlikely that our Board will not be able to make an independent determination of the fair market value of a target business or businesses, it may be unable to do so if the Board is less familiar or experienced with the target company’s business, there is a significant amount of uncertainty as to the value of the company’s assets or prospects, including if such company is at an early stage of development, operations or growth, or if the anticipated transaction involves a complex financial analysis or other specialized skills and the Board determines that outside expertise would be helpful or necessary in conducting such analysis. Since any opinion, if obtained, would merely state that the fair market value of the target business meets the 80% of net assets threshold, unless such opinion includes material information regarding the valuation of a target business or the consideration to be provided, it is not anticipated that copies of such opinion would be distributed to our shareholders. However, if required under applicable law, any proxy statement that we deliver to shareholders and file with the SEC in connection with a proposed transaction will include such opinion.
We anticipate structuring our initial business combination so that the post-business combination company in which our public shareholders own shares will own or acquire 100% of the equity interests or assets of the target business or businesses. We may, however, structure our initial business combination such that the post-business combination company owns or acquires less than 100% of such interests or assets of the target business in order to meet certain objectives of the target management team or shareholders or for other reasons, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-business combination company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the “Investment Company Act”). Even if the post-business combination company owns or acquires 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our shareholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-business combination company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination. For example, we could pursue a
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transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% controlling interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares, our shareholders immediately prior to our initial business combination could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares subsequent to our initial business combination. If less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business or businesses are owned or acquired by the post-business combination company, the portion of such business or businesses that is owned or acquired is what will be valued for purposes of the 80% of net assets test. If the business combination involves more than one target business, the 80% of net assets test will be based on the aggregate value of all of the target businesses. In addition, we have agreed not to enter into a definitive agreement regarding an initial business combination without the prior consent of our sponsor. If our securities are not then listed on the NYSE for whatever reason, we would no longer be required to meet the foregoing 80% of net assets test.
To the extent we effect our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in such company or business. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all significant risk factors.
The time required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which our initial business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination.
Our Acquisition Process
In evaluating a prospective target business, we expect to conduct an extensive due diligence review which may encompass, as applicable and among other things, meetings with incumbent management and employees, document reviews, interviews of customers and suppliers, inspection of facilities and a review of financial, operational, legal, regulatory and other information about the target and its industry. We will also utilize our team’s operational and capital planning experience.
Members of our management team may directly or indirectly own our common stock and/or private placement warrants, may have a conflict of interest in determining whether a particular target business is an appropriate business with which to effectuate our initial business combination. Further, each of our officers and directors may have a conflict of interest with respect to evaluating a particular business combination if the retention or resignation of any such officers and directors is included by a target business as a condition to any agreement with respect to our initial business combination.
Certain of our officers and directors presently have, and any of them in the future may have additional, fiduciary or contractual obligations to other entities pursuant to which such officer or director is or will be required to present a business combination opportunity to such entity subject to his or her fiduciary duties. In addition, certain of our sponsor, officers and directors have sponsored, formed and participated in, and may, in the future, sponsor, form or participate in other blank check companies similar to ours during the period in which we are seeking an initial business combination. As a result, if any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity which is suitable for an entity to which he or she has then-current fiduciary or contractual obligations, then, subject to such officer’s and director’s fiduciary duties under Delaware law, he or she will need to honor such fiduciary or contractual obligations to present such business combination opportunity to such entity, before we can pursue such opportunity. If these other entities decide to pursue any such opportunity, we may be precluded from pursuing the same. We do not believe, however, that the fiduciary duties or contractual obligations of our officers or directors will materially affect our ability to identify and pursue business combination opportunities or to complete our initial business combination. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we renounce our interest in any business combination opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of the company and it is an opportunity that we are able to complete on a reasonable basis.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a company that is affiliated with our initial stockholders or any of our officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, will obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or another independent entity that commonly renders valuation opinions that our initial business combination is fair to our company. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context.
Status as a Public Company
We believe our structure will make us an attractive business combination partner to target businesses. As an existing public company, we offer a target business an alternative to the traditional initial public offering through a merger or other business combination. In this situation, the owners of the target business would exchange their shares of stock in the target business for shares of our stock or for a combination of shares of our stock and cash, allowing us to tailor the consideration to the specific needs of the sellers. Although there are various costs and obligations associated with being a public company, we believe target businesses will find this method a more certain and cost effective method to becoming a public company than the typical initial public offering. In a typical initial public offering, there are additional expenses incurred in marketing, road show and public reporting efforts that may not be present to the same extent in connection with a business combination with us.
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Furthermore, once a proposed business combination is completed, the target business will have effectively become public, whereas an initial public offering is always subject to the underwriters’ ability to complete the offering, as well as general market conditions, which could delay or prevent the offering from occurring or could have negative valuation consequences. Once public, we believe the target business would then have greater access to capital and an additional means of providing management incentives consistent with stockholders’ interests. It can offer further benefits by augmenting a company’s profile among potential new customers and vendors and aid in attracting talented employees.
We are an “emerging growth company,” as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the “JOBS Act”). As such, we are eligible to take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not “emerging growth companies” including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a non-binding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the prices of our securities may be more volatile.
In addition, Section 107 of the JOBS Act also provides that an “emerging growth company” can take advantage of the extended transition period provided in Section 7(a)(2)(B) of the Securities Act for complying with new or revised accounting standards. In other words, an “emerging growth company” can delay the adoption of certain accounting standards until those standards would otherwise apply to private companies.
We will remain an emerging growth company until the earlier of (1) the last day of the fiscal year (a) following the fifth anniversary of the completion of our initial public offering, (b) in which we have total annual gross revenue of at least $1.235 billion (as adjusted for inflation pursuant to SEC rules from time to time), or (c) in which we are deemed to be a “large accelerated filer” as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Exchange Act, and (2) the date on which we have issued more than $1.0 billion in non-convertible debt securities in any three-year period.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of any fiscal year for so long as either (1) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates did not exceed $250 million as of the prior June 30, or (2) our annual revenues did not exceed $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates did not exceed $700 million as of the prior June 30.
Effecting our Initial Business Combination
We intend to complete our initial business combination using cash from the proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our capital stock, debt or a combination of these as the consideration to be paid in our initial business combination. We may seek to complete our initial business combination with a company or business that may be financially unstable or in its early stages of development or growth, which would subject us to the numerous risks inherent in such companies and businesses.
If our initial business combination is paid for using equity or debt securities, or not all of the funds released from the Trust Account are used for payment of the consideration in connection with our initial business combination or used for redemptions of our Class A common stock, we may apply the balance of the cash released to us from the Trust Account for general corporate purposes, including for maintenance or expansion of operations of the post-transaction company, the payment of principal or interest due on indebtedness incurred in completing our initial business combination, to fund the purchase of other assets, companies or for working capital.
We may seek to raise additional funds through a private offering of debt or equity securities in connection with the completion of our initial business combination (which may include a specified future issuance), and we may complete our initial business combination using the proceeds of such offering rather than using the amounts held in the Trust Account. Subject to compliance with applicable securities laws, we would expect to complete such financing only simultaneously with the completion of our initial business combination. In the case of an initial business combination funded with assets other than the Trust Account assets, our tender offer documents or proxy materials disclosing the business combination would disclose the terms of the financing and, only if required by law, we would seek stockholder approval of such financing. There are no prohibitions on our ability to raise funds privately, including pursuant to any specified future issuance, or through loans in connection with our initial business combination.
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The time required to select and evaluate a target business and to structure and complete our initial business combination, and the costs associated with this process, are not currently ascertainable with any degree of certainty. Any costs incurred with respect to the identification and evaluation of a prospective target business with which our initial business combination is not ultimately completed will result in our incurring losses and will reduce the funds we can use to complete another business combination.
Sources of Target Businesses
We expect to receive a number of proprietary transaction opportunities to evaluate as a result of the business relationships, direct outreach and deal sourcing activities of our officers and directors. In addition to the proprietary deal flow, we anticipate that target business candidates will be brought to our attention from various unaffiliated sources, including investment banking firms, consultants, accounting firms, private equity groups, large business enterprises, and other market participants. These sources may also introduce us to target businesses in which they think we may be interested on an unsolicited basis, since many of these sources will have read our public filings and know what types of businesses we are targeting. Our officers and directors, as well as their affiliates, may also bring to our attention target business candidates that they become aware of through their business contacts as a result of formal or informal inquiries or discussions they may have, as well as attending trade shows or conventions. Some of our officers or directors may enter into employment or consulting agreements with the post-transaction company following our initial business combination. The presence or absence of any such fees or arrangements will not be used as a criterion in our selection process of an acquisition candidate. In no event will our sponsor or any of our existing officers or directors, or any entity with which they are affiliated, be paid any finder’s fee, consulting fee or other compensation prior to, or for any services they render in order to effectuate, the completion of our initial business combination (regardless of the type of transaction that it is). However, in connection with the successful completion of our initial business combination, we may determine to provide a payment to our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or our or their affiliates, which payment would not be made from the proceeds of our initial public offering held in the Trust Account. We currently do not have any agreement or arrangement with our sponsor, any of our officers, directors, advisors or our or their affiliates to make any such payments.
We are not prohibited from pursuing an initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors or making the acquisition through a joint venture or other form of shared ownership with our sponsor, officers or directors. In the event we seek to complete our initial business combination with a business combination target that is affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors, we, or a committee of independent directors, would obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm which is a member of FINRA or an independent accounting firm that such an initial business combination is fair to our company from a financial point of view. We are not required to obtain such an opinion in any other context. If any of our officers or directors becomes aware of a business combination opportunity that falls within the line of business of any entity to which he or she has pre-existing fiduciary or contractual obligations, he or she may be required to present such business combination opportunity to such entity prior to presenting such business combination opportunity to us. Any such entity may co-invest with us in the target business at the time of our initial business combination, or we could raise additional proceeds to complete the acquisition by making a specified future issuance to any such entity.
Lack of Business Diversification
For an indefinite period of time after the completion of our initial business combination, the prospects for our success may depend entirely on the future performance of a single business. Unlike other entities that have the resources to complete business combinations with multiple entities in one or several industries, it is probable that we will not have the resources to diversify our operations and mitigate the risks of being in a single line of business. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may:
| • | subject us to negative economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact on the particular industry in which we may operate after our initial business combination; and |
| • | cause us to depend on the marketing and sale of a single product or limited number of products or services. |
Limited Ability to Evaluate the Target’s Management Team
Although we intend to closely scrutinize the management of a prospective target business when evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with that business, our assessment of the target business’s management may not prove to be correct. In addition, the future management may not have the necessary skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company. Furthermore, the future role of members of our management team, if any, in the target business cannot presently be stated with any certainty. The determination as to whether any of the members of our management team will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination. While it is possible that one or more of our directors will remain associated in some capacity with us following our initial business combination, it is unlikely that any of them will devote their full efforts to our affairs subsequent to our initial business combination. Moreover, we cannot assure you that members of our management team will have significant experience or knowledge relating to the operations of the particular target business.
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We cannot assure you that any of our key personnel will remain in senior management or advisory positions with the combined company. The determination as to whether any of our key personnel will remain with the combined company will be made at the time of our initial business combination.
Following a business combination, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Stockholders May Not Have the Ability to Approve our Initial Business Combination
We may conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC. However, we will seek stockholder approval if it is required by law or applicable stock exchange rule, or we may decide to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons. Presented in the table below is a graphic explanation of the types of initial business combinations we may consider and whether stockholder approval is currently required under Delaware law for each such transaction.
Type of Transaction | Whether Stockholder Approval is Required | |||
Purchase of assets | No | |||
Purchase of stock of target not involving a merger with the company | No | |||
Merger of target into a subsidiary of the company | No | |||
Merger of the company with a target | Yes | |||
Under the NYSE’s listing rules, stockholder approval would be required for our initial business combination if, for example:
| • | we issue shares of Class A common stock that will be (a) equal to or in excess of 20% of the number of shares of our Class A common stock then outstanding or (b) have voting power equal to or in excess of 20% of the voting power then outstanding; |
| • | any of our directors, officers or substantial security holders (as defined by the NYSE rules) has a 5% or greater interest, directly or indirectly, in the target business or assets to be acquired or otherwise and the present or potential issuance of common stock could result in an increase in outstanding common stock or voting power of 1% or more (or 5% or more if the related party involved is classified as such solely because such person is a substantial security holder); or |
| • | the issuance or potential issuance of common stock will result in our undergoing a change of control. |
The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination in those instances in which stockholder approval is not required by applicable law or stock exchange rule will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on business and other reasons, which include a variety of factors, including, but not limited to:
| • | the timing of the transaction, including in the event we determine stockholder approval would require additional time and there is either not enough time to seek stockholder approval or doing so would place the company at a disadvantage in the transaction or result in other additional burdens on the company; |
| • | the expected cost of holding a stockholder vote; |
| • | the risk that the stockholders would fail to approve the proposed business combination; |
| • | other time and budget constraints of the company; and |
| • | additional legal complexities of a proposed business combination that would be time-consuming and burdensome to present to stockholders. |
Permitted Purchases of Our Securities
In the event we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our founders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase public shares or public warrants in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination. There is no limit on the number of shares our founders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and the rules of the NYSE. However, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for
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any such transactions. None of the funds in the Trust Account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions. If they engage in such transactions, they will be restricted from making any such purchases when they are in possession of any material non-public information not disclosed to the seller or if such purchases are prohibited by Regulation M under the Exchange Act. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. In the event that our founders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. We do not currently anticipate that such purchases, if any, would constitute a tender offer subject to the tender offer rules under the Exchange Act or a going-private transaction subject to the going-private rules under the Exchange Act; however, if the purchasers determine at the time of any such purchases that the purchases are subject to such rules, the purchasers will comply with such rules.
The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to (i) vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or (ii) to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our initial business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our common stock may be reduced and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, which may make it difficult to maintain or obtain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
Our founders, officers, directors, advisors and/or their affiliates anticipate that they may identify the stockholders with whom our founders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates may pursue privately negotiated purchases by either the stockholders contacting us directly or by our receipt of redemption requests submitted by stockholders following our mailing of proxy materials in connection with our initial business combination. To the extent that our founders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates enter into a private purchase, they would identify and contact only potential selling stockholders who have expressed their election to redeem their shares for a pro rata share of the Trust Account or vote against the business combination. Our founders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates will only purchase shares if such purchases comply with Regulation M under the Exchange Act and the other federal securities laws.
Any purchases by our founders, officers, directors, advisors and/or their affiliates who are affiliated purchasers under Rule 10b-18 under the Exchange Act will only be made to the extent such purchases are able to be made in compliance with Rule 10b-18, which is a safe harbor from liability for manipulation under Section 9(a)(2) and Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Rule 10b-18 has certain technical requirements that must be complied with in order for the safe harbor to be available to the purchaser. Our founders, officers, directors, advisors and/or their affiliates will not make purchases of common stock if the purchases would violate Section 9(a)(2) or Rule 10b-5 of the Exchange Act. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent such purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.
Redemption Rights for Public Stockholders upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account as of two business days prior to the consummation of the initial business combination including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account, divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, subject to the limitations described herein. The amount in the Trust Account is initially anticipated to be approximately $10.00 per public share. The per-share amount we will distribute to investors who properly redeem their shares will not be reduced by the Marketing Fee we will pay to the underwriters. The redemption rights will include the requirement that a beneficial holder must identify itself in order to validly redeem its shares. Our founders, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity.
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Manner of Conducting Redemptions
We will provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their shares of Class A common stock upon the completion of our initial business combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the business combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would require us to seek stockholder approval under the law or stock exchange listing requirement. Asset acquisitions and stock purchases would not typically require stockholder approval while direct mergers with our company where we do not survive and any transactions where we issue more than 20% of our outstanding common stock or seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation would require stockholder approval. If we structure a business combination transaction with a target company in a manner that requires stockholder approval, we will not have discretion as to whether to seek a stockholder vote to approve the proposed business combination. We intend to conduct redemptions without a stockholder vote pursuant to the tender offer rules of the SEC unless stockholder approval is required by law or stock exchange listing requirements or we choose to seek stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons. So long as we obtain and maintain a listing for our securities on the NYSE, we will be required to comply with such rules.
If a stockholder vote is not required and we do not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
| • | conduct the redemptions pursuant to Rule 13e-4 and Regulation 14E of the Exchange Act, which regulate issuer tender offers, and |
| • | file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing our initial business combination that contain substantially the same financial and other information about the initial business combination and the redemption rights as is required under Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies. |
Upon the public announcement of our initial business combination, we or our sponsor will terminate any plan established in accordance with Rule 10b5-1 to purchase shares of our Class A common stock in the open market if we elect to redeem our public shares through a tender offer, to comply with Rule 14e-5 under the Exchange Act.
In the event that we conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, our offer to redeem will remain open for at least 20 business days, in accordance with Rule 14e-1(a) under the Exchange Act, and we will not be permitted to complete our initial business combination until the expiration of the tender offer period. In addition, the tender offer will be conditioned on public stockholders not tendering more than a specified number of public shares which are not purchased by our founders, which number will be based on the requirement that we may not redeem public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. If public stockholders tender more shares than we have offered to purchase, we will withdraw the tender offer and not complete the initial business combination.
If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law or stock exchange listing requirement, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons, we will, pursuant to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation:
| • | conduct the redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to Regulation 14A of the Exchange Act, which regulates the solicitation of proxies, and not pursuant to the tender offer rules; and |
| • | file proxy materials with the SEC. |
In the event that we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, we will distribute proxy materials and, in connection therewith, provide our public stockholders with the redemption rights described above upon completion of the initial business combination.
If we seek stockholder approval, we will complete our initial business combination only if a majority of the outstanding shares of common stock voted are voted in favor of the business combination. A quorum for such meeting will consist of the holders present in person or by proxy of shares of outstanding capital stock of the company representing a majority of the voting power of all outstanding shares of capital stock of the company entitled to vote at such meeting. Our initial stockholders will count toward this quorum and have agreed to vote their founder shares and any public shares purchased during or after our initial public offering in favor of our initial business combination. For purposes of seeking approval of the majority of our outstanding shares of common stock voted, non-votes will have no effect on the approval of our initial business combination once a quorum is obtained. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ founder shares, we would need 622,623, or 7.4%, of the 8,432,745 currently outstanding public shares sold in our initial public offering to be voted in favor of a transaction (assuming all outstanding shares are voted) in order to have our initial business combination approved. We intend to give approximately 30 days (but not less than 10 days nor more than 60 days) prior written notice of any such meeting, if required, at which a vote shall be taken to approve our initial business combination. These quorum and voting thresholds, and the voting agreement of our founders, directors and officers may make it more likely that we will consummate our initial business combination. Each public stockholder may elect to redeem its public shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction.
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Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement which may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. For example, the proposed business combination may require: (i) cash consideration to be paid to the target or its owners, (ii) cash to be transferred to the target for working capital or other general corporate purposes or (iii) the retention of cash to satisfy other conditions in accordance with the terms of the proposed business combination. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, and all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof.
Limitation on Redemption upon Completion of our Initial Business Combination if we Seek Stockholder Approval
Notwithstanding the foregoing, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of our shares (the “Excess Shares”). We believe this restriction will discourage stockholders from accumulating large blocks of shares, and subsequent attempts by such holders to use their ability to exercise their redemption rights against a proposed business combination as a means to force us or our management to purchase their shares at a significant premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. Absent this provision, a public stockholder holding more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our initial public offering could threaten to exercise its redemption rights if such holder’s shares are not purchased by us or our management at a premium to the then-current market price or on other undesirable terms. By limiting our stockholders’ ability to redeem no more than 15% of our shares, we believe we will limit the ability of a small group of stockholders to unreasonably attempt to block our ability to complete our initial business combination, particularly in connection with a business combination with a target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will not restrict our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination.
Tendering Stock Certificates in Connection with a Tender Offer or Redemption Rights
We may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically using the Depository Trust Company’s DWAC (Deposit/Withdrawal At Custodian) System, at the holder’s option. The tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will indicate whether we are requiring public stockholders to satisfy such delivery requirements. Accordingly, a public stockholder would have from the time we send out our tender offer materials until the close of the tender offer period, or up to two days prior to the vote on the business combination if we distribute proxy materials, as applicable, to tender its shares if it wishes to seek to exercise its redemption rights. Pursuant to the tender offer rules, the tender offer period will be not less than 20 business days and, in the case of a stockholder vote, a final proxy statement would be mailed to public stockholders at least ten days prior to the stockholder vote. However, we expect that a draft proxy statement would be made available to such stockholders well in advance of such time, providing additional notice of redemption if we conduct redemptions in conjunction with a proxy solicitation. Given the relatively short exercise period, it is advisable for stockholders to use electronic delivery of their public shares.
There is a nominal cost associated with the above-referenced tendering process and the act of certificating the shares or delivering them through the DWAC System. The transfer agent will typically charge the tendering broker $80.00 and it would be up to the broker whether or not to pass this cost on to the redeeming holder. However, this fee would be incurred regardless of whether or not we require holders seeking to exercise redemption rights to tender their shares. The need to deliver shares is a requirement of exercising redemption rights regardless of the timing of when such delivery must be effectuated.
The foregoing is different from the procedures used by many blank check companies. In order to perfect redemption rights in connection with their business combinations, many blank check companies would distribute proxy materials for the stockholders’ vote on an initial business combination, and a holder could simply vote against a proposed business combination and check a box on the proxy card indicating such holder was seeking to exercise his or her redemption rights. After the business combination was approved, the company would contact such stockholder to arrange for him or her to deliver his or her certificate to verify ownership. As a result, the stockholder then had an “option window” after the completion of the business combination during which he or she could monitor
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the price of the company’s stock in the market. If the price rose above the redemption price, he or she could sell his or her shares in the open market before actually delivering his or her shares to the company for cancellation. As a result, the redemption rights, to which stockholders were aware they needed to commit before the stockholder meeting, would become “option” rights surviving past the completion of the business combination until the redeeming holder delivered its certificate. The requirement for physical or electronic delivery prior to the meeting ensures that a redeeming holder’s election to redeem is irrevocable once the business combination is approved.
Any request to redeem such shares, once made, may be withdrawn at any time up to the date set forth in the tender offer materials or the date of the stockholder meeting set forth in our proxy materials, as applicable. Furthermore, if a holder of a public share delivered its certificate in connection with an election of redemption rights and subsequently decides prior to the applicable date not to elect to exercise such rights, such holder may simply request that the transfer agent return the certificate (physically or electronically). It is anticipated that the funds to be distributed to holders of our public shares electing to redeem their shares will be distributed promptly after the completion of our initial business combination.
If our initial business combination is not approved or completed for any reason, then our public stockholders who elected to exercise their redemption rights would not be entitled to redeem their shares for the applicable pro rata share of the Trust Account. In such case, we will promptly return any certificates delivered by public holders who elected to redeem their shares.
If our initial proposed business combination is not completed, we may continue to try to complete a business combination with a different target until September 1, 2023.
Redemption of Public Shares and Liquidation if no Initial Business Combination
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that we will have only until September 1, 2023 to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account (less up to $100,000 of interest released to us to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our Board, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our initial business combination by the end of the Combination Period (as defined below), or by the applicable deadline as may be extended.
Our founders, officers and directors have entered into a letter agreement with us, pursuant to which they have agreed to waive their rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023. However, our founders, officers or directors will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to such public shares if we fail to complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time period.
Our founders, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a letter agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares. However, we may not redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). If this optional redemption right is exercised with respect to an excessive number of public shares such that we cannot satisfy the net tangible asset requirement (described above) we would not proceed with the amendment or the related redemption of our public shares.
We expect that all costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, as well as payments to any creditors, will be funded from amounts remaining held outside the Trust Account, although we cannot assure you that there will be sufficient funds for such purpose. However, if those funds are not sufficient to cover the costs and expenses associated with implementing our plan of dissolution, to the extent that there is any interest accrued in the Trust Account not required to pay franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account on interest income earned on the Trust Account balance, we may request the trustee to release to us an amount of up to $100,000 of such accrued interest to pay those costs and expenses.
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If we were to expend all of the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, other than the proceeds deposited in the Trust Account, and without taking into account interest, if any, earned on the Trust Account, the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders upon our dissolution would be approximately $10.00. The proceeds deposited in the Trust Account could, however, become subject to the claims of our creditors which would have higher priority than the claims of our public stockholders. We cannot assure you that the actual per-share redemption amount received by stockholders will not be substantially less than $10.00. Under Section 281(b) of the DGCL, our plan of dissolution must provide for all claims against us to be paid in full or make provision for payments to be made in full, as applicable, if there are sufficient assets. These claims must be paid or provided for before we make any distribution of our remaining assets to our stockholders. While we intend to pay such amounts, if any, we cannot assure you that we will have funds sufficient to pay or provide for all creditors’ claims.
Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent auditors), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest and claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the Trust Account for the benefit of our public stockholders, there is no guarantee that they will execute such agreements or even if they execute such agreements that they would be prevented from bringing claims against the Trust Account including but not limited to fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain an advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the Trust Account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the Trust Account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver.
In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the Trust Account for any reason. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a third party (other than our independent auditors) for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account, except as to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third party claims We have not independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the Trust Account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our officers will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
In the event that the proceeds in the Trust Account are reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its indemnification obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations. While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations and we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. Accordingly, we cannot assure you that due to claims of creditors the actual value of the per-share redemption price will not be less than $10.00 per public share.
We will seek to reduce the possibility that our sponsor will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent auditors), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the
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Trust Account. Our sponsor will also not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. We will have access to up to approximately $335,000 from the proceeds of our initial public offering with which to pay any such potential claims (including costs and expenses incurred in connection with our liquidation, currently estimated to be no more than approximately $100,000). In the event that we liquidate and it is subsequently determined that the reserve for claims and liabilities is insufficient, stockholders who received funds from the Trust Account could be liable for claims made by creditors, however such liability will not be greater than the amount of funds from the Trust Account received by any such stockholder.
Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of the Trust Account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If the corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution.
Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of the Trust Account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account (less up to $100,000 of interest released to us to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our Board, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. Accordingly, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following September 1, 2023 and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with those procedures. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend well beyond the third anniversary of such date.
Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the subsequent 10 years. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. As described above, pursuant to the obligation contained in our underwriting agreement, we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent auditors), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the Trust Account. As a result of this obligation, the claims that could be made against us are significantly limited and the likelihood that any claim that would result in any liability extending to the Trust Account is remote. Further, our sponsor may be liable only to the extent necessary to ensure that the amounts in the Trust Account are not reduced below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account, due to reductions in value of the trust assets, in each case net of the amount of interest withdrawn to pay taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account and will not be liable as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. In the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be unenforceable against a third party, our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims.
If we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the Trust Account, we cannot assure you we will be able to return $10.00 per share to our public stockholders. Additionally, if we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover some or all amounts received by our stockholders. Furthermore, our Board may be
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viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or may have acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and our company to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the Trust Account prior to addressing the claims of creditors. We cannot assure you that claims will not be brought against us for these reasons.
Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the Trust Account only (i) in the event of the redemption of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, subject to applicable law, (ii) in connection with a stockholder vote to approve an amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (iii) our completion of an initial business combination, and then only in connection with those shares of our common stock that such stockholder properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. In no other circumstances will a stockholder have any right or interest of any kind to or in the Trust Account. In the event we seek stockholder approval in connection with our initial business combination, a stockholder’s voting in connection with the business combination alone will not result in a stockholder’s redeeming its shares to us for an applicable pro rata share of the Trust Account. Such stockholder must have also exercised its redemption rights as described above.
Competition
In identifying, evaluating and selecting a target business for our initial business combination, we may encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including other blank check companies, private equity groups and leveraged buyout funds, public companies and operating businesses seeking strategic acquisitions. Many of these entities are well established and have extensive experience identifying and effecting business combinations directly or through affiliates. Moreover, many of these competitors possess greater financial, technical, human and other resources than us. Our ability to acquire larger target businesses will be limited by financial resources available to us. This inherent limitation gives other competitors an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of a target business. Furthermore, our obligation to pay cash in connection with our public stockholders who exercise their redemption rights may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination and our outstanding warrants, and the future dilution they potentially represent, may not be viewed favorably by certain target businesses. Either of these factors may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating an initial business combination.
Employees
We currently have five officers and do not intend to have any full-time employees prior to the completion of our initial business combination. Members of our management team are not obligated to devote any specific number of hours to our matters but they intend to devote as much of their time as they deem necessary to our affairs until we have completed our initial business combination. The amount of time they will devote in any time period will vary based on whether a target business has been selected for our initial business combination and the stage of the initial business combination process we are in.
Periodic Reporting and Financial Information
We have registered our units, Class A common stock and warrants under the Exchange Act and have reporting obligations, including the requirement that we file annual, quarterly and current reports with the SEC. In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, our annual reports will contain financial statements audited and reported on by our independent registered public accounting firm. The SEC maintains an Internet site that contains reports, proxy and information statements, and other information regarding issuers that file electronically with the SEC at: http://www.sec.gov. Our annual, quarterly and current reports, and any amendments to any of those reports, that we file with the SEC are available free of charge as soon as reasonably practicable through our corporate website address at http://flameacq.com. The contents of these websites are not incorporated into this filing and are not considered part of this annual report. Further, our references to the uniform resource locators, or URLs, for these websites are intended to be inactive textual references only.
We will provide stockholders with audited financial statements of the prospective target business as part of the proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, sent to stockholders to assist them in assessing the target business. In all likelihood, these financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or reconciled to, the accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”), or the international financial reporting standards issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IFRS”), depending on the circumstances, and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”). These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such statements in time for us to disclose such statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination within the prescribed time frame. We cannot assure you that any particular target business identified by us as a potential acquisition candidate will have financial statements prepared in accordance with the requirements outlined above, or that the potential target business will be able to prepare its financial statements in accordance with the requirements outlined above. To the extent that these requirements cannot be met, we may not be able to acquire the proposed target business. While this may limit the pool of potential acquisition candidates, we do not believe that this limitation will be material.
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We are required to evaluate our internal control procedures for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to have our internal control procedures audited. A target company may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of their internal controls. The development of the internal controls of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
| Item 1A. | Risk Factors |
You should carefully consider all of the risks described below, together with the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, including the financial statements. If any of the following risks occur, our business, financial condition or operating results may be materially and adversely affected. In that event, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you could lose all or part of your investment. The risk factors described below are not necessarily exhaustive and you are encouraged to perform your own investigation with respect to us and our business.
For risk factors related to the proposed Business Combination, see the section titled “Risk Factors” in the proxy statement (including all amendments and supplements thereto) that we filed with the SEC on November 10, 2022. The risks presented below assumes that we will not consummate the proposed Business Combination and will then seek to find an alternative target with which to consummate an initial business combination.
Risks Relating to our Search for, and Consummation of or Inability to Consummate, a Business Combination
We are a newly formed company with no operating history and no revenues, and you have no basis on which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective.
We are a newly formed company incorporated under the laws of the state of Delaware with no operating results. Because we lack an operating history, you have no basis upon which to evaluate our ability to achieve our business objective of completing our initial business combination with one or more target businesses. Additionally, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we fail to complete our initial business combination, we will never generate any operating revenues.
Our independent registered public accounting firm’s report contains an explanatory paragraph that expresses substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a “going concern.”
As of December 31, 2022, we had $100,256 in cash and a working capital deficiency of $6,217,154 (not taking into account tax obligations of $330,151 that may be paid using investment income earned from the Trust Account). We are also subject to a mandatory liquidation and subsequent dissolution requirement if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023. Further, we have incurred and expect to continue to incur significant costs in pursuit of an initial business combination. Management’s plans to address this need for capital are discussed in the section of this annual report titled “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” We cannot assure you that our plans to raise capital or to consummate an initial business combination before September 1, 2023 will be successful. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements contained elsewhere herein do not include any adjustments that might result from our inability to continue as a going concern.
Our public stockholders may not be afforded an opportunity to vote on our proposed business combination, which means we may complete our initial business combination even though holders of a majority of our common stock do not support such a combination.
We may not hold a stockholder vote to approve our initial business combination unless the business combination would require stockholder approval under applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements or if we decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons. For instance, the rules of the NYSE currently allow us to engage in a tender offer in lieu of a general meeting, but would still require us to obtain stockholder approval if we were seeking to issue more than 20% of our issued and outstanding common stock to a target business as consideration in any business combination. Therefore, if we were structuring a business combination that required us to issue more than 20% of our issued and outstanding common stock, we would seek stockholder approval of such business combination. Except as required by law, the decision as to whether we will seek stockholder approval of a proposed business combination or will allow stockholders to sell their shares to us in a tender offer will be made by us, solely in our discretion, and will be based on a variety of factors, such as the timing of the transaction and whether the terms of the transaction would otherwise require us to seek stockholder approval. Accordingly, we may complete our initial business combination even if holders of a majority of our common stock do not approve of the business combination we complete.
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If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote in favor of such initial business combination, regardless of how our public stockholders vote.
Unlike many other blank check companies in which the initial stockholders agree to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by the public stockholders in connection with an initial business combination, our initial stockholders have agreed to vote their founder shares, as well as any other public shares purchased in or subsequent to our initial public offering, in favor of our initial business combination. As a result, in addition to our initial stockholders’ founder shares, we would need 622,623, or 7.4%, of the 8,432,745 currently outstanding public shares to be voted in favor of a transaction in order to have our initial business combination approved (assuming all outstanding shares are voted). Our founders own shares representing 46.0% of our outstanding shares of common stock. Accordingly, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, it is more likely that the necessary stockholder approval will be received than would be the case if our initial stockholders agreed to vote their founder shares in accordance with the majority of the votes cast by our public stockholders.
Your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination will be limited to the exercise of your right to redeem your shares from us for cash, unless we seek stockholder approval of the business combination.
At the time of your investment in us, you will not be provided with an opportunity to evaluate the specific merits or risks of one or more target businesses. Since our Board may complete a business combination without seeking stockholder approval, public stockholders may not have the right or opportunity to vote on the business combination, unless we seek such stockholder vote. Accordingly, if we do not seek stockholder approval, your only opportunity to affect the investment decision regarding a potential business combination may be limited to exercising your redemption rights within the period of time (which will be at least 20 business days) set forth in our tender offer documents mailed to our public stockholders in which we describe our initial business combination.
The ability of our public stockholders to redeem their shares for cash may make our financial condition unattractive to potential business combination targets, which may make it difficult for us to enter into a business combination with a target.
We may seek to enter into a business combination transaction agreement with a prospective target that requires as a closing condition that we have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. If too many public stockholders exercise their redemption rights, we would not be able to meet such closing condition and, as a result, would not be able to proceed with the business combination. Furthermore, in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination (so that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules) or any greater net tangible asset or cash requirement that may be contained in the agreement relating to our initial business combination. Consequently, if accepting all properly submitted redemption requests would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination or such greater amount necessary to satisfy a closing condition as described above, we would not proceed with such redemption and the related business combination and may instead search for an alternate business combination. Prospective targets will be aware of these risks and, thus, may be reluctant to enter into a business combination transaction with us.
The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares may not allow us to complete the most desirable business combination or optimize our capital structure.
At the time we enter into an agreement for our initial business combination, we will not know how many public stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, and, therefore, we will need to structure the transaction based on our expectations as to the number of shares that will be submitted for redemption. If our initial business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the Trust Account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, we will need to reserve a portion of the cash in the Trust Account to meet such requirements, or arrange for third party financing. In addition, if a larger number of shares is submitted for redemption than we initially expected, we may need to restructure the transaction to reserve a greater portion of the cash in the Trust Account or arrange for third party financing. Raising additional third party financing may involve dilutive equity issuances or the incurrence of indebtedness at higher than desirable levels. The above considerations may limit our ability to complete the most desirable business combination available to us or optimize our capital structure. The amount of the marketing fee pursuant to the Business Combination Marketing Agreement (the “Marketing Fee”) payable to the underwriters will not be adjusted for any shares that are redeemed in connection with a business combination and such amount of Marketing Fee is not available for us to use as consideration in an initial business combination. The per-share amount we will distribute to stockholders who properly exercise their redemption rights will not be reduced by the Marketing Fee and after such redemptions, the per-share value of shares held by non-redeeming stockholders will reflect our obligation to pay the Marketing Fee.
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The ability of our public stockholders to exercise redemption rights with respect to a large number of our shares could increase the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful and that you would have to wait for liquidation in order to redeem your stock.
If our initial business combination agreement requires us to use a portion of the cash in the Trust Account to pay the purchase price, or requires us to have a minimum amount of cash at closing, the probability that our initial business combination would be unsuccessful is increased. If our initial business combination is unsuccessful, you would not receive your pro rata portion of the Trust Account until we liquidate the Trust Account. If you are in need of immediate liquidity, you could attempt to sell your stock in the open market; however, at such time our stock may trade at a discount to the pro rata amount per share in the Trust Account. In either situation, you may suffer a material loss on your investment or lose the benefit of funds expected in connection with our redemption until we liquidate or you are able to sell your stock in the open market.
The reduced size of our Trust Account may make it more difficult for us to complete an initial business combination.
On February 27, 2023, we held special meeting of stockholders to vote on the Extension Amendment Proposal. In connection with the Extension Amendment Proposal, stockholders elected to redeem 20,317,255 shares of Class A Common Stock, which represents approximately 70.67% of the shares that were part of the units that were sold in our initial public offering. After giving effect to such redemptions, $85,551,238.80 remained in the Trust Account. The resulting reduction of the amount available to us in the Trust Account may make us a less attractive partner for a target and also may make it more difficult for us to complete an initial business combination on commercially acceptable terms or at all.
There are no assurances that the Extension will enable us to complete an initial business combination.
Even though the Extension was approved, we can provide no assurances that our initial business combination will be consummated prior to the end of the Combination Period. Our ability to consummate any business combination is dependent on a variety of factors, many of which are beyond our control. In connection with the Extension, a stockholders elected to redeem an aggregate of 20,317,255 shares of Class A Common Stock, representing approximately 70.67% of our then-issued and outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock, for an aggregate of $206,121,060 in cash. As of March 28, 2023, we had cash in the Trust Account of $86,512,078.
The requirement that we complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 may give potential target businesses leverage over us in negotiating a business combination and may limit our ability to conduct due diligence on potential business combination targets as we approach our dissolution deadline, which could undermine our ability to complete our initial business combination on terms that would produce value for our stockholders.
Any potential target business with which we enter into negotiations concerning a business combination will be aware that we must complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023. Consequently, such target business may obtain leverage over us in negotiating a business combination, knowing that if we do not complete our initial business combination with that particular target business, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination with any target business. This risk will increase as we get closer to the timeframe described above. In addition, we may have limited time to conduct due diligence and may enter into our initial business combination on terms that we would have rejected upon a more comprehensive investigation.
We may not be able to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 (or such later date as may be provided pursuant to a further amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation), in which case we would cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up and we would redeem our public shares and liquidate, in which case our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we must complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 (or such later date as may be provided pursuant to a further amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation). We may not be able to find a suitable target business and complete our initial business combination within such time period. Our ability to complete our initial business combination may be negatively impacted by general market conditions, volatility in the capital and debt markets and the other risks described herein. If we have not completed our initial business combination within such time period, we will: (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the public shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account (less up to $100,000 of interest released to us to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares, which redemption will completely extinguish public stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of our remaining stockholders and our Board, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. In such case, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.00 per share, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
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If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination, our founders, directors, officers, advisors and their affiliates may elect to purchase shares or public warrants from public stockholders or public warrant holders, which may influence a vote on a proposed business combination and reduce the public “float” of our Class A common stock.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our founders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase public shares or public warrants or a combination thereof in privately negotiated transactions or in the open market either prior to or following the completion of our initial business combination, although they are under no obligation to do so. Such a purchase may include a contractual acknowledgement that such stockholder, although still the record holder of our shares is no longer the beneficial owner thereof and therefore agrees not to exercise its redemption rights. There is no limit on the number of shares our founders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates may purchase in such transactions, subject to compliance with applicable law and the rules of the NYSE. However, other than as expressly stated herein, they have no current commitments, plans or intentions to engage in such transactions and have not formulated any terms or conditions for any such transactions. None of the funds in the Trust Account will be used to purchase shares or public warrants in such transactions. In the event that our founders, directors, officers, advisors or their affiliates purchase shares in privately negotiated transactions from public stockholders who have already elected to exercise their redemption rights, such selling stockholders would be required to revoke their prior elections to redeem their shares. The purpose of such purchases could be to vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination, or to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our initial business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. The purpose of any such purchases of shares could be to vote such shares in favor of the business combination and thereby increase the likelihood of obtaining stockholder approval of the business combination or to satisfy a closing condition in an agreement with a target that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash at the closing of our initial business combination, where it appears that such requirement would otherwise not be met. The purpose of any such purchases of public warrants could be to reduce the number of public warrants outstanding or to vote such warrants on any matters submitted to the warrant holders for approval in connection with our initial business combination. Any such purchases of our securities may result in the completion of our initial business combination that may not otherwise have been possible. Any such purchases will be reported pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Exchange Act to the extent the purchasers are subject to such reporting requirements.
In addition, if such purchases are made, the public “float” of our Class A common stock and the number of beneficial holders of our securities may be reduced, possibly making it difficult to obtain or maintain the quotation, listing or trading of our securities on a national securities exchange.
If a stockholder fails to receive notice of our offer to redeem our public shares in connection with our initial business combination, or fails to comply with the procedures for tendering its shares, such shares may not be redeemed.
We will comply with the tender offer rules or proxy rules, as applicable, when conducting redemptions in connection with our initial business combination. Despite our compliance with these rules, if a stockholder fails to receive our tender offer or proxy materials, as applicable, such stockholder may not become aware of the opportunity to redeem its shares. In addition, the tender offer documents or proxy materials, as applicable, that we will furnish to holders of our public shares in connection with our initial business combination will describe the various procedures that must be complied with in order to validly tender or redeem public shares. For example, we may require our public stockholders seeking to exercise their redemption rights, whether they are record holders or hold their shares in “street name,” to either tender their certificates to our transfer agent prior to the date set forth in the tender offer documents or proxy materials mailed to such holders, or up to two business days prior to the vote on the proposal to approve the business combination in the event we distribute proxy materials, or to deliver their shares to the transfer agent electronically. In the event that a stockholder fails to comply with these or any other procedures, its shares may not be redeemed.
You will not have any rights or interests in funds from the Trust Account, except under certain limited circumstances. To liquidate your investment, therefore, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
Our public stockholders will be entitled to receive funds from the Trust Account only upon the earliest to occur of: (i) our completion of an initial business combination, and then only in connection with those shares of our common stock that such stockholder properly elected to redeem, subject to the limitations described in this annual report, (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (iii) the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete an initial business combination by September 1, 2023 subject to applicable law and as further described herein. In addition, if we are unable to complete an initial business combination by September 1, 2023 for any reason, compliance with Delaware law may require that we submit a plan of dissolution to our then-existing stockholders for approval prior to the distribution of the proceeds held in the Trust Account. In that case, public stockholders may be forced to wait beyond September 1, 2023 before they receive funds from the Trust Account. In no other circumstances will a public stockholder have any right or interest of any kind in the Trust Account. Holders of warrants will not have any right to the proceeds held in the Trust Account with respect to the warrants. Accordingly, to liquidate your investment, you may be forced to sell your public shares or warrants, potentially at a loss.
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The NYSE may delist our securities from trading on its exchange, which could limit investors’ ability to make transactions in our securities and subject us to additional trading restrictions.
We cannot assure you that our securities will continue to be listed on the NYSE in the future or prior to our initial business combination. In order to continue listing our securities on the NYSE prior to our initial business combination, we must maintain certain financial, distribution and stock price levels.
Additionally, in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to demonstrate compliance with the NYSE’s initial listing requirements, which are more rigorous than the NYSE’s continued listing requirements, in order to continue to maintain the listing of our securities on the NYSE. For instance, our stock price would generally be required to be at least $4.00 per share, the aggregate market value of publicly-held shares would be required to be at least $100,000,000 and we would be required to have at least 400 round lot holders. We cannot assure you that we will be able to meet those initial listing requirements at that time. Because public stockholders elected to redeem an aggregate of 20,317,255 shares of our Class A Common Stock, representing approximately 70.67% of our issued and outstanding shares of Class A Common Stock, in connection with the Extension, there is an increased likelihood that we may fail to satisfy the minimum public stockholders’ equity and round lot holders thresholds imposed by NYSE.
If the NYSE delists our securities from trading on its exchange and we are not able to list our securities on another national securities exchange, we expect our securities could be quoted on an over-the-counter market. If this were to occur, we could face significant material adverse consequences, including:
| • | a limited availability of market quotations for our securities; |
| • | reduced liquidity for our securities; |
| • | a determination that our Class A common stock is a “penny stock” which will require brokers trading in our Class A common stock to adhere to more stringent rules and possibly result in a reduced level of trading activity in the secondary trading market for our securities; |
| • | a limited amount of news and analyst coverage; and |
| • | a decreased ability to issue additional securities or obtain additional financing in the future. |
The National Securities Markets Improvement Act of 1996, which is a federal statute, prevents or preempts the states from regulating the sale of certain securities, which are referred to as “covered securities.” Because we expect that our units and eventually our Class A common stock and warrants will be listed on the NYSE, our units, Class A common stock and warrants will be covered securities. Although the states are preempted from regulating the sale of our securities, the federal statute does allow the states to investigate companies if there is a suspicion of fraud, and, if there is a finding of fraudulent activity, then the states can regulate or bar the sale of covered securities in a particular case. While we are not aware of a state having used these powers to prohibit or restrict the sale of securities issued by blank check companies, other than the State of Idaho, certain state securities regulators view blank check companies unfavorably and might use these powers, or threaten to use these powers, to hinder the sale of securities of blank check companies in their states. Further, if we were no longer listed on the NYSE, our securities would not be covered securities and we would be subject to regulation in each state in which we offer our securities.
You will not be entitled to protections normally afforded to investors of many other blank check companies.
Since the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants are intended to be used to complete an initial business combination with a target business that has not been selected, we may be deemed to be a “blank check” company under the United States securities laws. However, because we have net tangible assets in excess of $5,000,000 and we filed a Current Report on Form 8-K, including an audited balance sheet of the company demonstrating this fact, we are exempt from rules promulgated by the SEC to protect investors in blank check companies, such as Rule 419. Accordingly, investors will not be afforded the benefits or protections of those rules. Among other things, this means our units are immediately tradable and we have a longer period of time to complete our initial business combination than do companies subject to Rule 419. Moreover, if we were subject to Rule 419, that rule would prohibit the release of any interest earned on funds held in the Trust Account to us unless and until the funds in the Trust Account were released to us in connection with our completion of an initial business combination.
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If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules, and if you or a “group” of stockholders are deemed to hold in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock, you will lose the ability to redeem all such shares in excess of 15% of our Class A common stock.
If we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and we do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a “group” (as defined under Section 13 of the Exchange Act), will be restricted from seeking redemption rights with respect to more than an aggregate of 15% of the shares sold in our initial public offering, which we refer to as the “Excess Shares.” However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will not restrict our stockholders’ ability to vote all of their shares (including Excess Shares) for or against our initial business combination. Your inability to redeem the Excess Shares will reduce your influence over our ability to complete our initial business combination and you could suffer a material loss on your investment in us if you sell Excess Shares in open market transactions. Additionally, you will not receive redemption distributions with respect to the Excess Shares if we complete our initial business combination. As a result, you will continue to hold that number of shares exceeding 15% and, in order to dispose of such shares, would be required to sell your stock in open market transactions, potentially at a loss.
Because of our limited resources and the significant competition for business combination opportunities, it may be more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on our redemption of our public shares, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
We expect to encounter intense competition from other entities having a business objective similar to ours, including private investors (which may be individuals or investment partnerships), other blank check companies and other entities, domestic and international, competing for the types of businesses we intend to acquire. Many of these individuals and entities are well-established and have extensive experience in identifying and effecting, directly or indirectly, acquisitions of companies operating in or providing services to various industries. Many of these competitors possess greater technical, human and other resources or more local industry knowledge than we do and our financial resources will be relatively limited when contrasted with those of many of these competitors. While we believe there are numerous target businesses we could potentially acquire with the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, our ability to compete with respect to the acquisition of certain target businesses that are sizable will be limited by our available financial resources. This inherent competitive limitation gives others an advantage in pursuing the acquisition of certain target businesses.
Furthermore, because we are obligated to pay cash for the shares of Class A common stock that our public stockholders redeem in connection with our initial business combination, target companies will be aware that this may reduce the resources available to us for our initial business combination. This may place us at a competitive disadvantage in successfully negotiating a business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the Trust Account are insufficient to allow us to operate until at least September 1, 2023, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination, in which case our public stockholders may only receive $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, and our warrants will expire worthless.
The funds available to us outside of the Trust Account may not be sufficient to allow us to operate until at least September 1, 2023, assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that the funds available to us outside of the Trust Account will be sufficient to allow us to operate until at least September 1, 2023; however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we could use a portion of the funds available to us to pay fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent or merger agreements designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent or merger agreement where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
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If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants not being held in the Trust Account are insufficient, it could limit the amount available to fund our search for a target business or businesses and complete our initial business combination and we will depend on loans from our sponsor or management team to fund our search for a business combination, to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account and to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to obtain these loans, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination.
The funds available to us outside of the Trust Account to fund our working capital requirements may not be sufficient to allow us to operate until September 1, 2023, assuming that our initial business combination is not completed during that time. We believe that the funds available to us outside of the Trust Account, together with funds available from loans from our founders will be sufficient to allow us to operate until September 1, 2023; however, we cannot assure you that our estimate is accurate. Of the funds available to us, we expect to use a portion of the funds available to us to pay fees to consultants to assist us with our search for a target business. We could also use a portion of the funds as a down payment or to fund a “no-shop” provision (a provision in letters of intent designed to keep target businesses from “shopping” around for transactions with other companies or investors on terms more favorable to such target businesses) with respect to a particular proposed business combination, although we do not have any current intention to do so. If we entered into a letter of intent where we paid for the right to receive exclusivity from a target business and were subsequently required to forfeit such funds (whether as a result of our breach or otherwise), we might not have sufficient funds to continue searching for, or conduct due diligence with respect to, a target business. If we do not complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share upon our liquidation.
If we are required to seek additional capital, we would need to withdraw interest from the Trust Account as described elsewhere in this annual report and/or borrow funds from our sponsor, management team or other third parties to operate, or we may be forced to liquidate. None of our sponsor, members of our management team nor any of their affiliates is under any obligation to advance funds to us in such circumstances. Any such advances would be repaid only from funds held outside the Trust Account or from funds released to us upon completion of our initial business combination. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in the Trust Account. If we are unable to obtain these loans, we may be unable to complete our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination because we do not have sufficient funds available to us, we will be forced to cease operations and liquidate the Trust Account. Consequently, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.00 per share on our redemption of our public shares, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares.
If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share.
Our placing of funds in the Trust Account may not protect those funds from third-party claims against us. Although we will seek to have all vendors, service providers (other than our independent auditors), prospective target businesses or other entities with which we do business execute agreements with us waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies held in the Trust Account for the benefit of our public stockholders, such parties may not execute such agreements, or even if they execute such agreements they may not be prevented from bringing claims against the Trust Account, including, but not limited to, fraudulent inducement, breach of fiduciary responsibility or other similar claims, as well as claims challenging the enforceability of the waiver, in each case in order to gain advantage with respect to a claim against our assets, including the funds held in the Trust Account. If any third party refuses to execute an agreement waiving such claims to the monies held in the Trust Account, our management will perform an analysis of the alternatives available to it and will only enter into an agreement with a third party that has not executed a waiver if management believes that such third party’s engagement would be significantly more beneficial to us than any alternative. Making such a request of potential target businesses may make our acquisition proposal less attractive to them and, to the extent prospective target businesses refuse to execute such a waiver, it may limit the field of potential target businesses that we might pursue.
Examples of possible instances where we may engage a third party that refuses to execute a waiver include the engagement of a third-party consultant whose particular expertise or skills are believed by management to be significantly superior to those of other consultants that would agree to execute a waiver or in cases where management is unable to find a service provider willing to execute a waiver. In addition, there is no guarantee that such entities will agree to waive any claims they may have in the future as a result of, or arising out of, any negotiations, contracts or agreements with us and will not seek recourse against the Trust Account for any reason. Upon redemption of our public shares, if we are unable to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, or upon the exercise of a redemption right in connection with our initial business combination, we will be required to provide for payment of claims of creditors that were not waived that may be brought against us within the 10 years following redemption. Accordingly, the per-share redemption amount received by public stockholders could be less than the $10.00 per share initially held in the Trust Account, due to claims of such creditors. Our sponsor has agreed that it will be liable to us if and to the extent any claims by a vendor for services rendered or products sold to us, or a prospective target business with which we have discussed entering into a transaction agreement, reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per public share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes as well as expenses relating to administration of the Trust Account. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party who executed a waiver of any and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account and except as to any claims under our indemnity of the underwriters of our initial public offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act. Moreover, in the event that an executed waiver is deemed to be
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unenforceable against a third party, then our sponsor will not be responsible to the extent of any liability for such third-party claims. We have not independently verified whether our sponsor has sufficient funds to satisfy its indemnity obligations and believe that our sponsor’s only assets are securities of our company. We have not asked our sponsor to reserve for such indemnification obligations. Therefore, we cannot assure you that our sponsor would be able to satisfy those obligations. As a result, if any such claims were successfully made against the Trust Account, the funds available for our initial business combination and redemptions could be reduced to less than $10.00 per public share. In such event, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination, and you would receive such lesser amount per share in connection with any redemption of your public shares. None of our directors and officers will indemnify us for claims by third parties including, without limitation, claims by vendors and prospective target businesses.
Our independent directors may decide not to enforce the indemnification obligations of our sponsor, resulting in a reduction in the amount of funds in the Trust Account available for distribution to our public stockholders.
In the event that the proceeds in the Trust Account are reduced below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per public share or (ii) such lesser amount per share held in the Trust Account as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets, in each case net of the interest which may be withdrawn to pay taxes as well as expenses relating to administration of the Trust Account, and our sponsor asserts that it is unable to satisfy its obligations or that it has no indemnification obligations related to a particular claim, our independent directors would determine whether to take legal action against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations.
While we currently expect that our independent directors would take legal action on our behalf against our sponsor to enforce its indemnification obligations to us, it is possible that our independent directors in exercising their business judgment may choose not to do so if, for example, the cost of such legal action is deemed by the independent directors to be too high relative to the amount recoverable or if the independent directors determine that a favorable outcome is not likely. If our independent directors choose not to enforce these indemnification obligations, the amount of funds in the Trust Account available for distribution to our public stockholders may be reduced below $10.00 per share.
We may not have sufficient funds to satisfy indemnification claims of our directors and executive officers.
We have agreed to indemnify our directors and executive officers to the fullest extent permitted by law. However, our directors and executive officers have agreed to waive any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to any monies in the Trust Account and to not seek recourse against the Trust Account for any reason whatsoever. Accordingly, any indemnification provided will be able to be satisfied by us only if: (i) we have sufficient funds outside of the Trust Account or (ii) we consummate an initial business combination. Our obligation to indemnify our directors and executive officers may discourage stockholders from bringing a lawsuit against our directors, directors and executive officers for breach of their fiduciary duties. These provisions also may have the effect of reducing the likelihood of derivative litigation against our directors and executive officers, even though such an action, if successful, might otherwise benefit us and our stockholders. Furthermore, a stockholder’s investment may be adversely affected to the extent we pay the costs of settlement and damage awards against our directors and executive officers pursuant to these indemnification provisions.
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If, after we distribute the proceeds in the Trust Account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, a bankruptcy court may seek to recover such proceeds, and we and our board may be exposed to claims of punitive damages.
If, after we distribute the proceeds in the Trust Account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, any distributions received by stockholders could be viewed under applicable debtor/creditor and/or bankruptcy laws as either a “preferential transfer” or a “fraudulent conveyance.” As a result, a bankruptcy court could seek to recover all amounts received by our stockholders. In addition, our Board may be viewed as having breached its fiduciary duty to our creditors and/or having acted in bad faith, thereby exposing itself and us to claims of punitive damages, by paying public stockholders from the Trust Account prior to addressing the claims of creditors.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the Trust Account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the claims of creditors in such proceeding may have priority over the claims of our stockholders and the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
If, before distributing the proceeds in the Trust Account to our public stockholders, we file a bankruptcy petition or an involuntary bankruptcy petition is filed against us that is not dismissed, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be subject to applicable bankruptcy law, and may be included in our bankruptcy estate and subject to the claims of third parties with priority over the claims of our stockholders. To the extent any bankruptcy claims deplete the Trust Account, the per-share amount that would otherwise be received by our stockholders in connection with our liquidation may be reduced.
If we are deemed to be an investment company for purposes of the Investment Company Act, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements and our activities may be severely restricted. As a result, in such circumstances, we may elect to abandon our efforts to complete our initial business combination and instead choose to liquidate the Company.
On March 30, 2022, the SEC issued proposed rules (the “SPAC Rule Proposals”) relating, among other items, to the circumstances in which SPACs such as Flame could potentially be subject to the Investment Company Act and the regulations thereunder. The SPAC Rule Proposals would provide a safe harbor for such companies from the definition of “investment company” under Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act, provided that a SPAC satisfies certain criteria, including a limited time period to announce and complete a de-SPAC transaction. Specifically, to comply with the safe harbor, the SPAC Rule Proposals would require a company to file a report on Form 8-K announcing that it has entered into an agreement with a target company for a business combination no later than 18 months after the effective date of its registration statement for its initial public offering (the “IPO Registration Statement”). To avail itself of the safe harbor in the SPAC Rule Proposal, a company would then be required to complete its initial business combination no later than 24 months after the effective date of its IPO Registration Statement.
Flame completed the IPO in February 2021 and has operated as a blank check company searching for a target business with which to consummate an initial business combination since such time until its announcement regarding the potential Business Combination with Sable on November 2, 2022. It is possible that a claim could be made that Flame has been operating as an unregistered investment company.
If we are deemed to be an investment company under the Investment Company Act, our activities would be severely restricted, including:
| • | restrictions on the nature of our investments; and |
| • | restrictions on the issuance of securities, each of which may make it difficult for us to complete our initial business combination. |
In addition, we may be required to institute burdensome compliance requirements, including:
| • | registration as an investment company; |
| • | adoption of a specific form of corporate structure; and |
| • | reporting, record keeping, voting, proxy and disclosure requirements and other rules and regulations. |
In order not to be regulated as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, unless we can qualify for an exclusion, we must ensure that we are engaged primarily in a business other than investing, reinvesting or trading of securities and that our activities do not include investing, reinvesting, owning, holding or trading “investment securities” constituting more than 40% of our total assets (exclusive of U.S. government securities and cash items) on an unconsolidated basis. Our business will be to identify and complete a business combination and thereafter to operate the post-transaction business or assets for the long term. We do not plan to buy businesses or assets with a view to resale or profit from their resale. We do not plan to buy unrelated businesses or assets or to be a passive investor.
We do not believe that our principal activities will subject us to regulation as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. However, if we are deemed to be an investment company and subject to compliance with and regulation under the Investment Company Act, we may be subject to additional regulatory burdens and expenses for which we have not allotted funds. In addition, unless we were able to modify our activities so that we would not be deemed an investment company, we may fail to satisfy a condition in the Merger Agreement, which could result in the termination of the Merger Agreement. After any such termination, we may instead be required to wind up, redeem and liquidate. If we are required to liquidate, our stockholders will miss the opportunity to benefit from an investment in a target company and the potential appreciation in value of such investment through our proposed Business Combination. Additionally, if we are required to liquidate, there will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless in the event of our winding up. To this end, the proceeds held in the Trust Account may only be invested in United States “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act that invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations. Pursuant to the trust agreement, the trustee will not be permitted to invest in other securities or assets. By restricting the investment of the proceeds to these instruments, and by having a business plan targeted at acquiring and growing businesses for the long term (rather than on buying and selling businesses in the manner of a merchant bank or private equity fund), we intend to avoid being deemed an “investment company” within the meaning of the Investment Company Act. The Trust Account is intended as a holding place for funds pending the earliest to occur of: (i) the completion of our primary business objective, which is a business combination; (ii) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity; or (iii) absent a business combination, our return of the funds held in the Trust Account to our public stockholders as part of our redemption of the public shares. If we do not invest the proceeds as discussed above, we may be deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act. If we were deemed to be subject to the Investment Company Act, compliance with these additional regulatory burdens would require additional expenses for which we have not allotted funds and may hinder our ability to complete a business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
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To mitigate the risk that we might be deemed to be an investment company for purposes of the Investment Company Act, we have instructed the trustee to liquidate the securities held in the Trust Account and instead to hold the funds in the Trust Account in cash (which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank) until the earlier of the consummation of a business combination or our liquidation. As a result, following sale of securities in the Trust Account, if any, we would likely receive minimal interest, if any, on the funds held in the Trust Account, which could reduce the dollar amount the public stockholders would receive upon any redemption or liquidation of Flame.
The funds in the Trust Account had, since the IPO, been held only in U.S. government treasury obligations with a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds investing solely in U.S. government treasury obligations and meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act. To mitigate the risk of us being deemed to be an unregistered investment company (including under the subjective test of Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act) and thus subject to regulation under the Investment Company Act, on February 21, 2023, we instructed the trustee with respect to the Trust Account to transfer the U.S. government treasury obligations or money market funds held in the Trust Account and, thereafter, to hold all funds in the Trust Account in cash (which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank) until the earlier of consummation of a business combination or liquidation of Flame. Following such sale of the securities held in the Trust Account, we will likely receive minimal interest, if any, on the funds held in the Trust Account. However, interest previously earned on the funds held in the Trust Account still may be released to us to pay our taxes, if any, and certain other expenses as permitted. As a result, the decision to hold all funds in the Trust Account in cash (which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank) could reduce the dollar amount the public stockholders would receive upon any redemption or liquidation of Flame.
Changes in laws or regulations, or a failure to comply with any laws and regulations, may adversely affect our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination, investments and results of operations.
We are subject to laws and regulations enacted by national, regional and local governments. In particular, we are required to comply with certain SEC and other legal requirements. Compliance with, and monitoring of, applicable laws and regulations may be difficult, time consuming and costly. Those laws and regulations and their interpretation and application may also change from time to time and those changes could have a material adverse effect on our business, investments and results of operations. In addition, a failure to comply with applicable laws or regulations, as interpreted and applied, could have a material adverse effect on our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination, investments and results of operations.
On March 30, 2022, the SEC issued proposed rules that would, among other items, impose additional disclosure requirements in initial public offerings by SPACs and business combination transactions involving SPACs and private operating companies; amend the financial statement requirements applicable to business combination transactions involving such companies; update and expand guidance regarding the general use of projections in SEC filings, as well as when projections are disclosed in connection with proposed business combination transactions; increase the potential liability of certain participants in proposed business combination transactions; and impact the extent to which SPACs could become subject to regulation under the Investment Company Act of 1940. These rules, if adopted, whether in the form proposed or in revised form, may materially adversely affect our business, including our ability to negotiate and complete our initial business combination and may increase the costs and time related thereto.
Our stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against us to the extent of distributions received by them upon redemption of their shares.
Under the DGCL, stockholders may be held liable for claims by third parties against a corporation to the extent of distributions received by them in a dissolution. The pro rata portion of the Trust Account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 may be considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law. If a corporation complies with certain procedures set forth in Section 280 of the DGCL intended to ensure that it makes reasonable provision for all claims against it, including a 60-day notice period during which any third-party claims can be brought against the corporation, a 90-day period during which the corporation may reject any claims brought, and an additional 150-day waiting period before any liquidating distributions are made to stockholders, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. However, it is our intention to redeem our public shares as soon as reasonably possible following September 1, 2023 in the event we do not complete our initial business combination and, therefore, we do not intend to comply with the foregoing procedures.
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Because we will not be complying with Section 280, Section 281(b) of the DGCL requires us to adopt a plan, based on facts known to us at such time that will provide for our payment of all existing and pending claims or claims that may be potentially brought against us within the 10 years following our dissolution. However, because we are a blank check company, rather than an operating company, and our operations will be limited to searching for prospective target businesses to acquire, the only likely claims to arise would be from our vendors (such as lawyers, investment bankers, etc.) or prospective target businesses. If our plan of distribution complies with Section 281(b) of the DGCL, any liability of stockholders with respect to a liquidating distribution is limited to the lesser of such stockholder’s pro rata share of the claim or the amount distributed to the stockholder, and any liability of the stockholder would likely be barred after the third anniversary of the dissolution. We cannot assure you that we will properly assess all claims that may be potentially brought against us. As such, our stockholders could potentially be liable for any claims to the extent of distributions received by them (but no more) and any liability of our stockholders may extend beyond the third anniversary of such date. Furthermore, if the pro rata portion of the Trust Account distributed to our public stockholders upon the redemption of our public shares in the event we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 is not considered a liquidating distribution under Delaware law and such redemption distribution is deemed to be unlawful, then pursuant to Section 174 of the DGCL, the statute of limitations for claims of creditors could then be six years after the unlawful redemption distribution, instead of three years, as in the case of a liquidating distribution.
We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders until after the consummation of our initial business combination, which could delay the opportunity for our stockholders to elect directors.
In accordance with the NYSE corporate governance requirements, we are not required to hold an annual meeting until no later than one year after our first fiscal year end following our listing on the NYSE. Under Section 211(b) of the DGCL, we are, however, required to hold an annual meeting of stockholders for the purposes of electing directors in accordance with our bylaws unless such election is made by written consent in lieu of such a meeting. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, and thus we may not be in compliance with Section 211(b) of the DGCL, which requires an annual meeting. Therefore, if our stockholders want us to hold an annual meeting prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, they may attempt to force us to hold one by submitting an application to the Delaware Court of Chancery in accordance with Section 211(c) of the DGCL. Until we hold an annual meeting of stockholders, our public stockholders may not be afforded the opportunity to discuss company affairs with management.
The grant of registration rights to our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees may make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination, and the future exercise of such rights may adversely affect the market price of our Class A common stock.
Pursuant to an agreement entered into concurrently with the issuance and sale of the securities in our initial public offering, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees can demand that we register their founder shares, after those shares convert to our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination. In addition, holders of our private placement warrants and their permitted transferees can demand that we register the private placement warrants and the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants, and holders of warrants that may be issued upon conversion of working capital loans may demand that we register such warrants or the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of such warrants. We will bear the cost of registering these securities. The registration and availability of such a significant number of securities for trading in the public market may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the registration rights may make our initial business combination more costly or difficult to conclude. This is because the stockholders of the target business may increase the equity stake they seek in the combined entity or ask for more cash consideration to offset the negative impact on the market price of our Class A common stock that is expected when the common stock owned by our initial stockholders, holders of our private placement warrants or holders of our working capital loans or their respective permitted transferees are registered.
Because we are not limited to a particular industry, sector, geography or any specific target businesses with which to pursue our initial business combination, you will be unable to ascertain the merits or risks of any particular target business’ operations.
Although we expect to focus our search for a target business in the energy industry in North America, we may seek to complete a business combination with an operating company in any industry, geography or sector. However, we will not, under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, be permitted to complete our initial business combination with another blank check company or similar company with nominal operations. Because we have not yet selected or approached any specific target business with respect to a business combination, there is no basis to evaluate the possible merits or risks of any particular target business’s operations, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, financial condition or prospects. To the extent we complete our initial business combination, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the business operations with which we combine. For example, if we combine with a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by the risks inherent in the business and operations of a financially unstable or a development stage entity. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we cannot assure you that we will properly ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors or that we will have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will ultimately prove to be more favorable to investors than a direct investment, if such opportunity were available, in a business combination target. Accordingly, any stockholder or warrant holder who chooses to remain a stockholder or warrant holder, respectively, following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders and warrant holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
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Because we intend to seek a business combination with a target business in the energy industry in North America, we expect our future operations to be subject to risks associated with this sector.
We intend to focus our search for a target business in the energy industry. Because we have not yet identified or approached any specific target business, we cannot provide specific risks of any business combination. However, risks inherent in investments in the energy industry include, but are not limited to, the following:
| • | volatility of oil and natural gas prices; |
| • | price and availability of alternative fuels, such as solar, coal, nuclear and wind energy; |
| • | significant federal, state and local regulation, taxation and regulatory approval processes as well as changes in applicable legislation, laws and regulations; |
| • | denial or delay of receiving requisite regulatory approvals and/or permits; |
| • | the speculative nature of and high degree of risk involved in investments in the upstream, midstream and energy services sectors, including relying on estimates of oil and gas reserves and the impacts of regulatory and tax changes; |
| • | exploration and development risks, which could lead to environmental damage, injury and loss of life or the destruction of property; |
| • | drilling, exploration and development risks, including encountering unexpected formations or pressures, premature declines of reservoirs, blow-outs, equipment failures and other accidents, cratering, sour gas releases, uncontrollable flows of oil, natural gas or well fluids, adverse weather conditions, pollution, fires, spills and other environmental risks, any of which could lead to environmental damage, injury and loss of life or the destruction of property; |
| • | proximity and capacity of oil, natural gas and other transportation and support infrastructure to production facilities; |
| • | availability of key inputs, such as strategic consumables and raw materials and drilling and processing equipment; |
| • | available pipeline, storage and other transportation capacity; |
| • | changes in global supply and demand and prices for commodities; |
| • | impact of energy conservation efforts; |
| • | technological advances affecting energy production and consumption; |
| • | overall domestic and global economic conditions; |
| • | availability of, and potential disputes with, independent contractors; |
| • | global warming, adverse weather conditions, natural disasters or other events (such as equipment malfunctions, explosions, fires or spills); |
| • | value of U.S. dollar relative to the currencies of other countries; and |
| • | terrorist acts. |
Past performance by our team, including investments and transactions in which they have participated and businesses with which they have been associated, may not be indicative of future performance of an investment in us, and we may be unable to provide positive returns to shareholders.
Information regarding performance by our team is presented for informational purposes only. Past performance of our team is not a guarantee of the consummation of a successful business combination or our ability to successfully identify and execute a transaction. Certain of our officers, directors and advisors have had management and deal execution experience with special purpose acquisition corporations in the past. You should not rely on the historical record of members of our team or their respective affiliates as indicative of future performance of an investment in us or the returns we will, or are likely to, generate going forward. Additionally, in the course of their respective careers, members of our management team and Board have been involved in businesses and deals that were unsuccessful.
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We may seek acquisition opportunities in industries or sectors which may or may not be outside of our management’s area of expertise.
We will consider a business combination outside of our management’s area of expertise if a business combination candidate is presented to us and we determine that such candidate offers an attractive acquisition opportunity for our company. Although our management will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in any particular business combination candidate, we cannot assure you that we will adequately ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors. We also cannot assure you that an investment in our units will not ultimately prove to be less favorable to investors in our initial public offering than a direct investment, if an opportunity were available, in a business combination candidate. In the event we elect to pursue an acquisition outside of the areas of our management’s expertise, our management’s expertise may not be directly applicable to its evaluation or operation, and the information contained herein regarding the areas of our management’s expertise would not be relevant to an understanding of the business that we elect to acquire. As a result, our management may not be able to adequately ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors. Accordingly, any stockholder or warrant holder who chooses to remain a stockholder or warrant holder, respectively, following our initial business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders and warrant holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines that we believe are important in evaluating prospective target businesses, we may enter into our initial business combination with a target that does not meet such criteria and guidelines, and as a result, the target business with which we enter into our initial business combination may not have attributes entirely consistent with our general criteria and guidelines.
Although we have identified general criteria and guidelines for evaluating prospective target businesses, it is possible that a target business with which we enter into our initial business combination will not have all of these positive attributes. If we complete our initial business combination with a target that does not meet some or all of these criteria and guidelines, such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a business that does meet all of our general criteria and guidelines. In addition, if we announce a prospective business combination with a target that does not meet our general criteria and guidelines, a greater number of stockholders may exercise their redemption rights, which may make it difficult for us to meet any closing condition with a target business that requires us to have a minimum net worth or a certain amount of cash. In addition, if stockholder approval of the transaction is required by applicable law or stock exchange listing requirements, or we decide to obtain stockholder approval for business or other legal reasons, it may be more difficult for us to attain stockholder approval of our initial business combination if the target business does not meet our general criteria and guidelines. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share, or less in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
We may seek acquisition opportunities with an early stage company, a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenue or earnings, which could subject us to volatile revenues or earnings or difficulty in retaining key personnel.
To the extent we complete our initial business combination with an early stage company, a financially unstable business or an entity lacking an established record of revenues or earnings, we may be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine. These risks include investing in a business without a proven business model and with limited historical financial data, volatile revenues or earnings and difficulties in obtaining and retaining key personnel. Although our officers and directors will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all the significant risk factors and we may not have adequate time to complete due diligence. Furthermore, some of these risks may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks will adversely impact a target business.
We are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm or from an independent accounting firm, and consequently, you may have no assurance from an independent source that the price we are paying for the business is fair to our company from a financial point of view.
Unless we complete our initial business combination with an affiliated entity or our board cannot independently determine the fair market value of the target business or businesses, we are not required to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA or from an independent accounting firm that the price we are paying is fair to our company from a financial point of view. If no opinion is obtained, our stockholders will be relying on the judgment of our Board, who will determine fair market value based on standards generally accepted by the financial community. Such standards used will be disclosed in our proxy solicitation or tender offer materials, as applicable, related to our initial business combination.
We may issue additional shares of common stock or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination, and may issue shares of common stock to redeem the warrants or issue shares of common stock or preferred stock under an employee incentive plan after completion of our initial business combination. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock upon the conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. Any such issuances would dilute the interest of our stockholders and likely present other risks.
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Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation authorizes the issuance of up to 200,000,000 shares of Class A common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, 20,000,000 shares of Class B common stock, par value $0.0001 per share, and 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, par value $0.0001 per share. There are currently 191,567,255 and 12,812,500 authorized but unissued shares of Class A common stock and Class B common stock, respectively, available for issuance, which amount does not take into account the shares of Class A common stock reserved for issuance upon exercise of any outstanding warrants or the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon conversion of Class B common stock. There are no shares of preferred stock issued and outstanding. Shares of Class B common stock are convertible into shares of our Class A common stock initially at a one-for-one ratio but subject to adjustment as set forth herein, including in certain circumstances in which we issue Class A common stock or equity-linked securities related to our initial business combination.
We may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common or preferred stock to complete our initial business combination (including pursuant to a specified future issuance). After the completion of our initial business combination, we may issue a substantial number of additional shares of common stock to redeem the warrants or shares of common or preferred stock under an employee incentive plan. We may also issue shares of Class A common stock upon conversion of the Class B common stock at a ratio greater than one-to-one at the time of our initial business combination as a result of the anti-dilution provisions contained in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation. However, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide, among other things, that prior to our initial business combination, we may not issue additional shares of capital stock that would entitle the holders thereof to (i) receive funds from the Trust Account or (ii) vote on any initial business combination. The issuance of additional shares of common or preferred stock:
| • | may significantly dilute the equity interest of our investors, which dilution would increase if the anti-dilution provisions in the Class B common stock resulted in the issuance of shares of Class A common stock on a greater than one-to-one basis upon conversion of the Class B common stock; |
| • | may subordinate the rights of holders of common stock if preferred stock is issued with rights senior to those afforded our common stock; |
| • | could cause a change of control if a substantial number of shares of our common stock is issued, which may affect, among other things, our ability to use our net operating loss carry forwards, if any, and could result in the resignation or removal of our present officers and directors; |
| • | may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change of control of us by diluting the stock ownership or voting rights of a person seeking to obtain control of us; |
| • | may adversely affect prevailing market prices for our units, Class A common stock and/or warrants; and |
| • | may not result in adjustment to the exercise price of our warrants. |
Resources could be wasted in researching acquisitions that are not completed, which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share, or less than such amount in certain circumstances, on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless.
We anticipate that the investigation of each specific target business and the negotiation, drafting and execution of relevant agreements, disclosure documents and other instruments will require substantial management time and attention and substantial costs for accountants, attorneys and others. If we decide not to complete a specific initial business combination, the costs incurred up to that point for the proposed transaction likely would not be recoverable. Furthermore, if we reach an agreement relating to a specific target business, we may fail to complete our initial business combination for any number of reasons including those beyond our control. Any such event will result in a loss to us of the related costs incurred which could materially adversely affect subsequent attempts to locate and acquire or merge with another business. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
We may engage in a business combination with one or more target businesses that have relationships with entities that may be affiliated with our sponsor, officers, directors or existing holders which may raise potential conflicts of interest.
In light of the involvement of our sponsor, officers and directors with other entities, we may decide to acquire one or more businesses affiliated with our sponsor, officers or directors. Our directors also serve as officers and board members for other entities. Such entities may compete with us for business combination opportunities. Our sponsor, officers and directors are not currently aware of any specific opportunities for us to complete our initial business combination with any entities with which they are affiliated, and there
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have been no preliminary discussions concerning a business combination with any such entity or entities. Although we will not be specifically focusing on, or targeting, any transaction with any affiliated entities, we would pursue such a transaction if we determined that such affiliated entity met our criteria for a business combination as set forth in the section of this annual report entitled “Business-Acquisition Criteria” and such transaction was approved by a majority of our disinterested directors. Despite our agreement to obtain an opinion from an independent investment banking firm that is a member of FINRA, or from an independent accounting firm, regarding the fairness to our company from a financial point of view of a business combination with one or more domestic or international businesses affiliated with our officers, directors or existing holders, potential conflicts of interest still may exist and, as a result, the terms of the business combination may not be as advantageous to our public stockholders as they would be absent any conflicts of interest.
Since our initial stockholders will lose their entire investment in us if our initial business combination is not completed and our officers and directors may have differing personal and financial interests than you, a conflict of interest may arise in determining whether a particular business combination target is appropriate for our initial business combination.
In November 2020, our founders acquired 7,187,500 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.0035 per share. Our sponsor purchased 4,671,875 founder shares, FL Co-Investment purchased 1,257,813 founder shares and Intrepid Financial Partners purchased 1,257,812 founder shares. Also in November 2020, our sponsor transferred 434,375 founder shares to our independent director nominees and certain individuals, including Gregory D. Patrinely, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, at their original purchase price. Simultaneously with such transfer, each of FL Co-Investment and Intrepid Financial Partners transferred 13,125 founder shares to our sponsor, respectively, at their original purchase price. Prior to the initial investment in the company of $25,000 by our founders we had no assets, tangible or intangible. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares after our initial public offering.
The founder shares will be worthless if we do not complete an initial business combination. In addition, our initial stockholders purchased an aggregate of 7,750,000 private placement warrants, each exercisable for one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, for a purchase price of $7,750,000, or $1.00 per whole warrant, that will also be worthless if we do not complete a business combination.
Our founders, directors and officers have agreed (A) to vote any shares owned by them in favor of any proposed business combination pursuant to a letter agreement that our founders, directors and officers have entered into with us and (B) pursuant to such letter agreement, our founders, officers and directors have agreed to waive (i) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and any public shares held by them in connection with the completion of our initial business combination, (ii) their redemption rights with respect to any founder shares and public shares held by them in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or to redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (iii) their rights to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to any founder shares held by them if we fail to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, although they will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to any public shares they hold if we fail to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023; (4) the founder shares will automatically convert into shares of our Class A common stock at the time of our initial business combination, on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment pursuant to certain anti-dilution rights, as described in more detail below; and (5) the founder shares are entitled to registration rights.
In addition, we may obtain loans from our sponsor, affiliates of our sponsor or an officer or director. The personal and financial interests of our officers and directors may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business combination, completing an initial business combination and influencing the operation of the business following the initial business combination. This risk may become more acute as the deadline for completing our initial business combination nears.
Since our initial stockholders paid only approximately $0.0035 per share for the founder shares, our officers and directors could potentially make a substantial profit even if we acquire a target business that subsequently declines in value.
In November 2020, our founders acquired 7,187,500 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000, or approximately $0.0035 per share. Our sponsor purchased 4,671,875 founder shares, FL Co-Investment purchased 1,257,813 founder shares and Intrepid Financial Partners purchased 1,257,812 founder shares. Also in November 2020, our sponsor transferred 434,375 founder shares to our independent directors and certain individuals, including Gregory D. Patrinely, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, at their original purchase price. Simultaneously with such transfer, each of FL Co-Investment and Intrepid Financial Partners transferred 13,125 founder shares to our sponsor, respectively, at their original purchase price. Our officers and directors have a significant economic interest in our sponsor. As a result, the low acquisition cost of the founder shares creates an economic incentive whereby our officers and directors could potentially make a substantial profit even if we acquire a target business that subsequently declines in value and is unprofitable for public investors.
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We may issue notes or other debt securities, or otherwise incur substantial debt, to complete a business combination, which may adversely affect our leverage and financial condition and thus negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.
Although we currently have no commitments to issue any notes or other debt securities, or to otherwise incur outstanding debt, we may choose to incur substantial debt to complete our initial business combination. We have agreed that we will not incur any indebtedness unless we have obtained from the lender a waiver of any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to the monies held in the Trust Account. As such, no issuance of debt will affect the per-share amount available for redemption from the Trust Account. Nevertheless, the incurrence of debt could have a variety of negative effects, including:
| • | default and foreclosure on our assets if our operating revenues after an initial business combination are insufficient to repay our debt obligations; |
| • | acceleration of our obligations to repay the indebtedness even if we make all principal and interest payments when due if we breach certain covenants that require the maintenance of certain financial ratios or reserves without a waiver or renegotiation of that covenant; |
| • | our immediate payment of all principal and accrued interest, if any, if the debt security is payable on demand; |
| • | our inability to obtain necessary additional financing if the debt security contains covenants restricting our ability to obtain such financing while the debt security is outstanding; |
| • | our inability to pay dividends on our common stock; |
| • | using a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay principal and interest on our debt, which will reduce the funds available for dividends on our common stock if declared, our ability to pay expenses, make capital expenditures and acquisitions, and fund other general corporate purposes; |
| • | limitations on our flexibility in planning for and reacting to changes in our business and in the industry in which we operate; |
| • | increased vulnerability to adverse changes in general economic, industry and competitive conditions and adverse changes in government regulation; |
| • | limitations on our ability to borrow additional amounts for expenses, capital expenditures, acquisitions, debt service requirements, and execution of our strategy; and |
| • | other disadvantages compared to our competitors who have less debt. |
We may only be able to complete one business combination with the proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants, which will cause us to be solely dependent on a single business which may have a limited number of products or services. This lack of diversification may negatively impact our operations and profitability.
The amount of the net proceeds from our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants available to complete our initial business combination and pay related fees and expenses (which includes up to $10,062,500 for the payment of the Marketing Fee) was $277,437,500 as of December 31, 2022 (or $71,316,440 after the redemptions of Ordinary Shares that occurred on March 2, 2023).
We may complete our initial business combination with a single target business or multiple target businesses simultaneously or within a short period of time. However, we may not be able to complete our initial business combination with more than one target business because of various factors, including the existence of complex accounting issues and the requirement that we prepare and file pro forma financial statements with the SEC that present operating results and the financial condition of several target businesses as if they had been operated on a combined basis. By completing our initial business combination with only a single entity, our lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments. Further, we would not be able to diversify our operations or benefit from the possible spreading of risks or offsetting of losses, unlike other entities which may have the resources to complete several business combinations in different industries or different areas of a single industry. In addition, we intend to focus our search for an initial business combination in a single industry. Accordingly, the prospects for our success may be:
| • | solely dependent upon the performance of a single business, property or asset; or |
| • | dependent upon the development or market acceptance of a single or limited number of products, processes or services. |
This lack of diversification may subject us to numerous economic, competitive and regulatory developments, any or all of which may have a substantial adverse impact upon the particular industry in which we may operate subsequent to our initial business combination.
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We may attempt to simultaneously complete business combinations with multiple prospective targets, which may hinder our ability to complete our initial business combination and give rise to increased costs and risks that could negatively impact our operations and profitability.
If we determine to simultaneously acquire several businesses that are owned by different sellers, we will need for each of such sellers to agree that our purchase of its business is contingent on the simultaneous closings of the other business combinations, which may make it more difficult for us, and delay our ability, to complete our initial business combination. With multiple business combinations, we could also face additional risks, including additional burdens and costs with respect to possible multiple negotiations and due diligence investigations (if there are multiple sellers) and the additional risks associated with the subsequent assimilation of the operations and services or products of the acquired companies in a single operating business. If we are unable to adequately address these risks, it could negatively impact our profitability and results of operations.
We may attempt to complete our initial business combination with a private company about which little information is available, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.
In pursuing our acquisition strategy, we may seek to complete our initial business combination with a privately held company. Very little public information generally exists about private companies, and we could be required to make our decision on whether to pursue a potential initial business combination on the basis of limited information, which may result in a business combination with a company that is not as profitable as we suspected, if at all.
We do not have a specified maximum redemption threshold. The absence of such a redemption threshold may make it possible for us to complete a business combination with which a substantial majority of our stockholders do not agree.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will not provide a specified maximum redemption threshold, except that in no event will we redeem our public shares in an amount that would cause our net tangible assets to be less than $5,000,001 upon completion of our initial business combination (such that we are not subject to the SEC’s “penny stock” rules). As a result, we may be able to complete our initial business combination even though a substantial majority of our public stockholders do not agree with the transaction and have redeemed their shares or, if we seek stockholder approval of our initial business combination and do not conduct redemptions in connection with our initial business combination pursuant to the tender offer rules, have entered into privately negotiated agreements to sell their shares to our founders, officers, directors, advisors or their affiliates. In the event the aggregate cash consideration we would be required to pay for all shares of Class A common stock that are validly submitted for redemption plus any amount required to satisfy cash conditions pursuant to the terms of the proposed business combination exceed the aggregate amount of cash available to us, we will not complete the business combination or redeem any shares, all shares of Class A common stock submitted for redemption will be returned to the holders thereof, and we instead may search for an alternate business combination.
In order to complete our initial business combination, we may seek to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or other governing instruments, including our warrant agreement, in a manner that will make it easier for us to complete our initial business combination but that our stockholders or warrant holders may not support.
In order to complete a business combination, blank check companies have, in the recent past, amended various provisions of their charters and governing instruments, including their warrant agreement. For example, blank check companies have amended the definition of business combination, increased redemption thresholds, changed industry focus and, with respect to their warrants, amended their warrant agreements to require the warrants to be exchanged for cash and/or other securities. We cannot assure you that we will not seek to amend our charter or other governing instruments or change our industry focus in order to complete our initial business combination.
The provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that relate to our pre-business combination activity (and corresponding provisions of the agreement governing the release of funds from the Trust Account) may be amended with the approval of holders of 65% of our common stock, which is a lower amendment threshold than that of some other blank check companies. It may be easier for us, therefore, to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and the trust agreement to facilitate the completion of an initial business combination that some of our stockholders may not support.
Some other blank check companies have a provision in their charter that prohibits the amendment of certain of its provisions, including those which relate to a company’s pre-business combination activity, without approval by a certain percentage of the company’s stockholders. In those companies, amendment of these provisions requires approval by between 90% and 100% of the company’s public stockholders. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that any of its provisions (other than amendments relating to the election or removal of directors prior to our initial business combination, which require the approval by holders of a majority of at least 90% of the issued and outstanding shares of our common stock voting at a stockholder meeting) related to pre-business combination activity (including the requirement to deposit proceeds of our initial public offering and the private placement of warrants into the Trust Account and not release such amounts except in specified circumstances, and to provide redemption rights to public stockholders as described herein) may be amended if approved by holders of 65% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon, and corresponding provisions of the trust agreement governing the release of funds from the Trust Account
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may be amended if approved by holders of 65% of our common stock entitled to vote thereon. In all other instances, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or bylaws may be amended by holders of a majority of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon, subject to applicable provisions of the DGCL or applicable stock exchange rules. We may not issue additional securities that can vote on amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or in our initial business combination. Our initial stockholders, who collectively beneficially own 46% of our common stock, will participate in any vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and/or trust agreement and will have the discretion to vote in any manner they choose. As a result, we may be able to amend the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation that govern our pre-business combination behavior more easily than some other blank check companies, and this may increase our ability to complete a business combination with which you do not agree. Our stockholders may pursue remedies against us for any breach of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation.
Our founders, officers and directors have agreed, pursuant to a letter agreement with us, that they will not propose any amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity, unless we provide our public stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their shares of Class A common stock upon approval of any such amendment at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest (which interest shall be net of amounts released to us to pay taxes and expenses related to the administration of the trust), divided by the number of then issued and outstanding public shares. Our stockholders are not parties to, or third-party beneficiaries of, this letter agreement and, as a result, will not have the ability to pursue remedies against our founders, officers or directors for any breach of the letter agreement. As a result, in the event of a breach, our stockholders would need to pursue a stockholder derivative action, subject to applicable law.
We may be unable to obtain additional financing to complete our initial business combination or to fund the operations and growth of a target business, which could compel us to restructure or abandon a particular business combination.
Although we believe that the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants will be sufficient to allow us to complete our initial business combination, because we have not yet selected any prospective target business we cannot ascertain the capital requirements for any particular transaction. If the net proceeds of our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants prove to be insufficient, either because of the size of our initial business combination, the depletion of the available net proceeds in search of a target business, the obligation to repurchase for cash a significant number of shares from stockholders who elect redemption in connection with our initial business combination or the terms of negotiated transactions to purchase shares in connection with our initial business combination, we may be required to seek additional financing or to abandon the proposed business combination. We cannot assure you that such financing will be available on acceptable terms, if at all. To the extent that additional financing proves to be unavailable when needed to complete our initial business combination, we would be compelled to either restructure the transaction or abandon that particular business combination and seek an alternative target business candidate. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may receive only approximately $10.00 per share plus any pro rata interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account (and not previously released to us to pay our franchise and income taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account) on the liquidation of the Trust Account and our warrants will expire worthless. In addition, even if we do not need additional financing to complete our initial business combination, we may require such financing to fund the operations or growth of the target business. The failure to secure additional financing could have a material adverse effect on the continued development or growth of the target business. None of our officers, directors or stockholders is required to provide any financing to us in connection with or after our initial business combination. If we are unable to complete our initial business combination, our public stockholders may only receive approximately $10.00 per share on the liquidation of the Trust Account, and our warrants will expire worthless. In certain circumstances, our public stockholders may receive less than $10.00 per share on the redemption of their shares. See “-If third parties bring claims against us, the proceeds held in the Trust Account could be reduced and the per-share redemption amount received by stockholders may be less than $10.00 per share” and other risk factors in this section.
Our initial stockholders may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support.
Subsequent to the Extension, our initial stockholders now own shares representing 46% of our issued and outstanding shares of common stock. Accordingly, they may exert a substantial influence on actions requiring a stockholder vote, potentially in a manner that you do not support, including amendments to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and approval of major corporate transactions. If our initial stockholders purchase any additional shares of common stock in the aftermarket or in privately negotiated transactions, this would increase their control. Factors that would be considered in making such additional purchases would include consideration of the current trading price of our Class A common stock. In addition, our Board, whose members were elected by our initial stockholders, is and will be divided into three classes, each of which will generally serve for a term of three years with only one class of directors being elected in each year. We may not hold an annual meeting of stockholders to elect new directors prior to the completion of our initial business combination, in which case all of the current directors will continue in office until at least the completion of the
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business combination. If there is an annual meeting, as a consequence of our “staggered” Board, only a minority of the Board will be considered for election and our initial stockholders, because of their ownership position, will have considerable influence regarding the outcome. Accordingly, our initial stockholders will continue to exert control at least until the completion of our initial business combination.
Our warrants and founder shares may have an adverse effect on the market price of our Class A common stock and make it more difficult to complete our initial business combination.
We have issued warrants to purchase 14,375,000 shares of our Class A common stock as part of the units offered in our initial public offering and, simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering, we issued in a private placement warrants to purchase an aggregate of 7,750,000 shares of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. Our initial stockholders currently own 7,187,500 founder shares. The founder shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment as set forth herein. In addition, if our sponsor, an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors make any working capital loans, initially up to $1,500,000, which was increased to $3,500,000 on March 24, 2023, of such loans may be converted into warrants, at the price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period.
To the extent we issue shares of Class A common stock to complete a business combination, the potential for the issuance of a substantial number of additional shares of Class A common stock upon exercise of these warrants and conversion rights could make us a less attractive acquisition vehicle to a target business. Any such issuance will increase the number of issued and outstanding shares of our Class A common stock and reduce the value of the shares of Class A common stock issued to complete the business combination. Therefore, our warrants and founder shares may make it more difficult to complete a business combination or increase the cost of acquiring the target business.
The private placement warrants are identical to the warrants sold as part of the units in our initial public offering except that, so long as they are held by our initial stockholders or their respective permitted transferees, (i) they will not be redeemable by us for cash, (ii) pursuant to a letter agreement with us, subject to certain exceptions, our initial stockholders have agreed not to transfer, assign or sell any private placement warrant (including the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the private placement warrants) until 30 days after the completion of our initial business combination and (iii) the private placement warrants may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis.
We may seek business combination opportunities with a high degree of complexity that require significant operational improvements, which could delay or prevent us from achieving our desired results.
We may seek business combination opportunities with large, highly complex companies that we believe would benefit from operational improvements. While we intend to implement such improvements, to the extent that our efforts are delayed or we are unable to achieve the desired improvements, the business combination may not be as successful as we anticipate.
To the extent we complete our initial business combination with a large complex business or entity with a complex operating structure, we may also be affected by numerous risks inherent in the operations of the business with which we combine, which could delay or prevent us from implementing our strategy. Although our management team will endeavor to evaluate the risks inherent in a particular target business and its operations, we may not be able to properly ascertain or assess all of the significant risk factors until we complete our business combination. If we are not able to achieve our desired operational improvements, or the improvements take longer to implement than anticipated, we may not achieve the gains that we anticipate. Furthermore, some of these risks and complexities may be outside of our control and leave us with no ability to control or reduce the chances that those risks and complexities will adversely impact a target business. Such combination may not be as successful as a combination with a smaller, less complex organization.
A provision of our warrant agreement may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
Unlike many blank check companies, if (i) we issue additional shares of common stock or equity-linked securities for capital raising purposes in connection with the closing of our initial business combination at a Newly Issued Price of less than $9.20 per share of common stock and (ii) the aggregate gross proceeds from such issuances represent more than 60% of the total equity proceeds, and interest thereon, available for the funding of our initial business combination on the date of the completion of our initial business combination (net of redemptions) and (iii) the Market Value is below $9.20 per share, then the exercise price of the warrants will be adjusted to be equal to 115% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, the $10.00 per share redemption trigger price will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price, and the $18.00 per share redemption trigger price will be adjusted (to the nearest cent) to be equal to 180% of the higher of the Market Value and the Newly Issued Price. This may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination with a target business.
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Because we must furnish our stockholders with target business financial statements, we may lose the ability to complete an otherwise advantageous initial business combination with some prospective target businesses.
The federal proxy rules require that a proxy statement with respect to a vote on a business combination meeting certain financial significance tests include target historical and/or pro forma financial statement disclosure. We will include the same financial statement disclosure in connection with our tender offer documents, whether or not they are required under the tender offer rules. These financial statements may be required to be prepared in accordance with, or be reconciled to, accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) or international financial reporting standards as issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (“IFRS”), depending on the circumstances and the historical financial statements may be required to be audited in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (the “PCAOB”). These financial statement requirements may limit the pool of potential target businesses we may acquire because some targets may be unable to provide such financial statements in time for us to disclose such financial statements in accordance with federal proxy rules and complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023.
Compliance obligations under the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may make it more difficult for us to complete our initial business combination, require substantial financial and management resources, and increase the time and costs of completing an acquisition.
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that we evaluate and report on our system of internal controls. Only in the event we are deemed to be a large accelerated filer or an accelerated filer will we be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. Further, for as long as we remain an emerging growth company, we will not be required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirement on our internal control over financial reporting. The fact that we are a blank check company makes compliance with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act particularly burdensome on us as compared to other public companies because a target company with which we seek to complete our initial business combination may not be in compliance with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding adequacy of its internal controls. The development of the internal control of any such entity to achieve compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act may increase the time and costs necessary to complete any such acquisition.
We may engage one or more of our underwriters from our initial public offering or one of their respective affiliates to provide additional services to us after our initial public offering, which may include acting as M&A advisor in connection with an initial business combination or as placement agent in connection with a related financing transaction. Our underwriters from our initial public offering are entitled to receive the Marketing Fee that will be released from the Trust Account only upon a completion of an initial business combination. These financial incentives may cause such underwriters to have potential conflicts of interest in rendering any such additional services to us, including, for example, in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.
We may engage one or more of our underwriters or one of their respective affiliates to provide additional services to us after our initial public offering, including, for example, identifying potential targets, providing M&A advisory services, acting as a placement agent in a private offering or arranging debt financing transactions. We may pay such underwriter or its affiliate fair and reasonable fees or other compensation that would be determined at that time in an arm’s length negotiation. The underwriters are also entitled to receive a Marketing Fee that are conditioned on the completion of an initial business combination. The underwriters’ or their respective affiliates’ financial interests tied to the consummation of a business combination transaction may give rise to potential conflicts of interest in providing any such additional services to us, including potential conflicts of interest in connection with the sourcing and consummation of an initial business combination.
As the number of SPACs evaluating targets increases, attractive targets may become scarcer and there may be more competition for attractive targets. This could increase the cost of our initial business combination and could even result in our inability to find a target or to consummate an initial business combination.
In recent years, the number of SPACs that have been formed has increased substantially. Many potential targets for SPACs have already entered into an initial business combination, and there are still many SPACs seeking targets for their initial business combination, as well as many such companies currently in registration with the SEC. As a result, at times, fewer attractive targets may be available, and it may require more time, more effort and more resources to identify a suitable target and to consummate an initial business combination.
In addition, because there are more SPACs seeking to enter into an initial business combination with available targets, the competition for available targets with attractive fundamentals or business models may increase, which could cause targets companies to demand improved financial terms. Attractive deals could also become scarcer for other reasons, such as economic or industry sector downturns, geopolitical tensions, or increases in the cost of additional capital needed to close business combinations or operate targets post-business combination. This could increase the cost of, delay or otherwise complicate or frustrate our ability to find and consummate an initial business combination, and may result in our inability to consummate an initial business combination on terms favorable to our investors altogether.
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Risks Relating to the Post-Business Combination Company
Subsequent to the completion of our initial business combination, we may be required to take write-downs or write-offs, restructuring and impairment or other charges that could have a significant negative effect on our financial condition, results of operations and our stock price, which could cause you to lose some or all of your investment.
Even if we conduct extensive due diligence on a target business with which we combine, we cannot assure you that this diligence will surface all material issues that may be present inside a particular target business, that it would be possible to uncover all material issues through a customary amount of due diligence, or that factors outside of the target business and outside of our control will not later arise. As a result of these factors, we may be forced to later write-down or write-off assets, restructure our operations, or incur impairment or other charges that could result in our reporting losses. Even if our due diligence successfully identifies certain risks, unexpected risks may arise and previously known risks may materialize in a manner not consistent with our preliminary risk analysis. Even though these charges may be non-cash items and not have an immediate impact on our liquidity, the fact that we report charges of this nature could contribute to negative market perceptions about us or our securities. In addition, charges of this nature may cause us to violate net worth or other covenants to which we may be subject as a result of assuming pre-existing debt held by a target business or by virtue of our obtaining post-combination debt financing. Accordingly, any stockholder or warrant holder who chooses to remain a stockholder or warrant holder, respectively, following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their securities. Such stockholders and warrant holders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
Our management may not be able to maintain control of a target business after our initial business combination. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.
We may structure a business combination so that the post-transaction company in which our public stockholders own shares will own less than 100% of the equity interests or assets of a target business, but we will only complete such business combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the issued and outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires an interest in the target sufficient for the post-transaction company not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act. We will not consider any transaction that does not meet such criteria. Even if the post-transaction company owns 50% or more of the voting securities of the target, our stockholders prior to the business combination may collectively own a minority interest in the post-transaction company, depending on valuations ascribed to the target and us in the business combination transaction. For example, we could pursue a transaction in which we issue a substantial number of new shares of Class A common stock in exchange for all of the outstanding capital stock of a target. In this case, we would acquire a 100% interest in the target. However, as a result of the issuance of a substantial number of new shares of common stock, our stockholders immediately prior to such transaction could own less than a majority of our outstanding shares of common stock subsequent to such transaction. In addition, other minority stockholders may subsequently combine their holdings resulting in a single person or group obtaining a larger share of the company’s stock than we initially acquired. Accordingly, this may make it more likely that our management will not be able to maintain control of the target business. We cannot provide assurance that, upon loss of control of a target business, new management will possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to profitably operate such business.
We may have a limited ability to assess the management of a prospective target business and, as a result, may complete our initial business combination with a target business whose management may not have the skills, qualifications or abilities to manage a public company, which could, in turn, negatively impact the value of our stockholders’ investment in us.
When evaluating the desirability of effecting our initial business combination with a prospective target business, our ability to assess the target business’s management may be limited due to a lack of time, resources or information. Our assessment of the capabilities of the target’s management, therefore, may prove to be incorrect and such management may lack the skills, qualifications or abilities we suspected. Should the target’s management not possess the skills, qualifications or abilities necessary to manage a public company, the operations and profitability of the post-combination business may be negatively impacted. Accordingly, any stockholders who choose to remain stockholders following the business combination could suffer a reduction in the value of their shares. Such stockholders are unlikely to have a remedy for such reduction in value.
The officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of a business combination target’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place.
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The exercise price for the public warrants is higher than in many similar blank check company offerings in the past, and, accordingly, the warrants are more likely to expire worthless.
The exercise price of the public warrants is higher than is typical in many similar blank check companies in the past. Historically, the exercise price of a warrant was generally a fraction of the purchase price of the units in the initial public offering. The exercise price for our public warrants is $11.50 per share, subject to adjustment as provided herein. As a result, the warrants are more likely to expire worthless.
We are not registering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws at this time, and such registration may not be in place when an investor desires to exercise warrants, thus precluding such investor from being able to exercise its warrants except on a cashless basis and potentially causing such warrants to expire worthless.
We are not registering the shares of Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants under the Securities Act or any state securities laws at this time. However, under the terms of the warrant agreement, we will use our reasonable best efforts to file, and within 60 business days following our initial business combination to have declared effective, a registration statement under the Securities Act covering such shares and maintain a current prospectus relating to the Class A common stock issuable upon exercise of the warrants, until the expiration of the warrants in accordance with the provisions of the warrant agreement. We cannot assure you that we will be able to do so if, for example, any facts or events arise which represent a fundamental change in the information set forth in the registration statement or prospectus, the financial statements contained or incorporated by reference therein are not current or correct or the SEC issues a stop order.
If the shares issuable upon exercise of the warrants are not registered under the Securities Act, we will be required to permit holders to exercise their warrants on a cashless basis, in which case, the number of shares of Class A common stock that you will receive upon cashless exercise will be based on a formula subject to a maximum amount of shares equal to 0.361 shares of Class A common stock per warrant (subject to adjustment). However, no warrant will be exercisable for cash or on a cashless basis, and we will not be obligated to issue any shares to holders seeking to exercise their warrants, unless the issuance of the shares upon such exercise is registered or qualified under the securities laws of the state of the exercising holder, or an exemption from registration is available.
Notwithstanding the above, if our Class A common stock is at the time of any exercise of a warrant not listed on a national securities exchange such that it satisfies the definition of a “covered security” under Section 18(b)(1) of the Securities Act, we may, at our option, require holders of public warrants who exercise their warrants to do so on a “cashless basis” in accordance with Section 3(a)(9) of the Securities Act and, in the event we so elect, we will not be required to file or maintain in effect a registration statement, but we will be required to use our best efforts to register or qualify the shares under applicable blue sky laws to the extent an exemption is not available. In no event will we be required to net cash settle any warrant or issue securities or other compensation in exchange for the warrants in the event that we are unable to register or qualify the shares underlying the warrants under applicable state securities laws and no exemption is available. If the issuance of the shares upon exercise of the warrants is not so registered or qualified or exempt from registration or qualification, the holder of such warrant shall not be entitled to exercise such warrant and such warrant may have no value and expire worthless. In such event, holders who acquired their warrants as part of a purchase of units will have paid the full unit purchase price solely for the shares of Class A common stock included in the units. There may be a circumstance where an exemption from registration exists for holders of our private placement warrants to exercise their warrants while a corresponding exemption does not exist for holders of the public warrants included as part of units sold in our initial public offering. In such an instance, our initial stockholders and their permitted transferees (which may include our directors and executive officers) would be able to exercise their warrants and sell the shares of Class A common stock underlying their warrants while holders of our public warrants would not be able to exercise their warrants and sell the underlying shares of Class A common stock. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying shares of Class A common stock for sale under all applicable state securities laws. As a result, we may redeem the warrants as set forth above even if the holders are otherwise unable to exercise their warrants.
Our letter agreement with our founders, officers and directors and registration rights agreement may be amended, and provisions therein may be waived, without stockholder approval.
Our letter agreement with our founders, officers and directors contains provisions relating to transfer restrictions of our founder shares and private placement warrants, indemnification of the Trust Account, waiver of redemption rights and participation in liquidating distributions from the Trust Account. The letter agreement and the registration rights agreement may be amended, and provisions therein may be waived, without stockholder approval. While we do not expect our Board to approve any amendment to or waiver of the letter agreement or registration rights agreement prior to our initial business combination, it may be possible that our Board, in exercising its business judgment and subject to its fiduciary duties, chooses to approve one or more amendments to or waivers of such agreements. Any such amendments or waivers would not require approval from our stockholders and may have an adverse effect on the value of an investment in our securities.
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We may amend the terms of the warrants in a manner that may be adverse to holders of public warrants with the approval by the holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants. As a result, the exercise price of your warrants could be increased, the exercise period could be shortened and the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant could be decreased, all without your approval.
Our warrants will be issued in registered form under a warrant agreement between American Stock Transfer & Trust Company, as warrant agent, and us. The warrant agreement provides that (a) the terms of the warrants may be amended without the consent of any holder for the purpose of (i) curing any ambiguity, or curing, correcting or supplementing any defective provision or (ii) adding or changing any other provisions with respect to matters or questions arising under the warrant agreement as the parties may deem necessary or desirable and that the parties deem shall not adversely affect the interest of the registered holders of the warrants under the warrant agreement and (b) all other modifications or amendments require the vote or written consent of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants; provided that if an amendment adversely affects the private placement warrants in a different manner than the public warrants or vice versa, then the vote or written consent of the registered holders of 65% of the public warrants and 65% of the private placement warrants, voting as separate classes, shall be required. Accordingly, we may amend the terms of the public warrants in a manner adverse to a holder if holders of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants approve of such amendment. Although our ability to amend the terms of the public warrants with the consent of at least 50% of the then outstanding public warrants is unlimited, examples of such amendments could be amendments to, among other things, increase the exercise price of the warrants, convert the warrants into cash or stock, shorten the exercise period or decrease the number of shares of our Class A common stock purchasable upon exercise of a warrant.
Our warrant agreement designates the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by holders of our warrants, which could limit the ability of warrant holders to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with our company.
Our warrant agreement provides that, subject to applicable law, (i) any action, proceeding or claim against us arising out of or relating in any way to the warrant agreement, including under the Securities Act, will be brought and enforced in the courts of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York and (ii) that we irrevocably submit to such jurisdiction, which jurisdiction shall be the exclusive forum for any such action, proceeding or claim. We will waive any objection to such exclusive jurisdiction and that such courts represent an inconvenient forum.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, these provisions of the warrant agreement will not apply to suits brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal district courts of the United States of America are the sole and exclusive forum. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring any interest in any of our warrants shall be deemed to have notice of and to have consented to the forum provisions in our warrant agreement. If any action, the subject matter of which is within the scope the forum provisions of the warrant agreement, is filed in a court other than a court of the State of New York or the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (a “foreign action”) in the name of any holder of our warrants, such holder shall be deemed to have consented to: (x) the personal jurisdiction of the state and federal courts located in the State of New York in connection with any action brought in any such court to enforce the forum provisions (an “enforcement action”), and (y) having service of process made upon such warrant holder in any such enforcement action by service upon such warrant holder’s counsel in the foreign action as agent for such warrant holder.
This choice-of-forum provision may limit a warrant holder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with our company, which may discourage such lawsuits. Alternatively, if a court were to find this provision of our warrant agreement inapplicable or unenforceable with respect to one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations and result in a diversion of the time and resources of our management and our Board.
We may redeem your unexpired warrants prior to their exercise at a time that is disadvantageous to you, thereby making your warrants worthless.
We have the ability to redeem outstanding warrants for cash at any time after they become exercisable and prior to their expiration, at a price of $0.01 per warrant, provided that the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which we send the notice of redemption to the warrant holders equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for adjustments to the number of shares issuable upon exercise or the exercise price of a warrant) and provided certain other conditions are met. If and when the warrants become redeemable by us, we may exercise our redemption right even if we are unable to register or qualify the underlying securities for sale under all applicable state securities laws. Redemption of the outstanding warrants could force you (i) to exercise your warrants and pay the exercise price therefor at a time when it may be disadvantageous for you to do so, (ii) to sell your warrants at the then-current market price when you might otherwise wish to hold your warrants or (iii) to accept the nominal redemption price which, at the time the outstanding warrants are called for redemption, is likely to be substantially less than the market value of your warrants. In addition, we may redeem your warrants after they become exercisable for a number of shares of Class A common stock determined based on the redemption date and
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the fair market value of our Class A common stock. Any such redemption may have similar consequences to a cash redemption described above. In addition, such redemption may occur at a time when the warrants are “out-of-the-money,” in which case you would lose any potential embedded value from a subsequent increase in the value of the Class A common stock had your warrants remained outstanding.
Because each unit contains one-half of one redeemable warrant and only a whole warrant may be exercised, the units may be worth less than units of other blank check companies.
Each unit contains one-half of one redeemable warrant. Because, pursuant to the warrant agreement, the warrants may only be exercised for a whole number of shares, only a whole warrant may be exercised at any given time. This is different from other offerings similar to ours whose units include one share of common stock and one redeemable warrant to purchase one whole share. We have established the components of the units in this way in order to reduce the dilutive effect of the warrants upon completion of a business combination since the warrants will be exercisable in the aggregate for one-half of the number of shares compared to units that each contain a warrant to purchase one whole share, thus making us, we believe, a more attractive merger partner for target businesses. Nevertheless, this unit structure may cause our units to be worth less than if they included a warrant to purchase one whole share.
Provisions in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and Delaware law may inhibit a takeover of us, which could limit the price investors might be willing to pay in the future for our Class A common stock and could entrench management.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will contain provisions that may discourage unsolicited takeover proposals that stockholders may consider to be in their best interests. These provisions include a staggered Board and the ability of the Board to designate the terms of and issue new series of preferred shares, which may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
We are also subject to anti-takeover provisions under Delaware law, which could delay or prevent a change of control. Together these provisions may make the removal of management more difficult and may discourage transactions that otherwise could involve payment of a premium over prevailing market prices for our securities.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will designate the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or agents.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will designate certain courts as the sole and exclusive forum for certain types of actions and proceedings that may be initiated by our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or agents.
Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware (“Court of Chancery”) will, to the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, be the sole and exclusive forum for (i) any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf, (ii) any action asserting a claim of breach of a fiduciary duty owed by any of our directors, officers, employees or stockholders to us or our stockholders, (iii) any action asserting a claim arising pursuant to any provision of the DGCL, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation or bylaws or as to which the DGCL confers jurisdiction on the Court of Chancery or (iv) any action asserting a claim against us, our directors, officers, or employees that is governed by the internal affairs doctrine; provided that the exclusive forum provision will not apply to suits (a) brought to enforce any liability or duty created by the Securities Act or the Exchange Act, to any claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction; (b) which the Court of Chancery determines that it does not have personal jurisdiction over an indispensable party, (c) for which exclusive jurisdiction is vested in a court or forum other than the Court of Chancery, or (d) the Court of Chancery does not have subject matter jurisdiction. Any person or entity purchasing or otherwise acquiring or holding any interest in shares of our common stock will be deemed to have notice of, and consented to, the provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation described in the preceding sentence. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation further provides that, unless we consent in writing to the selection of an alternative forum, the federal district courts of the United States of America shall, to the fullest extent permitted by law, be the sole and exclusive forum for the resolution of any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act. We believe these provisions benefits us by providing increased consistency in the application of Delaware law by chancellors particularly experienced in resolving corporate disputes and in the application of the Securities Act by federal judges, as applicable, efficient administration of cases on a more expedited schedule relative to other forums and protection against the burdens of multi-forum litigation. This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers, employees or agents, which may discourage such lawsuits against us and such persons. Alternatively, if a court were to find these provisions of our certificate of incorporation inapplicable to, or unenforceable in respect of, one or more of the specified types of actions or proceedings, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such matters in other jurisdictions, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition or results of operations. Furthermore, stockholders cannot waive compliance with the federal securities laws and rules and regulations thereunder.
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Risks Relating to Acquiring and Operating a Business in Foreign Countries
If we complete our initial business combination with a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States, we would be subject to a variety of additional risks that may negatively impact our operations.
If we complete our initial business combination with a company with operations or opportunities outside of the United States, we would be subject to any special considerations or risks associated with companies operating in an international setting, including any of the following:
| • | higher costs and difficulties inherent in managing cross-border business operations and complying with different commercial and legal requirements of overseas markets; |
| • | rules and regulations regarding currency redemption; |
| • | complex corporate withholding taxes on individuals; |
| • | laws governing the manner in which future business combinations may be effected; |
| • | tariffs and trade barriers; |
| • | regulations related to customs and import/export matters; |
| • | longer payment cycles and challenges in collecting accounts receivable; |
| • | changes in local regulations as part of a response to the COVID-19 outbreak; |
| • | tax issues, such as tax law changes and variations in tax laws as compared to the United States; |
| • | currency fluctuations and exchange controls; |
| • | rates of inflation, price instability and interest rate fluctuations; |
| • | cultural and language differences; |
| • | employment regulations; |
| • | crime, strikes, riots, civil disturbances, terrorist attacks, natural disasters and wars; |
| • | deterioration of political relations with the United States; and |
| • | government appropriations of assets. |
We may not be able to adequately address these additional risks. If we were unable to do so, our operations might suffer, which may adversely impact our results of operations and financial condition.
Exchange rate fluctuations and currency policies may cause a target business’ ability to succeed in the international markets to be diminished.
In the event we acquire a non-U.S. target, all revenues and income would likely be received in a foreign currency, and the dollar equivalent of our net assets and distributions, if any, could be adversely affected by reductions in the value of the local currency. The value of the currencies in our target regions fluctuate and are affected by, among other things, changes in political and economic conditions. Any change in the relative value of such currency against our reporting currency may affect the attractiveness of any target business or, following consummation of our initial business combination, our financial condition and results of operations. Additionally, if a currency appreciates in value against the dollar prior to the consummation of our initial business combination, the cost of a target business as measured in dollars will increase, which may make it less likely that we are able to consummate such transaction.
Risks Relating to our Management Team
We are dependent upon our officers and directors, and their loss could adversely affect our ability to operate.
Our operations are dependent upon a relatively small group of individuals and, in particular, our officers and directors. We believe that our success depends on the continued service of our officers and directors, at least until we have completed our initial business combination. In addition, our officers and directors are not required to commit any specified amount of time to our affairs and, accordingly, will have conflicts of interest in allocating their time among various business activities, including identifying potential business combinations and monitoring the related due diligence.
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We do not have an employment agreement with, or key-man insurance on the life of, any of our directors or officers. The unexpected loss of the services of one or more of our directors or officers could have a detrimental effect on us.
Members of our management team may negotiate employment or consulting agreements with a target business in connection with a particular business combination. These agreements may provide for them to receive compensation following our initial business combination and as a result, may cause them to have conflicts of interest in determining whether a particular business combination is the most advantageous.
Members of our management team may be able to remain with the company after the completion of our initial business combination only if they are able to negotiate employment or consulting agreements in connection with the business combination. Such negotiations could take place simultaneously with the negotiation of the business combination and could provide for such individuals to receive compensation in the form of cash payments and/or our securities for services they would render to us after the completion of the business combination. The personal and financial interests of such individuals may influence their motivation in identifying and selecting a target business. However, we believe the ability of such individuals to remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination will not be the determining factor in our decision as to whether or not we will proceed with any potential business combination. There is no certainty, however, that any members of our management team will remain with us after the completion of our initial business combination. We cannot assure you that any members of our management team will remain in senior management or advisory positions with us. The determination as to whether any members of our management team will remain with us will be made at the time of our initial business combination.
Our ability to successfully complete our initial business combination and to be successful thereafter will be totally dependent upon the efforts of members of our management team, some of whom may not join us following our initial business combination. The loss of such people could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Our ability to successfully complete our initial business combination is dependent upon the efforts of members of our management team. The role of members of our management team in the target business, however, cannot presently be ascertained. Although some members of our management team may remain with the target business in senior management or advisory positions following our initial business combination, it is likely that some or all of the management of the target business will remain in place. While we intend to closely scrutinize any individuals we engage after our initial business combination, we cannot assure you that our assessment of these individuals will prove to be correct. These individuals may be unfamiliar with the requirements of operating a company regulated by the SEC, which could cause us to have to expend time and resources helping them become familiar with such requirements.
In addition, the officers and directors of an acquisition candidate may resign upon completion of our initial business combination. The departure of a business combination target’s key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business. The role of an acquisition candidate’s key personnel upon the completion of our initial business combination cannot be ascertained at this time. Although we contemplate that certain members of an acquisition candidate’s management team will remain associated with the acquisition candidate following our initial business combination, it is possible that members of the management of an acquisition candidate will not wish to remain in place. The loss of key personnel could negatively impact the operations and profitability of our post-combination business.
Our officers and directors may allocate their time to other businesses, thereby causing conflicts of interest in their determination as to how much time to devote to our affairs. This conflict of interest could have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.
Our officers and directors are not required to, and will not, commit their full time to our affairs, which may result in a conflict of interest in allocating their time between our operations and our search for a business combination and their other businesses. Each of our officers is engaged in several other business endeavors for which he may be entitled to substantial compensation and our officers are not obligated to contribute any specific number of hours per week to our affairs. If our officers’ and directors’ other business affairs require them to devote substantial amounts of time to such affairs in excess of their current commitment levels, it could limit their ability to devote time to our affairs which may have a negative impact on our ability to complete our initial business combination.
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Certain of our officers and directors are now, and all of them may in the future become, affiliated with entities engaged in business activities similar to those intended to be conducted by us and, accordingly, may have conflicts of interest in allocating their time and determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented.
Following the completion of our initial public offering and until we consummate our initial business combination, we intend to engage in the business of identifying and combining with one or more businesses. Our sponsor and officers and directors are, and may in the future become, affiliated with entities (such as operating companies or investment vehicles) that are engaged in a similar business.
Our officers and directors also may become aware of business opportunities which may be appropriate for presentation to us and the other entities in the future to which they owe certain fiduciary or contractual duties. Accordingly, they may have conflicts of interest in determining to which entity a particular business opportunity should be presented. These conflicts may not be resolved in our favor and a potential target business may be presented to another entity prior to its presentation to us. Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation will provide that we renounce our interest in any corporate opportunity offered to any director or officer unless such opportunity is expressly offered to such person solely in his or her capacity as a director or officer of our company and such opportunity is one we are legally and contractually permitted to undertake and would otherwise be reasonable for us to pursue.
Our officers, directors, security holders and their respective affiliates may have competitive pecuniary interests that conflict with our interests.
We have not adopted a policy that expressly prohibits our directors, officers, security holders or affiliates from having a direct or indirect pecuniary or financial interest in any investment to be acquired or disposed of by us or in any transaction to which we are a party or have an interest. In fact (subject to certain approvals and consents) we may enter into a business combination with a target business that is affiliated with our sponsor, our directors or officers, although we do not intend to do so. We do not have a policy that expressly prohibits any such persons from engaging for their own account in business activities of the types conducted by us. Accordingly, such persons or entities may have a conflict between their interests and ours.
General Risk Factors
The SEC issued guidance on the application of warrant accounting guidance which required that our warrants be accounted for as liabilities rather than as equity and such requirement resulted in a restatement of our previously issued financial statements.
On April 12, 2021, the staff of the SEC issued a public statement entitled “Staff Statement on Accounting and Reporting Considerations for Warrants issued by Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (“SPACs”)” (the “Statement”). In the Statement, the SEC staff expressed its view that certain terms and conditions common to SPAC warrants may require the warrants to be classified as liabilities on the SPAC’s balance sheet as opposed to equity. More specifically, the Statement focused on warrants that have certain settlement terms and provisions related to certain tender offers or warrants that do not meet the criteria to be considered indexed to an entity’s own stock, which terms are similar to those contained in the warrant agreement governing our warrants. Since issuance, our warrants were accounted for as equity within our balance sheet, and after discussion and evaluation, including with our independent auditors, we have concluded that our warrants should be presented as liabilities with subsequent fair value remeasurement. Therefore, we conducted a valuation of our warrants and restated our previously issued financial statements, which resulted in unanticipated costs and diversion of management resources.
Our management and our audit committee also concluded that it was appropriate to restate our previously issued financial statements for the affected periods. We have identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting. This material weakness could continue to adversely affect our ability to report our results of operations and financial condition accurately and in a timely manner. As part of the restatement, we identified a material weakness in our internal controls over financial reporting relating to accounting for complex financial instruments.
Although we have now completed these restatements, we cannot guarantee that we will have no further inquiries from the SEC or NYSE regarding our restated financial statements or matters relating thereto.
Any future inquiries from the SEC or NYSE as a result of the restatement of our historical financial statements will, regardless of the outcome, likely consume a significant amount of our resources in addition to those resources already consumed in connection with the restatement itself.
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Our warrants are accounted for as derivative liabilities and are recorded at fair value with changes in fair value for each period reported in earnings, which may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock or may make it more difficult for us to consummate an initial business combination.
We issued 14,375,000 public warrants and, simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering, we issued in a private placement 7,750,000 private placement warrants. As a result of the Statement, we evaluated the accounting treatment of our 14,375,000 public warrants and 7,750,000 private placement warrants and determined that the warrants should be recorded as derivative liabilities measured at fair value, with changes in fair value each period reported in earnings. At each reporting period (i) the accounting treatment of the warrants will be re-evaluated for proper accounting treatment as a liability or equity and (ii) the fair value of the liability of the public and private warrants will be remeasured and the change in the fair value of the liability will be recorded as other income (expense) in our income statement. Changes in the inputs and assumptions for the valuation model we use to determine the fair value of such liability may have a material impact on the estimated fair value of the embedded derivative liability. The share price of our common stock represents the primary underlying variable that impacts the value of the liability related to the warrants, which are accounted for as derivative instruments. Additional factors that impact the value of the warrants as derivative instruments include the volatility of our stock price, discount rates and stated interest rates. As a result, our financial statements and results of operations will fluctuate quarterly, based on various factors, many of which are outside of our control, such as the share price of our common stock. In addition, we may change the underlying assumptions used in our valuation model, which could result in significant fluctuations in our results of operations. If our stock price is volatile, we expect that we will recognize non-cash gains or losses on our warrants or any other similar derivative instruments each reporting period and that the amount of such gains or losses could be material. The impact of changes in fair value on earnings may have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock.
As a result, included on our balance sheet as of December 31, 2022 contained elsewhere in this annual report are derivative liabilities related to embedded features contained within our public warrants and private placement warrants. Accounting Standards Codification 815-40, “Derivatives and Hedging—Contracts on an Entity’s Own Equity”, provides for the remeasurement of the fair value of such derivatives at each balance sheet date, with a resulting non-cash gain or loss related to the change in the fair value being recognized in earnings in the statement of operations. As a result of the recurring fair value measurement, our financial statements and results of operations may fluctuate quarterly, based on factors, that are outside of our control. Due to the recurring fair value measurement, we expect that we will recognize non-cash gains or losses on our warrants each reporting period and that the amount of such gains or losses could be material.
We have identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting. If we are unable to develop and maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting, we may not be able to accurately report our financial results in a timely manner, which may adversely affect investor confidence in us and materially and adversely affect our business and operating results.
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP. Our management is likewise required, on a quarterly basis, to evaluate the effectiveness of our internal controls and to disclose any changes and material weaknesses identified through such evaluation in those internal controls. A material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented, or detected and corrected on a timely basis. Effective internal controls are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports and prevent fraud.
We identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting related to the accounting for the warrants we issued in connection with our initial public offering. As a result of this material weakness, our management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of December 31, 2022. This material weakness resulted in a material misstatement of our warrant liabilities, change in fair value of warrant liabilities and related financial disclosures for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021. For a discussion of management’s consideration of the material weakness identified related to the Company’s accounting treatment of its public and private placement warrants, see Part II, Item 9A: Controls and Procedures included in this Report.
We have identified a material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting of complex financial instruments related to the Company’s classification of redeemable shares of Class A common stock. As a result of this material weakness, our management has concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective as of December 31, 2022. Historically, a portion of the Class A common stock was classified as permanent equity. Following the Company’s re-evaluation of the accounting classification of the Class A common stock, the Company’s management has determined that the Class A common stock requires classification as temporary equity. For a discussion of management’s consideration of the material weakness identified related to the Company’s classification of the Class A common stock, see Part II, Item 9A: Controls and Procedures included in this Report.
If we identify any new material weaknesses in the future, any such newly identified material weakness could limit our ability to prevent or detect a misstatement of our accounts or disclosures that could result in a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements. In such case, we may be unable to maintain compliance with securities law requirements regarding timely filing of periodic reports in addition to applicable stock exchange listing requirements, investors may lose confidence in our financial reporting and our stock price may decline as a result. We cannot assure you that the measures we have taken to date, or any measures we may take in the future, will be sufficient to avoid potential future material weaknesses. To respond to these material weaknesses, we have devoted, and plan to continue to devote, significant effort and resources to the remediation and improvement of our internal control over financial reporting. While we have processes to identify and appropriately apply applicable accounting requirements, we plan to enhance these processes to better evaluate our research and understanding of the nuances of the complex accounting standards
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that apply to our financial statements. Our plans at this time include providing enhanced access to accounting literature, research materials and documents and increased communication among our personnel and third-party professionals with whom we consult regarding complex accounting applications. The elements of our remediation plan can only be accomplished over time, and we can offer no assurance that these initiatives will ultimately have the intended effects.
Any failure to maintain such internal control could adversely impact our ability to report our financial position and results from operations on a timely and accurate basis. If our financial statements are not accurate, investors may not have a complete understanding of our operations. Likewise, if our financial statements are not filed on a timely basis, we could be subject to sanctions or investigations by the stock exchange on which our common stock is listed, the SEC or other regulatory authorities. In either case, this could in result a material adverse effect on our business. Failure to timely file will cause us to be ineligible to utilize short form registration statements on Form S-3, which may impair our ability to obtain capital in a timely fashion to execute our business strategies or issue shares to effect an acquisition. Ineffective internal controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which could have a negative effect on the trading price of our stock.
We can give no assurance that the measures we have taken and plan to take in the future will remediate the material weaknesses identified or that any additional material weaknesses or restatements of financial results will not arise in the future due to a failure to implement and maintain adequate internal control over financial reporting or circumvention of these controls. In addition, even if we are successful in strengthening our controls and procedures, in the future those controls and procedures may not be adequate to prevent or identify irregularities or errors or to facilitate the fair presentation of our financial statements.
The restatement of our March 30, 2021 and June 30, 2021 unaudited interim financial statements in connection with the filing of our Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021 has subjected us to additional risks and uncertainties, including increased professional costs and the increased possibility of legal proceedings.
As a result of the restatement of our financial statements, we have become subject to additional risks and uncertainties, including, among others, increased professional fees and expenses and time commitment that may be required to address matters related to the restatements, and scrutiny of the SEC and other regulatory bodies which could cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information and could subject us to civil or criminal penalties or shareholder litigation. We could face monetary judgments, penalties or other sanctions that could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations and could cause its stock price to decline.
We may face litigation and other risks as a result of the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting.
As a result of the material weakness described above, the change in accounting for the warrants, the restatement for the change in classification of redeemable common stock and other matters raised or that may in the future be raised by the SEC, we face potential for litigation or other disputes that may include, among others, claims invoking the federal and state securities laws, contractual claims or other claims arising from the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting and the preparation of our financial statements. As of the date of this annual report, we have no knowledge of any such litigation or dispute. However, we can provide no assurance that such litigation or dispute will not arise in the future. Any such litigation or dispute, whether successful or not, could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition or our ability to complete a business combination.
We are an emerging growth company and a smaller reporting company within the meaning of the Securities Act, and if we take advantage of certain exemptions from disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies or smaller reporting companies, this could make our securities less attractive to investors and may make it more difficult to compare our performance with other public companies.
We are an “emerging growth company” within the meaning of the Securities Act, as modified by the JOBS Act, and we may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the auditor attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in our periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important. We could be an emerging growth company for up to five years, although circumstances could cause us to lose that status earlier, including if the market value of our Class A common stock held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of any June 30 before that time, in which case we would no longer be an emerging growth company as of the following December 31. We cannot predict whether investors will find our securities less attractive because we will rely on these exemptions. If some investors find our securities less attractive as a result of our reliance on these exemptions, the trading prices of our securities may be lower than they otherwise would be, there may be a less active trading market for our securities and the trading prices of our securities may be more volatile.
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Further, Section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that a company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. We have elected to irrevocably opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, we will adopt the new or revised standard at the time public companies adopt the new or revised standard. This may make comparison of our financial statements with another emerging growth company that has not opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.
Additionally, we are a “smaller reporting company” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. Smaller reporting companies may take advantage of certain reduced disclosure obligations, including, among other things, providing only two years of audited financial statements. We will remain a smaller reporting company until the last day of any fiscal year for so long as either (1) the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates did not exceed $250 million as of the prior June 30, or (2) our annual revenues did not exceed $100 million during such completed fiscal year and the market value of our common stock held by non-affiliates did not exceed $700 million as of the prior June 30.
Cyber incidents or attacks directed at us could result in information theft, data corruption, operational disruption and/or financial loss.
We depend on digital technologies, including information systems, infrastructure and cloud applications and services, including those of third parties with which we may deal. Sophisticated and deliberate attacks on, or security breaches in, our systems or infrastructure, or the systems or infrastructure of third parties or the cloud, could lead to corruption or misappropriation of our assets, proprietary information and sensitive or confidential data. As an early stage company without significant investments in data security protection, we may not be sufficiently protected against such occurrences. We may not have sufficient resources to adequately protect against, or to investigate and remediate any vulnerability to, cyber incidents. It is possible that any of these occurrences, or a combination of them, could have adverse consequences on our business and lead to financial loss.
Members of our management team and our Board and their respective affiliated companies have been, and may from time to time be, involved in legal proceedings or governmental investigations unrelated to our business.
Members of our management team and our Board have been involved in a wide variety of businesses. Such involvement has, and may lead to, media coverage and public awareness. As a result of such involvement, members of our management team and our Board and their respective affiliated companies have been, and may from time to time be, involved in legal proceedings or governmental investigations unrelated to our business. Any such proceedings or investigations may be detrimental to our reputation and could negatively affect our ability to identify and complete an initial business combination and may have an adverse effect on the price of our securities.
A new 1% U.S. federal excise tax may be imposed upon us in connection with the redemptions by us of our Class A common stock.
On August 16, 2022, President Biden signed into law the Inflation Reduction Act (the “IRA”), which, among other things, imposes a new U.S. federal 1% excise tax on certain repurchases (including redemptions) of stock by publicly traded domestic corporations and certain domestic subsidiaries of publicly traded foreign corporations. This excise tax is imposed on the repurchasing corporation itself, not its stockholders from which shares are repurchased. Generally, the amount of the excise tax is 1% of the fair market value of the shares repurchased at the time of the repurchase. For the purposes of calculating the excise tax, the repurchasing corporation is permitted to net the fair market value of certain new stock issuances against the fair market value of the stock repurchases that occur in the same taxable year. The U.S. Treasury Department, the IRS (as defined below), and other standard-setting bodies are expected to issue guidance on how the excise tax provisions of the IRA will be applied. The IRA excise tax applies to repurchases that occur after December 31, 2022.
Any repurchase or redemption of our Class A common stock that occurs after December 31, 2022, in connection with the Business Combination may be subject to the excise tax. Whether and to what extent we would be subject to the excise tax in connection with the Business Combination would depend on a number of factors, including (i) the fair market value of the redemptions and repurchase in connection with the Business Combination, (ii) the structure of the Business Combination, (iii) the nature and amount of any PIPE Investment or other equity issuances in connection with the Business Combination (or otherwise issued not in connection with the Business Combination but issued within the same taxable year of the Business Combination) and (iv) the regulations and other guidance issued by the U.S. Treasury Department and the IRS. Since the excise tax would be payable by us and not by the redeeming holder, we have yet to determine the mechanics of any required payment of the excise taxes.
An investment in us may result in uncertain or adverse United States federal income tax consequences.
An investment in us may result in uncertain U.S. federal income tax consequences. For instance, because there are no authorities that directly address instruments similar to the units we issued in our initial public offering, the allocation an investor makes with respect to the purchase price of a unit between the share of Class A common stock and the one-half of one redeemable warrant to purchase Class A common stock included in each unit could be challenged by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) or the courts. Furthermore, the U.S. federal income tax consequences of a cashless exercise of a warrant included in the units is unclear under current law. Finally, it is unclear whether the redemption rights with respect to our shares of Class A common stock suspend the running of a U.S. Holder’s holding period for purposes of determining whether any gain or loss realized by such holder on the sale or exchange of Class A common stock is long-term capital gain or loss and for determining whether any dividend we pay would be considered “qualified dividend income” for U.S. federal income tax purposes Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors with respect to these and other tax consequences when purchasing, holding or disposing of our securities.
We would be subject to a second level of U.S. federal income tax on a portion of our income if we are determined to be a personal holding company (a “PHC”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes.
A U.S. corporation generally will be classified as a PHC for U.S. federal income tax purposes in a given taxable year if (i) at any time during the last half of such taxable year, five or fewer individuals (without regard to their citizenship or residency and including as individuals for this purpose certain entities such as certain tax tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts) own or are deemed to own (pursuant to certain constructive ownership rules) more than 50% of the stock of the corporation by value and (ii) at least 60% of the corporation’s adjusted ordinary gross income, as determined for U.S. federal income tax purposes, for such taxable year consists of PHC income (which includes, among other things, dividends, interest, certain royalties, annuities and, under certain circumstances, rents).
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Depending on the date and size of our initial business combination, it is possible that at least 60% of our adjusted ordinary gross income may consist of PHC income as discussed above. In addition, depending on the concentration of our stock in the hands of individuals, including the members of our sponsor and certain tax-exempt organizations, pension funds and charitable trusts, it is possible that more than 50% of our stock may be owned or deemed owned (pursuant to the constructive ownership rules) by such persons during the last half of a taxable year. Thus, no assurance can be given that we will not become a PHC in the future. If we are or were to become a PHC in a given taxable year, we would be subject to an additional PHC tax, currently 20%, on our undistributed PHC income, which generally includes our taxable income, subject to certain adjustments.
Non-U.S. Holders may be subject to U.S. federal income tax if we are considered a United States real property holding corporation.
A Non-U.S. Holder (as defined below) of our Class A common stock may be subject to U.S. federal income and/or withholding tax in the event we are considered a “United States real property holding corporation” (“USRPHC”) for U.S. federal income tax purposes. In that event, Non-U.S. Holders of our Class A common stock could be subject to U.S. federal income or withholding tax, or both, in respect of certain distributions on, and payments in connection with a sale, exchange, redemption, repurchase or other disposition of, our Class A common stock. Certain Non-U.S. Holders may be eligible for an exemption if they do not exceed certain ownership levels. Non-U.S. Holders are urged to consult their tax advisors with respect to the U.S. federal income tax consequences of acquiring, owning and disposing of our Class A common stock.
| Item 1B. | Unresolved Staff Comments |
Not applicable.
| Item 2. | Properties |
We do not own any real estate or other physical properties materially important to our operation. Our executive office is located at 700 Milam Street, Suite 3300, Houston, Texas 77002. We consider our current office space adequate for our current operations.
| Item 3. | Legal Proceedings |
To the knowledge of our management, there is no litigation currently pending or contemplated against us, any of our officers or directors in their capacity as such or against any of our property.
| Item 4. | Mine Safety Disclosures |
Not applicable.
PART II
| Item 5. | Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters, and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities Market Information |
Our units trade on the NYSE under the symbol “FLME.U.” The common stock and warrants trade on the NYSE under the symbols “FLME” and “FLME.WS,” respectively.
Holders
On March 28, 2023, there was one holder of record of our units, two holders of record of our Class A common stock, one holder of record of our public warrants, eight holders of record of our Class B common stock and eight holders of record of our private placement warrants.
Securities Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans.
None.
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Recent Sales of Unregistered Securities; Use of Proceeds from Registered Offerings.
On March 1, 2021 we sold 7,750,000 private placement warrants to our sponsor at $1.00 per warrant, generating gross proceeds of $7,750,000. Each private placement warrant is exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share.
On March 1, 2021 we consummated our initial public offering of 28,750,000 units at $10.00 per unit, including 3,750,000 units sold pursuant to the full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase additional units to cover over-allotments. Cowen & Company, LLC (“Cowen”) and Intrepid Partners, LLC (“Intrepid’) served as the joint book-running managers for the offering. The securities sold in the initial public offering were registered under the Securities Act on a registration statement on Form S-1 (No. 333-252805) that became effective on February 24, 2021.
We paid a total of $5,750,000 in underwriting discounts and commissions and $857,751 for other costs and expenses related to the initial public offering. The underwriters agreed to defer an additional $10,062,500 in underwriting discounts and commissions, payable upon consummation of our initial business combination, pursuant to the Business Combination Marketing Agreement, by and among the Company, Cowen and Intrepid. After deducting the underwriting discounts and commissions (excluding the deferred portion of $10,062,500 in underwriting discounts and commissions, which will be released from the Trust Account upon consummation of initial business combination, if consummated) and incurred offering costs, the total net proceeds from our initial public offering and the sale of the private placement warrants was $287,835,000, of which $287,500,000 (or $10.00 per unit sold in the initial public offering) was placed in the Trust Account. We reimbursed our sponsor and certain officers and directors to cover expenses related to the initial public offering. Other than as described above, no payments were made by us to directors, officers or persons owning ten percent or more of our common stock or to their associates, or to our affiliates.
Purchases of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.
| Item 6. | [Reserved] |
| Item 7. | Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations |
References to “we”, “us”, “our” or the “Company” are to Flame Acquisition Corp., except where the context requires otherwise. The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our financial statements and related notes thereto included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report on Form 10-K includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”). We have based these forward-looking statements on our current expectations and projections about future events. These forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and assumptions about us that may cause our actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements to be materially different from any future results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “would,” “expect,” “plan,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “continue,” or the negative of such terms or other similar expressions. Such statements include, but are not limited to, possible business combinations and the financing thereof, and related matters, as well as all other statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Form 10-K. Factors that might cause or contribute to such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, those set forth under “Item 1A. Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and those described in our other Securities and Exchange Commission filings.
Overview
We are a blank check company incorporated in Delaware on October 16, 2020 for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses. We are an emerging growth company and, as such, we are subject to all of the risks associated with emerging growth companies. Our sponsor is Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC, a Delaware limited liability and an affiliate of certain of our officers and directors.
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Potential Business Combination
Merger Agreement
On November 2, 2022, we entered into an agreement and plan of merger, dated as of November 2, 2022 (as it may be amended, supplemented, or otherwise modified from time to time, the “Merger Agreement”), with Sable Offshore Corp., a Texas corporation (“SOC”), and Sable Offshore Holdings, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company and the parent company of SOC (“Holdco” and, together with SOC, “Sable”). The Merger Agreement provides for, among other things, the following transactions at the closing: (i) Holdco will merge with and into the Company, with the Company surviving the merger (the “Holdco Merger”), and (ii) immediately following the effective time of the Holdco Merger, SOC will merge with and into the Company, with the Company surviving the merger (the “SOC Merger”). The Holdco Merger together with the SOC Merger are referred to as the “Merger,” and the Merger and other transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement are referred to as the “Business Combination.” In connection with the Business Combination, the Company will change its name to Sable Offshore Corp. The independent members of the board of directors of the Company (the “Board”) approved, and recommended that the Board approve, the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby. Subsequently, the Board approved the Merger Agreement and the transactions contemplated thereby.
The obligations of the parties to consummate the Business Combination are subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain customary closing conditions. The closing of the Merger is expected to occur on the third business day after the satisfaction or waiver (if legally permissible) of the conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement, except as otherwise mutually agreed by the parties. The Merger Agreement may be terminated under certain customary and limited circumstances at any time prior to the Closing and the Company can provide no assurance that the Business Combination will be consummated at the expected time, or at all.
On November 10, 2022, we filed a preliminary proxy statement relating to the Business Combination (as amended, the “Proxy Statement”), which included a recommendation of the Board to the Company’s stockholders that they approve the proposals included in the Proxy Statement. For more information on the Business Combination and the transactions contemplated thereby, please refer to the Company’s Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022 and the Company’s preliminary proxy statement on Schedule 14A filed with the SEC on November 10, 2022 (as amended from time to time, including on December 23, 2022 and January 27, 2023).
PIPE Subscription Agreements
In connection the Business Combination, Holdco entered into subscription agreements (the “Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements”) with certain investors (such investors, the “Sable PIPE Investors”), pursuant to which the Sable PIPE Investors agreed to purchase, in the aggregate, 7,450,000 limited liability company membership interests in Holdco designated as Class B shares at $10.00 per share, for an aggregate commitment amount of approximately $74,500,000 (the “Sable PIPE Investment”).
The Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements provide that, in the event the Merger is consummated, the Sable PIPE Investors will be deemed to have subscribed for and will purchase our Class A common stock at the same price per share and, by operation of law pursuant to the Merger, we will have succeeded to Holdco’s obligations under the Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements. The Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements provide that, if the Merger is consummated, we must file a registration statement within 30 calendar days after consummation of the Merger registering the resale of the shares of our Class A common stock issued to the Sable PIPE Investors, and must use our commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC by the earlier of (i) the 90th calendar day (or 120th calendar day if the SEC notifies us that it will review the registration statement) following the closing of the Merger and (ii) the 10th business day after the date we are notified (orally or in writing, whichever is earlier) by the SEC that the registration statement will not be reviewed or will not be subject to further review. We thereafter will be required to maintain a registration statement that is continuously effective and to cause the registration statement to regain effectiveness in the event that it ceases to be effective.
We intend to pursue additional private placement subscriptions under substantially similar subscription agreements (with revisions to reflect that we are entering into such subscription agreements and the subscribers will be subscribing for our Class A common stock directly) prior to the closing of the Business Combination (the “Flame PIPE Subscription Agreements”), provided that such additional subscriptions, together with the Sable PIPE Investment, will not exceed $400 million. The Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements and the Flame PIPE Subscription Agreements are referred to collectively as the “PIPE Subscription Agreements,” and the Sable PIPE Investors and any investors who enter into Flame PIPE Subscription Agreements are refereed to collectively as the “PIPE Investors.” The foregoing description of the Sable PIPE Subscription Agreements does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the form Sable PIPE Subscription Agreement filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022.
Registration Rights Agreement
The Merger Agreement provides that, at the closing of the Business Combination, the holders of Holdco Class A shares immediately prior to the effective time of the Holdco Merger will enter into a registration rights agreement with us (the “Registration Rights Agreement”) pursuant to which the holders will be granted certain registration rights with respect to the Flame Class A common stock to be received as consideration in the Merger.
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Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, we will agree to file a registration statement within 30 calendar days after the consummation of the Merger registering the resale of the registrable securities under the Registration Rights Agreement, and we must use our commercially reasonable efforts to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC by the earlier of (i) the 90th calendar day (or 120th calendar day if the SEC notifies us that it will review the registration statement) following the closing of the Merger and (ii) the 10th business day after the date we are notified (orally or in writing, whichever is earlier) by the SEC that the registration statement will not be reviewed or will not be subject to further review. We thereafter will be required to maintain a registration statement that is continuously effective and to cause the registration statement to regain effectiveness in the event that it ceases to be effective. At any time the registration statement is effective, any holder signatory to the Registration Rights Agreement may request, one time in any 12-month period, to sell all or a portion of its securities that are registrable in an underwritten offering pursuant to the registration statement for a total offering price reasonably expected to exceed, in the aggregate, $25 million. In addition, the holders will have certain “piggyback” registration rights with respect to registrations initiated by us and other Flame stockholders. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any registration statements pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, subject to limited exceptions.
Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, the holders of Holdco Class A shares immediately prior to the effective time of the Holdco Merger, subject to limited exceptions, will agree to a lock-up on their shares of our Class A common stock, pursuant to which such parties will agree to not transfer shares of our Class A common stock held by such parties for a period of three years following the closing of the Business Combination.
The foregoing description of the Registration Rights Agreement does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the full text of the form Registration Rights Agreement filed as an exhibit to our Current Report on Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022.
Recent Events
On February 21, 2023, to mitigate the risk of us being deemed to have been operating as an unregistered investment company (including under the subjective test of Section 3(a)(1)(A) of the Investment Company Act), the investments in U.S. government securities or money market funds held in the Trust Account were liquidated to thereafter be held in cash (which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank) until earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination and (ii) the distribution of the funds in the Trust Account to the Company’s stockholders.
On February 27, 2023, at a special meeting of stockholders, the Company’s stockholders voted to approve an amendment (the “Extension Amendment Proposal”) to the amended and restated certificate of incorporation to extend the date by which the Company must complete a business combination (the “Extension”) from March 1, 2023, to September 1, 2023 (the “Extended Date”). In connection with the Extension, stockholders holding 20,317,255 shares of Class A Common Stock exercised their right to redeem such shares for a pro rata portion of the funds in the Trust Account, representing approximately 70.67% of our issued and outstanding Class A ordinary shares. As a result, $206,121,060 (approximately $10.15 per share) was removed from the Trust Account to pay such redeeming holders on March 2, 2023.
On February 27, 2023, in connection with the Extension, we filed an amendment (the “Extension Amendment”) to our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware. The Extension Amendment extends the date by which we must consummate our initial business combination from March 1, 2023 to September 1, 2023.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
As of December 31, 2022, we had cash of $100,256. Until the consummation of our initial public offering, our only sources of liquidity were an initial purchase of common stock by our founders and a loan from the Sponsor, FL Co-Investment and Intrepid Financial Partners.
Our registration statement for our initial public offering was declared effective on February 24, 2021. On March 1, 2021, we consummated our initial public offering of 28,750,000 units, which included 3,750,000 units issued pursuant to the full exercise by the underwriters of their over-allotment option, at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $287,500,000 and incurring offering costs of $16,670,251, inclusive of $10,062,500 in deferred underwriting commissions pursuant to the Business Combination Marketing Agreement with Cowen and Company, LLC and Intrepid Partners, LLC (the “Business Combination Marketing Agreement”).
Simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering, we consummated the private placement of 7,750,000 warrants to our initial stockholders, each exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, generating gross proceeds to us of $7,750,000.
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Upon the closing of our initial public offering and the private placement, $287,500,000 of the net proceeds of the sale of the Units in our initial public offering and the sale of private placement warrants in the private placement were placed in the Trust Account, located in the United States at J.P. Morgan Chase Bank, N.A., with American Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, and invested only in U.S. “government securities” within the meaning of Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act having a maturity of 185 days or less or in money market funds meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 promulgated under the Investment Company Act which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations, as determined by us, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of our initial business combination and (ii) the distribution of the Trust Account as described below. Except with respect to interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account that may be released to us to pay our taxes, if any, the funds held in the Trust Account will not be released until the earliest to occur of: (a) the completion of our initial business combination, (b) the redemption of any public shares properly submitted in connection with a stockholder vote to amend our amended and restated certificate of incorporation (A) to modify the substance or timing of our obligation to allow redemption in connection with our initial business combination or redeem 100% of our public shares if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, or (B) with respect to any other provision relating to stockholders’ rights or pre-initial business combination activity and (c) the redemption of our public shares if we are unable to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023, subject to applicable law. On February 21, 2023, the Trust Account was liquidated to thereafter be held in cash, which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank (see Note 11 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report). Based on current interest rates, we expect that interest income earned on the Trust Account (if any) will be sufficient to pay our income and franchise taxes.
If we are unable to complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 (or such later date as may be provided pursuant to a further amendment to our amended and restated certificate of incorporation), we will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up; (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but no more than ten business days thereafter subject to lawfully available funds therefor, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to us to pay our taxes as well as expenses relating to the administration of the Trust Account (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses) divided by the number of the then outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish Public Stockholders’ rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidation distributions, if any), subject to applicable law; and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the remaining stockholders and the board of directors, liquidate and dissolve, subject in each case to our obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law. There will be no redemption rights or liquidating distributions with respect to our warrants, which will expire worthless if we fail to complete our initial business combination by the end of the Combination Period, or by the applicable deadline as may be extended.
Results of Operations
Our entire activity since inception through December 31, 2022 was related to our formation, the preparation for our initial public offering, and since the closing of our initial public offering, the search for a target for our initial business combination (see Note 6 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report). We have neither engaged in any operations nor generated any revenues to date. We will not generate any operating revenues until after completion of our initial business combination. We will generate non-operating income in the form of interest income on cash and cash equivalents and changes in fair value of our derivative warrant liabilities and promissory notes. We expect to incur increased expenses as a result of being a public company (for legal, financial reporting, accounting and auditing compliance), as well as for due diligence expenses.
Until consummation of its Business Combination, the Company will be using the funds not held in the Trust Account, and any additional Working Capital Loans (as defined in Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report) from the initial stockholders, the Company’s officers and directors, or their respective affiliates (which is described in Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report), for identifying and evaluating prospective acquisition candidates, performing business due diligence on prospective target businesses, traveling to and from the offices, plants or similar locations of prospective target businesses, reviewing corporate documents and material agreements of prospective target businesses, selecting the target business to acquire and structuring, negotiating and consummating the Business Combination.
If the Company’s estimates of the costs of undertaking in-depth due diligence and negotiating a business combination are less than the actual amounts necessary to do so, the Company may have insufficient funds available to operate its business prior to the business combination and will need to raise additional capital through loans from the Sponsor, its officers and/or directors, or third parties. Except as contemplated by the terms of the Initial Promissory Note, First Working Capital Loan, Second Working Capital Loan, Third Working Capital Loan, Q3 2022 Promissory Note, Q4 2022 Promissory Note and Q1 2023 Promissory Note, neither the Sponsor or the Company’s officers or directors are under any obligation to advance funds to, or to invest in, the Company. If the Company is unable to raise additional capital, it may be required to take additional measures to conserve liquidity, which could include, but not necessarily be limited to, curtailing operations, suspending the pursuit of its business plan, and reducing overhead expenses. The Company cannot provide any assurance that new financing will be available to it on commercially acceptable terms, if at all. We are also subject to a mandatory liquidation and subsequent dissolution requirement if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023. We cannot assure you that our plans to raise capital or to consummate an initial business combination before September 1, 2023 will be successful. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. These financial statements do not include any adjustments relating to the recovery of the recorded assets or the classification of the liabilities that might be necessary should the Company be unable to continue as a going concern.
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For the year ended December 31, 2022, we had a net loss of $2,590,948, which consisted of interest income on our amounts held in the Trust Account of $3,989,061, and a decrease in the fair value of warrants of $498,000, offset by operating costs of $6,150,199, income tax expense of $757,069 and an increase in fair value of the previously issued promissory notes of $170,741.
For the year ended December 31, 2021, we had a net income of $4,273,078, which consisted of $1,682,816 in operating costs, $280,829 of financing costs, and $18,323 of initial fair value adjustment on promissory note, offset by $6,155,125 of change in fair value of derivative warrant liabilities, $83,768 of change in fair value of promissory note and $16,153 in gain on investments held in Trust Account. The $280,829 in financing costs represents offering costs allocated to warrant liabilities and expensed at the time of the initial public offering.
Going Concern
As of December 31, 2022, we had $100,256 in cash and working capital deficit of $6,547,305. We are also subject to a mandatory liquidation and subsequent dissolution requirement if we do not complete our initial business combination by September 1, 2023. All remaining cash held in the Trust Account is generally unavailable for the Company’s use, prior to an initial business combination, and is restricted for use either in a Business Combination, to redeem common stock or to use for payment of taxes. During the period ended December 31, 2022, the Company withdrew $786,918 for payment of taxes, leaving $3,218,297 available for withdrawal from the Trust account as of December 31, 2022. Further, we expect to incur significant costs in pursuit of our acquisition plans. Management’s plans to address this need for capital are discussed in Note 1 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Our plans to raise capital and to consummate our initial business combination by September 1, 2023 may not be successful. These factors, among others, raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. The financial statements contained elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q do not include any adjustments that might result from our inability to continue as a going concern.
Through December 31, 2022, the Company’s liquidity needs were satisfied through receipt of $25,000 from the sale of the Founder Shares and the remaining net proceeds from the IPO and the sale of Private Placement Warrants, as well as $300,000 that was available under the Initial Promissory Note, $365,000 that was available under the First Working Capital Loan (see Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report), $800,000 that was available under the Second Working Capital Loan (see Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report), $335,000 that was available under the Third Working Capital Loan (see Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report), $170,000 that was available under the Q3 2022 Promissory Note (see Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report) and $200,000 that was available under the Q4 2022 Promissory Note (see Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report). As of December 31, 2022, each of the working capital loans was fully drawn down. The Q3 2022 Promissory Note was fully drawn down on October 5, 2022, and the Q4 2022 Promissory Note (see Note 5 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report) was fully drawn down on October 31, 2022. On February 6, 2023, the Company issued an additional unsecured promissory note (“Q1 2023 Promissory Note”) in the principal amount of $535,000 (see Note 11 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report).
Related Party Transactions
Founder Shares
In November 2020, our founders acquired 7,187,500 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000. Our sponsor purchased 4,671,875 founder shares, FL Co-Investment purchased 1,257,813 founder shares and Intrepid Financial Partners purchased 1,257,812 founder shares. Also in November 2020, our sponsor transferred 434,375 founder shares to our independent director nominees and certain individuals, including Gregory D. Patrinely, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, at their original purchase price. Simultaneously with such transfer, each of FL Co-Investment and Intrepid Financial Partners transferred 13,125 founder shares to our sponsor, respectively, at their original purchase price.
The initial stockholders agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of the Founder Shares until the earlier to occur of:
(a) one year after the completion of our initial business combination or (b) subsequent to our initial business combination, (x) if the last reported sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $12.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and other similar transactions) for any 20 trading days within any 30-trading day period commencing at least 150 days after our initial business combination, or (y) the date on which we complete a liquidation, merger, capital stock exchange or other similar transaction that results in all of our stockholders having the right to exchange their shares of common stock for cash, securities or other property. Any permitted transferees would be subject to the same restrictions and other agreements of our initial stockholders with respect to any founder shares.
Private Placement Warrants
Simultaneously with the closing of our initial public offering, we consummated the private placement of 7,750,000 private placement warrants to our initial stockholders, each exercisable to purchase one share of Class A common stock at $11.50 per share, at a price of $1.00 per private placement warrant, generating gross proceeds to us of $7,750,000.
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Each private placement warrant is exercisable for one whole share of Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the private placement warrants to the initial stockholders was added to the proceeds from our initial public offering held in the Trust Account. If we do not complete a business combination by September 1, 2023, the private placement warrants will expire worthless. Except as set forth below, the private placement warrants will be non-redeemable for cash and exercisable on a cashless basis so long as they are held by the initial stockholders or their permitted transferees.
The purchasers of the private placement warrants agreed, subject to limited exceptions, not to transfer, assign or sell any of their private placement warrants (except to permitted transferees) until 30 days after the completion of the initial business combination.
Related Party Loans
On November 25, 2020, our founders agreed to loan us an aggregate of up to $300,000 to cover expenses related to our initial public offering pursuant to a promissory note (the “Initial Promissory Note”). This loan was non-interest bearing and payable upon the completion of our initial public offering. We borrowed $75,000 under the Initial Promissory Note and repaid the Initial Promissory Note to our founders in full as of September 30, 2021. On March 1, 2021, we issued an unsecured promissory note as a working capital loan to the Sponsor in the principal amount of $365,000 to cover additional expenses related to our initial public offering (the “First Working Capital Loan”). This loan was non-interest bearing and is payable upon the completion of the initial business combination. The Sponsor assigned $145,000 of the First Working Capital Loan to our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Gregory Patrinely, $110,000 of the First Working Capital Loan to our Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, Anthony Duenner, and $110,000 of the First Working Capital Loan to our President, Caldwell Flores. As of December 31, 2022, we have borrowed $365,000 under the First Working Capital Loan. On December 27, 2021, we issued an unsecured promissory note as a working capital loan to the Sponsor in the principal amount of $800,000 to cover additional expenses related to our search for the initial business combination (the “Second Working Capital Loan”). This loan was non-interest bearing and payable upon the completion of the initial business combination. As of December 31, 2022, we have borrowed $800,000 under the Second Working Capital Loan. On March 29, 2022, we issued an unsecured promissory note as a working capital loan to the Sponsor in the principal amount of $335,000 to cover additional expenses related to our search for the initial business combination (the “Third Working Capital Loan”). This loan is non-interest bearing and payable upon the completion of the initial business combination. As of December 31, 2022, we have borrowed $335,000 under the Third Working Capital Loan. The Sponsor assigned $112,000 of the Third Working Capital Loan to our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Gregory Patrinely, $112,000 of the Third Working Capital Loan to our Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary, Anthony Duenner, and $112,000 of the Third Working Capital Loan to our President, Caldwell Flores. On September 30, 2022, we issued an unsecured promissory note as a working capital loan to the Sponsor in the principal amount of $170,000 to cover additional expenses related to our search for the initial business combination (the “Q3 2022 Promissory Note”). This loan is non-interest bearing and payable upon the completion of the initial business combination. As of December 31, 2022, we have borrowed $170,000 under the Q3 2022 Promissory Note. On October 31, 2022, the Company issued an unsecured promissory note to the Sponsor (the “Q4 2022 Promissory Note”), pursuant to which the Company may borrow up to an aggregate principal amount of $200,000. The Q4 2022 Promissory Note is non-interest bearing and payable on the consummation of the Company’s Business Combination. On October 31, 2022, the Q4 2022 Promissory Note was fully drawn down by the Company. On February 6, 2023, the Company issued an unsecured promissory note to the Sponsor (the “Q1 2023 Promissory Note”), pursuant to which the Company may borrow up to an aggregate principal amount of $535,000. The Q1 2023 Promissory Note is non-interest bearing and payable on the consummation of the Company’s Business Combination. On February 7, 2023, the Q1 2023 Promissory Note was fully drawn down by the Company.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we may repay such loaned amounts. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the Trust Account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from the Trust Account would be used for such repayment. Initially up to $1,500,000, which was increased to $3,500,000 on March 24, 2023, of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender (the “Working Capital Loans”). Such warrants are identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. On March 28, 2023, the Company and the Sponsor entered into amendments to each of the Q3 2022 Promissory Note, Q4 2022 Promissory Note and Q1 2023 Promissory Note, pursuant to which loans made under such notes are, at the lender’s discretion, convertible into warrants of the post-Business Combination entity at a price of $1.00 per warrant. Each of the First Working Capital Loan, Second Working Capital Loan, Third Working Capital Loan, Q3 2022 Promissory Note, Q4 2022 Promissory Note and Q1 2023 Promissory Note are Working Capital Loans and may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the Sponsor. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in the Trust Account. As of December 31, 2022, we had drawn down $1,500,000 of such loans.
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Commitments and Contingencies
Registration Rights
The holders of our founder shares, private placement warrants and warrants that may be issued upon conversion of Working Capital Loans (and any shares of Class A common stock issuable upon the exercise of the private placement warrants or warrants issued upon conversion of the Working Capital Loans and upon conversion of the founder shares), are entitled to registration rights pursuant to a registration rights agreement. These holders will be entitled to certain demand and “piggyback” registration rights. However, the registration rights agreement provides that we will not be required to effect or permit any registration or cause any registration statement to become effective until termination of the applicable lock-up period. We will bear the expenses incurred in connection with the filing of any such registration statements.
Underwriting Agreement
The underwriters were entitled to an underwriting discount of $0.20 per Unit, or $5,750,000 in the aggregate, paid upon the closing of our initial public offering. An additional fee of $0.35 per Unit, or $10,062,500 in the aggregate will be payable to the underwriters pursuant to the Business Combination Marketing Agreement. The deferred fee will become payable to the underwriters from the amounts held in the Trust Account solely in the event that we complete a business combination, subject to the terms of the underwriting agreement.
Critical Accounting Estimates
This management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations is based on our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. The preparation of our financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, income and expenses and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities in our financial statements. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates and judgments, including those related to fair value of financial instruments and accrued expenses. We base our estimates on historical experience, known trends and events and various other factors that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from these estimates under different assumptions or conditions. We have identified the following as our critical accounting policies:
Investments Held in the Trust Account
As of December 31, 2022, our portfolio of investments held in the Trust Account is comprised of U.S. government securities, within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act, with a maturity of 185 days or less, or in money market funds investing solely in U.S. government treasury obligations and meeting certain conditions under Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act, or a combination thereof. The investments held in the Trust Account are classified as trading securities. Trading securities are presented on the balance sheets at fair value at the end of each reporting period. Gains and losses resulting from the change in fair value of these securities is included in income from investments held in Trust Account in the accompanying statements of operations. The estimated fair values of investments held in the Trust Account are determined using available market information, other than for investments in open-ended money market funds with published daily net asset values (“NAV”), in which case the Company uses NAV as a practical expedient to fair value. The NAV on these investments is typically held constant at $1.00 per unit. The Trust Account may also contain balances of cash as result of investment activity. On February 21, 2023, the Trust Account was liquidated to thereafter be held in cash, which may include an interest bearing demand deposit account at a national bank (see Note 11 to our financial statements included elsewhere in this annual report).
Class A Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption
We account for our Class A common stock subject to possible redemption in accordance with the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification Topic 480, “Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity.” Shares of Class A common stock subject to mandatory redemption (if any) are classified as liability instruments and are measured at fair value. Conditionally redeemable shares of Class A common stock (including shares of Class A common stock that feature redemption rights that are either within the control of the holder or subject to redemption upon the occurrence of uncertain events not solely within our control) are classified as temporary equity. At all other times, shares of Class A common stock are classified as stockholders’ equity. Our shares of Class A common stock feature certain redemption rights that are considered to be outside of our control and subject to the occurrence of uncertain future events. Accordingly, as of December 31, 2022, 28,750,000 shares of Class A common stock subject to possible redemption were presented as temporary equity, outside of the stockholders’ deficit section of our balance sheets.
On February 23, 2023, the Company was notified by stockholders holding 20,317,255 shares of Class A Common Stock that they exercised their right to redeem such shares for a pro rata portion of the funds in the Trust Account. As a result, $206,121,060 (approximately $10.15 per share) was removed from the Trust Account to pay such redeeming holders on March 2, 2023.
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Under ASC 480-10-S99, we have elected to recognize changes in the redemption value immediately as they occur and adjust the carrying value of the security to equal the redemption value at the end of the reporting period. This method would view the end of the reporting period as if it were also the redemption date of the security. Effective with the closing of our initial public offering, we recognized the accretion from initial book value to redemption amount, which, resulted in charges against additional paid-in capital (to the extent available) and accumulated deficit.
Net Income (Loss) Per Share of Common Stock
We comply with accounting and disclosure requirements of Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 260, “Earnings Per Share.” We have two classes of shares, which are referred to as Class A common stock and Class B common stock. Income and losses are shared pro rata between the two classes of shares.
Net (loss) income per share of common stock is computed by dividing net income by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding for the period. Subsequent remeasurement of the redeemable Class A common stock is excluded from income per share of common stock as the redemption value approximates fair value. Net (loss) income per share of common stock is computed by dividing the pro rata net income between the shares of Class A common stock and the shares of Class B common stock by the weighted average number of shares of common stock outstanding for each of the periods. The calculation of diluted net (loss) income per share does not consider the effect of the warrants issued in connection with the IPO, as well as warrants issuable upon the exercise of the conversion option on outstanding working capital loans, since the exercise of the warrants is contingent upon the occurrence of future events and the inclusion of such warrants would be anti-dilutive. As of December 31, 2022, the warrants are exercisable for 23,625,000 shares of Class A common stock in the aggregate.
Derivative Warrant Liabilities
We do not use derivative instruments to hedge exposures to cash flow, market, or foreign currency risks. We evaluate all of our financial instruments, including issued stock purchase warrants, to determine if such instruments are derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives, pursuant to ASC 480 and ASC 815-15. The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is re-assessed at the end of each reporting period.
We issued 14,375,000 common stock warrants to investors in our initial public offering and issued 7,750,000 private placement warrants. All of our outstanding warrants are recognized as derivative liabilities in accordance with ASC 815-40. Accordingly, we recognize the warrant instruments as liabilities at fair value and adjust the instruments to fair value at each reporting period. The difference between the fair value of the private placement warrants and the initial purchase consideration thereof is recorded as compensation expense. The liabilities are subject to re-measurement at each balance sheet date until exercised, and any change in fair value is recognized in our statement of operations. The fair value of the Public Warrants and Private Warrants were initially and subsequently measured at fair value using a Monte-Carlo simulation model. Beginning as of December 31, 2021, the fair value of Public Warrants have been measured based on the listed market price of such Public Warrants. The private placement warrants are measured by reference to the listed trading price of the Public Warrants at December 31, 2022.
Convertible Promissory Notes—Related Party
The Company accounts for the convertible promissory notes under ASC 815. The Company has made the election under ASC 815-15-25 to account for the notes under the fair value option. Using the fair value option, the convertible promissory notes are required to be recorded at their initial fair value on the date of issuance, and each balance sheet date thereafter. Differences between the face value of the note and fair value at issuance are recognized as either an expense in the statement of operations (if issued at a premium) or as a capital contribution (if issued at a discount). Changes in the estimated fair value of the notes are recognized as non-cash gains or losses in the statements of operations.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In August 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-06 to simplify accounting for certain financial instruments. ASU 2020-06 eliminates the current models that require separation of beneficial conversion and cash conversion features from convertible instruments and simplifies the derivative scope exception guidance pertaining to equity classification of contracts in an entity’s own equity. The new standard also introduces additional disclosures for convertible debt and freestanding instruments that are indexed to and settled in an entity’s own equity. ASU 2020-06 amends the diluted earnings per share guidance, including the requirement to use the if-converted method for all convertible instruments. ASU 2020-06 is effective no later than January 1, 2024, and should be applied on a full or modified retrospective basis, with early adoption permitted beginning on January 1, 2021. The Company is currently reviewing what impact, if any, adoption will have on the Company’s financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Our management does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, accounting standards if currently adopted would have a material effect on our financial statements.
JOBS Act
The JOBS Act contains provisions that, among other things, relax certain reporting requirements for qualifying public companies. We qualify as an “emerging growth company” and under the JOBS Act are allowed to comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements based on the effective date for private (not publicly traded) companies. We are electing to delay the adoption of new or revised accounting standards, and as a result, we may not comply with new or revised accounting standards on the relevant dates on which adoption of such standards is required for non-emerging growth companies. As a result, the financial statements may not be comparable to companies that comply with new or revised accounting pronouncements as of public company effective dates.
Additionally, we are in the process of evaluating the benefits of relying on the other reduced reporting requirements provided by the JOBS Act. Subject to certain conditions set forth in the JOBS Act, if, as an “emerging growth company,” we choose to rely on such exemptions we may not be required to, among other things, (i) provide an auditor’s attestation report on our system of internal
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controls over financial reporting pursuant to Section 404, (ii) provide all of the compensation disclosure that may be required of non-emerging growth public companies under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, (iii) comply with any requirement that may be adopted by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board regarding mandatory audit firm rotation or a supplement to the auditor’s report providing additional information about the audit and the financial statements (auditor discussion and analysis) and (iv) disclose certain executive compensation related items such as the correlation between executive compensation and performance and comparisons of the Chief Executive Officer’s compensation to median employee compensation. These exemptions will apply for a period of five years following the completion of our initial public offering or until we are no longer an “emerging growth company,” whichever is earlier.
| Item 7A. | Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk |
We are a smaller reporting company as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act and are not required to provide the information otherwise required under this item.
| Item 8. | Financial Statements and Supplementary Data |
Reference is made to Pages F-1 through F-24 comprising a portion of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
| Item 9. | Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure. |
None.
| Item 9A. | Controls and Procedures. |
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Disclosure controls are procedures that are designed with the objective of ensuring that information required to be disclosed in our reports filed under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time period specified in the SEC’s rules and forms. Disclosure controls are also designed with the objective of ensuring that such information is accumulated and communicated to our management, including the chief executive officer and chief financial officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
As required by Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Exchange Act, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer carried out an evaluation of the effectiveness of the design and operation of our disclosure controls and procedures as of December 31, 2022. Based upon their evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) were not effective as of December 31, 2022, due to the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting over the accounting for complex financial instruments, which resulted in the restatement of the Company’s prior financial statements included in its 2021 Annual Report on Form 10-K. In light of this, we performed additional analysis as deemed necessary to ensure that our financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022 were prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Accordingly, management believes that the financial statements included in this Annual Report present fairly in all material respects our financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented.
Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
As required by SEC rules and regulations implementing Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting. Our internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of our financial statements for external reporting purposes in accordance with GAAP. Our internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that:
| (1) | pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of our company, |
| (2) | provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP, and that our receipts and expenditures are being made only in accordance with authorizations of our management and directors, and |
| (3) | provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use or disposition of our assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements. |
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect errors or misstatements in our financial statements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree or compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
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Management assessed the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting at December 31, 2022. In making these assessments, management used the criteria set forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) in Internal Control — Integrated Framework (2013). Based on our assessments and those criteria, management determined that we did not maintain effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022.
Management has begun implementing certain remediation steps to improve our internal control over financial reporting. Specifically, we expanded and improved our review process for complex securities and related accounting standards. We plan to further improve this process by enhancing access to accounting literature, identification of third-party professionals with whom to consult regarding complex accounting applications and consideration of additional staff with the requisite experience and training to supplement existing accounting professionals.
This Annual Report on Form 10-K does not include an attestation report of our independent registered public accounting firm due to our status as an emerging growth company under the JOBS Act.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) of the Exchange Act) during the most recent fiscal quarter that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
| Item 9B. | Other Information |
None.
| Item 9C. | Disclosures Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections |
Not applicable.
PART III
| Item 10. | Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance |
Directors and Executive Officers
As of the date of this report, our directors and officers are as follows:
Name | Age | Position | ||
James C. Flores | 63 | Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | ||
J. Caldwell Flores | 29 | President | ||
Gregory D. Patrinely | 37 | Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | ||
Doss Bourgeois | 65 | Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer | ||
Anthony Duenner | 63 | Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary | ||
Michael E. Dillard | 64 | Director | ||
Gregory P. Pipkin | 63 | Director | ||
Christopher B. Sarofim | 59 | Director |
James C. Flores. Mr. Flores is our co-founder and has served as our Chief Executive officer and Chairman of our board of directors since our inception. From our inception to March 3, 2023, he also served as our President. From May 2017 until February 2021, Mr. Flores served as President, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of Sable Permian Resources, which engaged in the acquisition, consolidation and optimization of oil and gas upstream opportunities. Sable Permian Resources filed a voluntary petition for bankruptcy on June 25, 2020 and emerged from bankruptcy on February 1, 2021. Prior to Sable Permian Resources, Mr. Flores served as Vice Chairman of Freeport-McMoRan, Inc. and CEO of Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas, a wholly owned subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Inc., the world’s largest publicly traded copper producer, from June 2013 until April 2016. From 2001 until 2013, Mr. Flores was the Chairman, CEO and President of Plains Exploration & Production Company and Chairman and CEO of Plains Resources Inc. From 1994 until 2000, Mr. Flores was also the Chairman and CEO of Flores & Rucks, Inc. which, after several acquisitions, was later renamed Ocean Energy Inc. prior to its sale to Devon Energy Corporation. Since 1982, Mr. Flores has had an extensive career in the oil and gas industry in the roles of Chairman, Chief Executive Officer, and President of four public and one private oil & gas exploration and production companies. He is a member of the National Petroleum Council, serves as Trustee for the Baylor College of Medicine and is a Director for the Waterfowl Research Foundation. He was recognized as Executive of the Year in 2004 in Oil and Gas Investor magazine. Mr. Flores received a B.S. degree in corporate finance and petroleum land management from Louisiana State University. We believe Mr. Flores is qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his more than 35 years in the oil and gas industry, including as Chief Executive Officer of several public companies.
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J. Caldwell Flores. Mr. Flores has served as our President since March 3, 2023. Previously, he served as our Vice President from March 1, 2021 to March 3, 2023. Mr. Flores has also served as President of Sable Offshore Corp. since September 2021 and as President of Sable Minerals, Inc., a Houston-based private oil and gas company, overseeing the daily operations and administration, as well as providing investment analysis for the firm since January 1, 2015. Prior to assuming the role of President of Sable Minerals, Inc., Mr. Flores was a Senior Associate for Sable Permian Resources, LLC, which engaged in the acquisition, consolidation and optimization of oil and gas upstream opportunities from February 2018 until February 2021. Prior to that, Mr. Flores served as Operations Manager for Sable Minerals, Inc. from 2015 through 2017. Mr. Flores received a B.S. degree in Business Administration from the University of Houston. Mr. Flores is the son of James C. Flores, who is the Chairman, Chief Executive Officer and President of Flame and the sole owner of Holdco and the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Sable and will be the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of New Sable.
Gregory D. Patrinely. Mr. Patrinely has served as our Chief Financial Officer since our inception. Since March 3, 2023, he has also served as our Executive Vice President. From our inception to March 3, 2023, he also served as our Secretary. From June 2018 until February 2021, Mr. Patrinely served as Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Sable Permian Resources, which engaged in the acquisition, consolidation and optimization of oil and gas upstream opportunities. Sable Permian Resources filed a voluntary petition for bankruptcy on June 25, 2020 and emerged from bankruptcy on February 1, 2021. Mr. Patrinely previously served as Treasurer for Sable Permian Resources, from May 2017 to June 2018, where he oversaw the financial analysis and execution of refinancing, restructuring and acquisition efforts. Prior to Sable Permian Resources, Mr. Patrinely was a Manager in the Acquisitions & Divestments Group of Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas, a wholly owned subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Inc., from May 2015 to May 2017, where he managed the execution of financings, mergers, acquisitions and divestments. Mr. Patrinely holds a B.S. degree in Economics with Financial Applications and a B.A. degree in English, with Honors, from Southern Methodist University.
Doss Bourgeois. Mr. Bourgeois has served as our Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer since March 3, 2023. He has also served as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Sable Offshore Corp. since September 2021. Mr. Bourgeois served as Executive Vice President of Sable Permian Resources, LLC from May 2017 until February 2021. Mr. Bourgeois served as President and Chief Operating Officer of Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas (“FM O&G”) from July 2015 until April 2016. Mr. Bourgeois served as Executive Vice President, Exploration and Production of FM O&G from June 2013 until July 2015. He previously served as Executive Vice President, Exploration and Production of FM O&G’s predecessor, Plains Exploration & Production Company (“PXP”) from June 2006 until PXP merged into Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold in May 2013. Mr. Bourgeois also served as PXP’s Vice President of Development from April 2006 to June 2006 and as PXP’s Vice President—Eastern Development Unit from May 2003 to April 2006. Prior to that time, Mr. Bourgeois was Vice President at Ocean Energy, Inc. from August 1993 to May 2003. He also served in various production engineering and drilling engineering roles for Consolidated Natural Gas Producing Company from August 1983 to August 1993 and for Mobil Oil Company from December 1980 to August 1983. Mr. Bourgeois holds a B.S. degree in Petroleum Engineering from Louisiana State University.
Anthony Duenner. Mr. Duenner has served as our Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary since March 3, 2023. Previously, he served as our Vice President from March 1, 2021 to March 3, 2023. Mr. Duenner has also served as Executive Vice President, General Counsel & Secretary of Sable Offshore Corp. since September 2021. Mr. Duenner has over 35 years of diverse legal and commercial energy experience. From May 2017 until February 2021, Mr. Duenner served as Vice President, Corporate Development of Sable Permian Resources, LLC, which engaged in the acquisition, consolidation and optimization of oil and gas upstream opportunities. Prior to Sable Permian Resources, LLC, from June 2013 to April 2017, Mr. Duenner was Vice President—International & New Ventures for Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas (“FM O&G”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Freeport-McMoRan Inc., where he had responsibility for the company’s international commercial activities as well as new ventures and partnerships. He previously served as Vice President – International & New Ventures of FM O&G’s predecessor, Plains Exploration & Production Company (“PXP”) from May 2005 until PXP merged into Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold in May 2013. While with PXP, Mr. Duenner also served as the company’s Assistant General Counsel from May 2005 until November 2007. Prior to that time, Mr. Duenner was Vice President, Corporate Development for integrated energy company Entergy Corp., where he led corporate development activities for Entergy and its subsidiaries from 2004 to 2005. Prior to Entergy, from 1998 to 2004, Mr. Duenner served in a various project development and wholesale origination functions within Enron International and its successor Prisma Energy International. Previously, Mr. Duenner was in the private practice of law with Bracewell LLP in Houston (Partner from 1994 to 1997 and Associate from 1988 to 1994) and with Morgan Lewis in Washington, D.C (Associate from 1986 to 1988). Mr. Duenner attended the University of Oklahoma and received a B.S. degree in Finance and a J.D. degree from the University of Tulsa.
Michael E. Dillard. Mr. Dillard has served on our board of directors since March 2021. He was a partner with the law firm of Latham & Watkins LLP from January 2010 until January 2021. He was a founding partner of the Houston, Texas office of Latham & Watkins LLP, serving as the Houston Office Managing Partner from January 2010 through March 2015. Mr. Dillard was Global Practice Group Chair of Mergers and Acquisitions for Latham & Watkins LLP from March 2018 until January 2021. Mr. Dillard has
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been involved in M&A transactions valued in excess of $250 billion. Mr. Dillard is the Chair of the Board of Trustees of Cristo Rey College Preparatory School of Houston, a high school which offers a rigorous college preparatory education to students from low-income families in the Houston area. Mr. Dillard received a B.A. degree in Mathematics from Southern Methodist University in 1979 (summa cum laude) and a Juris Doctor degree from Southern Methodist University Dedman School of Law in 1982 (cum laude). We believe Mr. Dillard is qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his extensive experience in mergers and acquisitions, financing transactions and corporate governance and related matters.
Gregory P. Pipkin. Mr. Pipkin has served on our board of directors since March 2021. Since November 2016, he has been a Senior Managing Director with the investment and advisory firm of NRI Energy Partners. Prior to NRI Energy Partners, Mr. Pipkin served as the co-head and Managing Director of the Houston office of the Barclays Natural Resources Group for Barclays PLC, from September 2008 to November 2016. Mr. Pipkin was a board member of Family Legacy Missions International, a mission in Lusaka, Zambia that educates and feeds impoverished and orphaned children. Mr. Pipkin also serves on the board of Morningstar Partners LP, an oil and gas producer primarily in the central basin platform in the Permian basin, Texas. Mr. Pipkin received a B.S. degree in chemical engineering and an M.B.A. degree in Business Administration from the University of Texas at Austin. We believe Mr. Pipkin is qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his extensive investment experience in the energy industry.
Christopher B. Sarofim. Mr. Sarofim has served on our board of directors since March 2021. Mr. Sarofim is the Chairman and a member of the Board of Directors of Fayez Sarofim & Co., an SEC-registered investment advisory firm based in Houston, Texas. Mr. Sarofim joined the firm in 1988 and has been a member of its Board since August 2014. Additionally, he serves on the firm’s Executive, Finance and Investment Committees. Mr. Sarofim shares portfolio management responsibilities for numerous separate accounts advised by the firm and is a co-manager of several mutual funds Fayez Sarofim & Co. sub-advises for BNY Mellon. Prior to joining Fayez Sarofim & Co., he was employed with Goldman Sachs & Co. LLC in corporate finance. In addition to his work at Fayez Sarofim & Co., Mr. Sarofim serves on the boards of Kemper Corp. (NYSE: KMPR), Highland Resources Inc. and Wood Partners. Mr. Sarofim is a member of the Board of Trustees of The Brown Foundation, Inc., St. John’s School, Baylor College of Medicine, and serves on the MD Anderson Cancer Center Board of Visitors. Mr. Sarofim received an A.B. degree in History from Princeton University in 1986. We believe Mr. Sarofim is qualified to serve on our board of directors due to his extensive investment advisory background, board experience, and financial market and securities analysis expertise.
Sable Permian Bankruptcy
On June 25, 2020, Sable Permian Resources, LLC and its subsidiaries (collectively, “Sable Permian”), filed voluntary petitions in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas (the “Bankruptcy Court”) and began managing and operating its businesses as debtors-in-possession pursuant to Sections 1107 and 1108 of the federal bankruptcy laws. On December 1, 2020, Sable Permian filed a proposed plan of reorganization (the “Plan”), which the Bankruptcy Court conditionally approved on December 17, 2020. Pursuant to the Plan, among other actions, Sable Land Company LLC (“Sable Land”), which is an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of Sable Permian, will reorganize and Sable Land’s lenders will receive an equity interest in Sable Land and replace Sable Permian’s management with a third-party operator that will operate Sable Land going forward. On January 29, 2021, the Bankruptcy Court entered an order confirming Sable Permian’s Plan and the Plan went effective on February 1, 2021. As of February 1, 2021, Mr. J. Flores, Mr. J. Caldwell Flores, Mr. Bourgeois, Mr. Duenner and Mr. Patrinely were no longer employed by or affiliated with Sable Permian.
Number and Terms of Office of Officers and Directors
We currently have four directors. Our Board is divided into three classes with only one class of directors being elected in each year and each class (except for those directors appointed prior to our first annual meeting of stockholders) serving a three-year term. The term of office of the first class of directors, consisting of Michael E. Dillard, will expire at our first annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the second class of directors, consisting of Gregory P. Pipkin, will expire at the second annual meeting of stockholders. The term of office of the third class of directors, consisting of James C. Flores and Christopher B. Sarofim, will expire at the third annual meeting of stockholders.
Under our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, holders of our founder shares will have the right to elect all of our directors prior to consummation of our initial business combination and holders of our public shares will not have the right to vote on the election of directors during such time. These provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation may only be amended if approved by holders of at least 90% of our outstanding common stock entitled to vote thereon. Subject to any other special rights applicable to the shareholders, any vacancies on our Board may be filled by the affirmative vote of a majority of the directors then in office.
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Our officers are appointed by the Board and serve at the discretion of the Board, rather than for specific terms of office. Our Board is authorized to appoint persons to the offices set forth in our bylaws as it deems appropriate. Our bylaws provide that our officers may consist of one or more Chief Executive Officer, a Chief Financial Officer, a Secretary and such other officers (including without limitation, a Chairman of the Board, Chief Operating Officer, Presidents, Vice Presidents, Partners, Managing Directors and Senior Managing Directors) and such other offices as may be determined by the Board
Director Independence
The NYSE listing standards require that a majority of our Board be independent. An “independent director” is defined generally as a person other than an officer or employee of the company or its subsidiaries or any other individual having a relationship which in the opinion of the company’s board of directors, would interfere with the director’s exercise of independent judgment in carrying out the responsibilities of a director. Our board has determined that each of Michael E. Dillard, Gregory P. Pipkin and Christopher B. Sarofim are “independent directors” as defined by the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules.
Officer and Director Compensation
None of our officers or directors has received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. No compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid to our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates, for services rendered prior to or in connection with the completion of our initial business combination. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Additionally, in connection with the successful completion of our initial business combination, we may determine to provide a payment to our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or our or their affiliates; however any such payment would not be made from the proceeds of our initial public offering held in the Trust Account and we currently do not have any agreement or arrangement with any such party to do so. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were or are to be made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.
After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. We have not established any limit on the amount of such fees that may be paid by the combined company to our directors or members of management. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of the proposed business combination, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our officers will be determined, or recommended to the Board for determination, either by the compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors or by a majority of independent directors on our Board.
Following a business combination, to the extent we deem it necessary, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management team of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
Committees of the Board
Our Board has three standing committees: an audit committee, a compensation committee and a nominating and corporate governance committee. Each committee operates under a charter approved by our Board with the composition and responsibilities described below. The charter of each committee is available on our website at http://flameacq.com.
Audit Committee
We have established an audit committee of the Board. Michael E. Dillard, Gregory P. Pipkin and Christopher B. Sarofim serve as members of our audit committee. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules we are required to have at least three members of the audit committee, all of whom must be independent. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules, our audit committee must have one independent member at the time of listing, a majority of independent members within 90 days of listing and consist of all independent members within one year of listing. Michael E. Dillard, Gregory P. Pipkin and Christopher B. Sarofim each meet the independent director standard under the NYSE’s listing standard and under Rule 10A-3(b)(1) of the Exchange Act.
Each member of the audit committee is financially literate and our Board has determined that Christopher B. Sarofim qualifies as an “audit committee financial expert” as defined in applicable SEC rules and Mr. Sarofim currently serves as chairman of the audit committee.
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We have adopted an audit committee charter, which details the principal functions of the audit committee, including:
| • | the appointment, compensation, retention, replacement, and oversight of the work of the independent auditors and any other independent registered public accounting firm engaged by us; |
| • | pre-approving all audit and permitted non-audit services to be provided by the independent auditors or any other registered public accounting firm engaged by us, and establishing pre-approval policies and procedures; |
| • | reviewing and discussing with the independent auditors all relationships the auditors have with us in order to evaluate their continued independence; |
| • | setting clear hiring policies for employees or former employees of the independent auditors; |
| • | setting clear policies for audit partner rotation in compliance with applicable laws and regulations; |
| • | obtaining and reviewing a report, at least annually, from the independent auditors describing (i) the independent auditor’s internal quality-control procedures and (ii) any material issues raised by the most recent internal quality-control review, or peer review, of the audit firm, or by any inquiry or investigation by governmental or professional authorities within the preceding five years respecting one or more independent audits carried out by the firm and any steps taken to deal with such issues; |
| • | reviewing and approving any related party transaction required to be disclosed pursuant to Item 404 of Regulation S-K promulgated by the SEC prior to us entering into such transaction; and |
| • | reviewing with management, the independent auditors, and our legal advisors, as appropriate, any legal, regulatory or compliance matters, including any correspondence with regulators or government agencies and any employee complaints or published reports that raise material issues regarding our financial statements or accounting policies and any significant changes in accounting standards or rules promulgated by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, the SEC or other regulatory authorities. |
Compensation Committee
We have established a compensation committee of the Board. Gregory P. Pipkin and Christopher B. Sarofim serve as members of our compensation committee. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules, our compensation committee must have one independent member at the time of listing, a majority of independent members within 90 days of listing, and consist of all independent members within one year of listing. Gregory P. Pipkin and Christopher B. Sarofim each meet the independent director standard under the NYSE listing standard, and Mr. Pipkin serves as chairman of the compensation committee.
We have adopted a compensation committee charter, which details the principal functions of the compensation committee, including:
| • | reviewing and approving corporate goals and objectives relevant to our Chief Executive Officer’s compensation, evaluating our Chief Executive Officer’s performance in light of those goals and objectives, and setting our Chief Executive Officer’s compensation level based on this evaluation; |
| • | reviewing and approving on an annual basis the compensation of all of our other officers; |
| • | reviewing on an annual basis our executive compensation policies and plans; |
| • | implementing and administering our incentive compensation and equity-based remuneration plans; |
| • | assisting management in complying with our proxy statement and annual report disclosure requirements; |
| • | approving all special perquisites, special cash payments and other special compensation and benefit arrangements for our officers and employees; |
| • | if required, producing a report on executive compensation to be included in our annual proxy statement; and |
| • | reviewing, evaluating and recommending changes, if appropriate, to the remuneration for directors. |
Notwithstanding the foregoing, as indicated above, no compensation of any kind, including finder’s, consulting or other similar fees, will be paid to any of our existing stockholders, officers, directors or any of their respective affiliates, prior to, or for any services they render in order to complete the consummation of a business combination. Accordingly, it is likely that prior to the consummation of an initial business combination, the compensation committee will only be responsible for the review and recommendation of any compensation arrangements to be entered into in connection with such initial business combination.
The charter also provides that the compensation committee may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of a compensation consultant, legal counsel or other adviser and will be directly responsible for the appointment, compensation and oversight of the work of any such adviser. However, before engaging or receiving advice from a compensation consultant, external legal counsel or any other adviser, the compensation committee will consider the independence of each such adviser, including the factors required by the NYSE and the SEC.
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Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee
We have established a nominating and corporate governance committee of the Board. Michael E. Dillard and Gregory P. Pipkin serve as members of our nominating and corporate governance committee. Under the NYSE listing standards and applicable SEC rules, our nominating and corporate governance committee must have one independent member at the time of listing, a majority of independent members within 90 days of listing, and consist of all independent members within one year of listing. Michael E. Dillard and Gregory P. Pipkin meet the independent director standard under the NYSE listing standard, and Mr. Dillard serves as chairman of the nominating and corporate governance committee.
The primary purposes of our nominating and corporate governance committee is to assist the Board in:
| • | Identifying, screening and reviewing individuals qualified to serve as directors, consistent with criteria approved by the Board, and recommending to the Board candidates for nomination for appointment at the annual general meeting or to fill vacancies on the Board; |
| • | developing and recommending to the Board and overseeing implementation of our corporate governance guidelines; |
| • | coordinating and overseeing the annual self-evaluation of the Board, its committees, individual directors and management in the governance of the company; and |
| • | reviewing on a regular basis our overall corporate governance and recommending improvements as and when necessary. |
The nominating and corporate governance committee is governed by a charter that complies with the rules of the NYSE. The charter also provides that the nominating and corporate governance committee may, in its sole discretion, retain or obtain the advice of, and terminate, any search firm to be used to identify director candidates, and will be directly responsible for approving the search firm’s fees and other retention terms.
We have not formally established any specific, minimum qualifications that must be met or skills that are necessary for directors to possess. In general, in identifying and evaluating nominees for director, the board of directors considers educational background, diversity of professional experience, knowledge of our business, integrity, professional reputation, independence, wisdom, and the ability to represent the best interests of our shareholders. Prior to our initial business combination, holders of our public shares will not have the right to recommend director candidates for nomination to our board of directors.
Director Nominations
Our nominating and corporate governance committee will recommend to the Board candidates for nomination for election at the annual meeting of the stockholders. Prior to our initial business combination, the Board will also consider director candidates recommended for nomination by holders of our founder shares during such times as they are seeking proposed nominees to stand for election at an annual meeting of stockholders (or, if applicable, a special meeting of stockholders). Prior to our initial business combination, holders of our public shares will not have the right to recommend director candidates for nomination to our Board.
Our nominating and corporate governance committee will recommend to the Board candidates for nomination who have a high level of personal and professional integrity, strong ethics and values and the ability to make mature business judgments. In general, in identifying and evaluating nominees for director, our Board considers experience in corporate management such as serving as an officer or former officer of a publicly held company, experience as a board member of another publicly held company, professional and academic experience relevant to our business, leadership skills, experience in finance and accounting or executive compensation practices, whether candidate has the time required for preparation, participation and attendance at Board meetings and committee meetings, if applicable, independence and the ability to represent the best interests of our stockholders.
Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation
None of our officers currently serves, and in the past year none of them has served, as a member of the compensation committee of any entity that has one or more officers serving on our Board.
Code of Ethics
We have adopted a Code of Ethics applicable to our directors, officers and employees. The Code of Ethics is available on our website at http://flameacq.com. We will also post any amendments to or waivers of our Code of Ethics on our website.
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Corporate Governance Guidelines
Our Board has adopted corporate governance guidelines in accordance with the corporate governance rules of the NYSE that serve as a flexible framework within which our Board and its committees operate. These guidelines cover a number of areas including board membership criteria and director qualifications, director responsibilities, board agenda, roles of the Chairman of the Board, Chief Executive Officer and presiding director, meetings of independent directors, committee responsibilities and assignments, board member access to management and independent advisors, director communications with third parties, director compensation, director orientation and continuing education, evaluation of senior management and management succession planning. A copy of our corporate governance guidelines is posted on our website at http://flameacq.com.
| Item 11. | Executive Compensation |
Compensation Discussion and Analysis
None of our officers or directors has received any cash compensation for services rendered to us. No compensation of any kind, including finder’s and consulting fees, will be paid to our sponsor, officers and directors, or any of their respective affiliates. However, these individuals will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf such as identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations.
Additionally, in connection with the successful completion of our initial business combination, we may determine to provide a payment to our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or our or their affiliates; however, any such payment would not be made from the amounts held in the Trust Account and we currently do not have any agreement or arrangement with any such party to do so. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were or are to be made to our sponsor, officers or directors, or our or their affiliates.
After the completion of our initial business combination, directors or members of our management team who remain with us may be paid consulting or management fees from the combined company. All of these fees will be fully disclosed to stockholders, to the extent then known, in the tender offer materials or proxy solicitation materials furnished to our stockholders in connection with a proposed business combination. We have not established any limit on the amount of such fees that may be paid by the combined company to our directors or members of management. It is unlikely the amount of such compensation will be known at the time of the proposed business combination, because the directors of the post-combination business will be responsible for determining officer and director compensation. Any compensation to be paid to our officers will be determined, or recommended to the Board for determination, either by a compensation committee constituted solely by independent directors or by a majority of independent directors on our Board.
Following a business combination, to the extent we deem it necessary, we may seek to recruit additional managers to supplement the incumbent management team of the target business. We cannot assure you that we will have the ability to recruit additional managers, or that additional managers will have the requisite skills, knowledge or experience necessary to enhance the incumbent management.
| Item 12. | Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters |
The following table sets forth information regarding the beneficial ownership of our common stock as of March 28, 2023 based on information obtained from the persons named below, with respect to the beneficial ownership of shares of our common stock, by:
| • | each person known by us to be the beneficial owner of more than 5% of our outstanding shares of common stock; |
| • | each of our officers and directors that beneficially owns shares of our common stock; and |
| • | all our officers and directors as a group. |
In the table below, percentage ownership is based on 8,432,745 shares of our Class A common stock, which includes Class A common stock underlying the units sold in our initial public offering, and 7,187,500 shares of our Class B common stock outstanding as of March 28, 2023. Voting power represents the combined voting power of Class A common stock and Class B common stock owned beneficially by such person. On all matters to be voted upon, the holders of the Class A common stock and the Class B common stock vote together as a single class. Currently, all of the shares of Class B common stock are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment. The table below does not include the shares of Class A common stock underlying the private placement warrants held or to be held by our sponsor, directors and officers because these securities are not exercisable within 60 days of this report.
Unless otherwise indicated, we believe that all persons named in the table have sole voting and investment power with respect to all shares of common stock beneficially owned by them.
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| Class A Common Stock | Class B Common Stock | Approximate | ||||||||||||||||||
Name and Address of Beneficial Owner(1) | Number of Shares Beneficially Owned | Approximate Percentage of Class | Number of Shares Beneficially Owned(2) | Approximate Percentage of Class | Percentage of Outstanding Common Stock | |||||||||||||||
Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC(3) | — | — | 4,263,750 | 59.3 | % | 27.3 | % | |||||||||||||
James C. Flores(3)(4) | 7,500 | * | 4,263,750 | 59.3 | % | 27.3 | % | |||||||||||||
Entities affiliated with Saba Capital Management, L.P.(5) | 1,150,783 | 13.7 | % | — | — | 10.3 | % | |||||||||||||
Entities affiliated with Sculptor Capital LP(6) | 1,425,015 | 16.9 | % | — | — | 9.5 | % | |||||||||||||
Entities affiliated with Fort Baker Capital Management LP(7) | 2,688,882 | 31.9 | % | — | — | 17.2 | % | |||||||||||||
Hartree Partners, LP(8) | 2,000,000 | 23.7 | % | — | — | 12.8 | % | |||||||||||||
Gregory D. Patrinely | — | — | 71,875 | 1.0 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
J. Caldwell Flores | 47,500 | * | 71,875 | 1.0 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
Doss Bourgeois | 200,000 | 2.4 | % | — | — | 1.3 | % | |||||||||||||
Anthony Duenner | 100,000 | 1.2 | % | — | — | * | ||||||||||||||
Michael E. Dillard | 5,000 | * | 96,875 | 1.3 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
Gregory P. Pipkin | 15,000 | * | 96,875 | 1.3 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
Christopher B. Sarofim | 500,000 | 5.9 | % | 96,875 | 1.3 | % | 3.8 | % | ||||||||||||
All officers and directors as a group (eight individuals) | 875,000 | 10.4 | % | 4,698,125 | 64.4 | % | 35.7 | % | ||||||||||||
| * | less than 1% |
| 1) | Unless otherwise noted, the business address of each of the following entities or individuals is c/o Flame Acquisition Corp., 700 Milam Street, Suite 3300, Houston, Texas 77002. |
| 2) | Interests shown consist solely of founder shares, classified as shares of Class B common stock. Such shares are convertible into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to adjustment. |
| 3) | Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC is the record holder of 4,263,750 founder shares reported herein. James C. Flores is the managing member of Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC. As such, Mr. Flores may be deemed to share beneficial ownership of the shares of Class B common stock held of record by Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC. |
| 4) | In addition to the shares held of record by Flame Acquisition Sponsor LLC, Mr. Flores may be deemed to share beneficial ownership of 7,500 shares of Class A common stock held of record by certain family limited partnerships that he may be deemed to control. |
| 5) | Based solely on information contained in a report on Schedule 13G/A filed on February 14, 2023 by Saba Capital Management, L.P., Saba Capital Management GP, LLC and Mr. Boaz R. Weinstein (together, the “Reporting Persons”). Each of the Reporting Persons may be deemed the beneficial owner of 1,150,783 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock. The principal business address of each of the Reporting Persons is 405 Lexington Avenue, 58th Floor, New York, New York 10174. |
| 6) | Based solely on information contained in a report on Schedule 13G/A filed on February 14, 2023 by entities affiliated with Sculptor Capital LP. Includes (i) 1,425,015 shares of Company’s Class A common stock beneficially owned by each of Sculptor Capital LP (“Sculptor”), Sculptor Capital II LP (“Sculptor-II”), Sculptor Capital Holding Corp. (“SCHC”), Sculptor Capital Holding II LLC (“SCHC-II”) and Sculptor Capital Management, Inc. (“SCU”), (ii) 924,446 Shares beneficially owned by each of Sculptor Master Fund, Ltd. (“SCMF”) and Sculptor Special Funding, LP (“NRMD”) and (iii) 500,569 shares of Company’s Class A common stock beneficially owned by Sculptor SC II LP (“NJGC”). Sculptor and Sculptor-II serve as the principal investment managers to the private funds and discretionary accounts managed by Sculptor and thus may be deemed beneficial owners of the shares of Company’s Class A common stock in the private funds and discretionary accounts managed by Sculptor and Sculptor-II. SCHC-II serves as the general partner of Sculptor-II and is wholly owned by Sculptor. SCHC serves as the general partner of Sculptor. As such, SCHC and SCHC-II may be deemed to control Sculptor as well as Sculptor-II and, therefore, may be deemed to be the beneficial owners of the shares of Company’s Class A common stock reported herein. SCU is the sole shareholder of SCHC, and may be deemed a beneficial owner of the shares of Company’s Class A common stock reported herein. The principal business address of each of Sculptor, Sculptor-II, SCHC, SCHC-II, SCU, SCMF, NRMD and NJGC is 9 West 57th Street, New York, NY 10019. |
| 7) | Based solely on information contained in a report on Schedule 13G filed on February 14, 2023 by Fort Baker Capital Management LP, Fort Baker Capital, LLC and Mr. Steven Patrick Pigott (together, “Fort Baker”). Each of Fort Baker may be deemed the beneficial owner of 2,688,882 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock. The principal business address of each of Fort Baker is 700 Larkspur Landing Circle, Suite 275 Larkspur, CA 94938. |
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| 8) | Based solely on information contained in a report on Schedule 13G filed on November 16, 2022 by Hartree Partners, LP (the “Hartree”). Hartree may be deemed the beneficial owner of 2,000,000 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock. The principal business address of Hartree is 1185 Avenue of the Americas New York, NY 10036. |
The table above does not include the shares of common stock underlying the private placement warrants held or to be held by our officers or sponsor because these securities are not exercisable within 60 days of this report.
Changes in Control
None.
| Item 13. | Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence |
In November 2020, our founders acquired 7,187,500 founder shares for an aggregate purchase price of $25,000. Our sponsor purchased 4,671,875 founder shares, FL Co-Investment purchased 1,257,813 founder shares and Intrepid Financial Partners purchased 1,257,812 founder shares. Also in November 2020, our sponsor transferred 434,375 founder shares to our independent directors and certain individuals, including Gregory D. Patrinely, our Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, at their original purchase price. Simultaneously with such transfer, each of FL Co-Investment and Intrepid Financial Partners transferred 13,125 founder shares to our sponsor, respectively, at their original purchase price. Prior to the initial investment in the Company of $25,000 by our founders, the Company had no assets, tangible or intangible. The number of founder shares issued was determined based on the expectation that such founder shares would represent 20% of the outstanding shares upon completion of our initial public offering. Additionally, our initial stockholders had agreed to forfeit up to 937,500 founder shares to the extent that the over-allotment option was not exercised in full by the underwriters. On February 26, 2021, the underwriters fully exercised their over-allotment option; thus, these founder shares were no longer subject to forfeiture.
In February 2021, our initial stockholders purchased 7,750,000 private placement warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant. Each private placement warrant entitles the holder to purchase one share of our Class A common stock at $11.50 per share. Our initial stockholders are permitted to transfer the private placement warrants held by them to certain permitted transferees, including our officers and directors and other persons or entities affiliated with or related to it, but the transferees receiving such securities will be subject to the same agreements with respect to such securities as the sponsor. Otherwise, these warrants are, subject to certain limited exceptions, transferable or salable until 30 days after the completion of our business combination. So long as the private placement warrants are held by our initial stockholders or their respective permitted transferees, the private placement warrants will not be redeemable by us for cash. The private placement warrants may also be exercised by the initial stockholders or their respective permitted transferees for cash or on a cashless basis. Otherwise, the private placement warrants have terms and provisions that are identical to those of the warrants that are part of the units, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period, and may be redeemed by us for shares of Class A common stock as described herein.
Our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors or any of their respective affiliates, will be reimbursed for any out-of-pocket expenses incurred in connection with activities on our behalf, including with respect to our formation and initial public offering and to identifying potential target businesses and performing due diligence on suitable business combinations. Additionally, in connection with the successful completion of our initial business combination, we may determine to provide a payment to our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors, or our or their affiliates; however, any such payment would not be made from the amounts held in the Trust Account and we currently do not have any arrangement or agreement with our sponsor, officers, directors, advisors, or our or their affiliates, to do so. Our audit committee will review on a quarterly basis all payments that were made or are to be made to our sponsor, officers, directors, or our or their affiliates and will determine which expenses and the amount of expenses that will be reimbursed. There is no cap or ceiling on the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses incurred by such persons in connection with activities on our behalf.
In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with an intended initial business combination, our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor or certain of our officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan us funds as may be required. If we complete our initial business combination, we may repay such loaned amounts. In the event that our initial business combination does not close, we may use a portion of the working capital held outside the Trust Account to repay such loaned amounts but no proceeds from the Trust Account would be used for such repayment. Initially up to $1,500,000, which was increased to $3,500,000 on March 24, 2023, of such loans may be convertible into warrants at a price of $1.00 per warrant at the option of the lender. Such warrants would be identical to the private placement warrants, including as to exercise price, exercisability and exercise period. We do not expect to seek loans from parties other than our sponsor or an affiliate of our sponsor as we do not believe third parties will be willing to loan such funds and provide a waiver against any and all rights to seek access to funds in the Trust Account. As of December 31, 2022, we have drawn down $1,500,000 of such loans.
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Pursuant to a registration rights agreement with our initial stockholders, we may be required to register certain securities for sale under the Securities Act. These holders, and holders of warrants issued upon conversion of working capital loans, if any, are entitled under the registration rights agreement to make up to three demands that we register certain of our securities held by them for sale under the Securities Act and to have the securities covered thereby registered for resale pursuant to Rule 415 under the Securities Act. In addition, these holders have the right to include their securities in other registration statements filed by us. However, the registration rights agreement provides that we will not permit any registration statement filed under the Securities Act to become effective until the securities covered thereby are released from their lock-up restrictions, as described herein. We will bear the costs and expenses of filing any such registration statements.
| Item 14. | Principal Accountant Fees and Services. |
The following is a summary of fees paid or to be paid to Marcum LLP (“Marcum”) for services rendered.
Audit Fees. Audit fees consist of fees for professional services rendered for the audit of our year-end financial statements, reviews of our unaudited interim financial statements, and services that are normally provided by Marcum in connection with regulatory filings. The aggregate fees of Marcum related to audit and review services in connection with our initial public offering and other regulatory filings totaled $118,965 and $99,910 for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Audit-Related Fees. Audit-related fees consist of fees billed for assurance and related services that are reasonably related to performance of the audit or review of our financial statements and are not reported under “Audit Fees.” These services include attest services that are not required by statute or regulation and consultations concerning financial accounting and reporting standards. During the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, we paid Marcum $57,680 and $0, respectively, in audit-related fees.
Tax Fees. We did not pay Marcum for tax return services, planning or tax advice for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.
All Other Fees. We did not pay Marcum for any other services for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.
Pre-Approval Policy
Our audit committee was formed upon the pricing of our initial public offering. As a result, the audit committee did not pre-approve all of the foregoing services, although any services rendered prior to the formation of our audit committee were approved by our board of directors. Since the formation of our audit committee, and on a going-forward basis, the audit committee has and will pre-approve all auditing services and permitted non-audit services to be performed for us by our auditors, including the fees and terms thereof (subject to the de minimis exceptions for non-audit services described in the Exchange Act which are approved by the audit committee prior to the completion of the audit).
PART IV
| Item 15. | Exhibits, Financial Statements and Financial Statement Schedules |
| (a) | The following documents are filed as part of this Report: |
| (1) | Financial Statements |
| (2) | Financial Statement Schedules: |
| None |
| (3) | Exhibits |
We hereby file as part of this report the exhibits listed in the attached Exhibit Index. Exhibits which are incorporated herein by reference can be obtained on the SEC website at www.sec.gov.
| Item 16. | Form 10-K Summary |
None.
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| F-2 | ||||
Financial Statements: | ||||
| F-3 | ||||
| F-4 | ||||
| F-5 | ||||
| F-6 | ||||
F-7 to F-24 |
December 31 | ||||||||
2022 | 2021 | |||||||
Assets | ||||||||
Current assets: | ||||||||
| Cash | $ | 100,256 | $ | 322,768 | ||||
| Prepaid expenses | 88,212 | 521,878 | ||||||
Total current assets | 188,468 | 844,646 | ||||||
Prepaid expenses – non-current | — | 78,630 | ||||||
| Investments held in Trust Account | 290,718,297 | 287,516,153 | ||||||
Total assets | $ | 290,906,765 | $ | 288,439,429 | ||||
Liabilities, Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption and Stockholders’ Deficit | ||||||||
| Accounts payable and accrued expenses | $ | 4,625,892 | $ | 275,500 | ||||
| Income taxes payable | 330,151 | — | ||||||
| Promissory notes to related parties | 370,000 | — | ||||||
| Convertible promissory notes – related parties, at fair value | 1,409,730 | 956,115 | ||||||
Total current liabilities | 6,735,773 | 1,231,615 | ||||||
| Warrant liabilities | 12,149,250 | 12,647,250 | ||||||
Total liabilities | 18,885,023 | 13,878,865 | ||||||
Commitments and Contingencies | ||||||||
| Class A Common Stock subject to possible redemption; 28,750,000 shares at redemption value ($10.10 and $10.00 at December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively) | 290,347,008 | 287,500,000 | ||||||
Stockholders’ Deficit: | ||||||||
| Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued and outstanding | — | — | ||||||
| Class A common stock, $0.0001 par value; 200,000,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding, excluding 28,750,000 shares subject to possible redemption at December 31, 2022 and 2021 | — | — | ||||||
Class B common stock, $0.0001 | 719 | 719 | ||||||
| Accumulated deficit | (18,325,985 | ) | (12,940,155 | ) | ||||
Total Stockholders’ Deficit | (18,325,266 | ) | (12,939,436 | ) | ||||
Total Liabilities, Common Stock Subject to Possible Redemption and Stockholders’ Deficit | $ | 290,906,765 | $ | 288,439,429 | ||||
For the Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||
2022 | 2021 | |||||||
| Operating costs | $ | 6,150,199 | $ | 1,682,816 | ||||
Loss from operations | (6,150,199 | ) | (1,682,816 | ) | ||||
Other income (expense): | ||||||||
| Interest income from Trust Account | 3,989,061 | 16,153 | ||||||
| Initial fair value adjustment of promissory note | — | (18,323 | ) | |||||
| Change in fair value of promissory note | (170,741 | ) | 83,768 | |||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liabilities | 498,000 | 6,155,125 | ||||||
| Offering costs allocated to warrants | — | (280,829 | ) | |||||
| Total other income, net | 4,316,320 | 5,955,894 | ||||||
(Loss) Income before provision for income taxes | (1,833,879 | ) | 4,273,078 | |||||
| Provision for income taxes | (757,069 | ) | — | |||||
Net (Loss) Income | $ | (2,590,948 | ) | $ | 4,273,078 | |||
| Weighted average shares outstanding, redeemable Class A common stock | 28,750,000 | 24,417,808 | ||||||
Basic and diluted net (loss) income per share, redeemable Class A common stock | $ | (0.07 | ) | $ | 0.14 | |||
Weighted average shares outstanding, Class B non-redeemable common stock | 7,187,500 | 7,187,500 | ||||||
Basic and diluted net (loss) income per share, Class B non-redeemable common stock | $ | (0.07 | ) | $ | 0.14 | |||
| Common Stock | Additional Paid-In Capital | Accumulated Deficit | Total Stockholders’ Equity (Deficit) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Class A | Class B | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares | Amount | Shares | Amount | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Balance as of December 31, 2020 | — | $ | — | 7,187,500 | $ | 719 | $ | 24,281 | $ | (1,657 | ) | $ | 23,343 | |||||||||||||||
| Proceeds received in excess of initial fair value of Private Placement Warrants | — | — | — | — | 1,166,375 | — | 1,166,375 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Remeasurement of Class A common stock to possible redemption | — | — | — | — | (1,190,656 | ) | (17,355,016 | ) | (18,545,672 | ) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Initial fair value adjustment of promissory note | — | — | — | — | — | 143,440 | 143,440 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Net income | — | — | — | — | — | 4,273,078 | 4,273,078 | |||||||||||||||||||||
Balance as of December 31, 2021 | — | — | 7,187,500 | 719 | — | (12,940,155 | ) | (12,939,436 | ) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Initial fair value adjustment of promissory note | — | — | — | — | — | 52,126 | 52,126 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Remeasurement of Class A common stock to possible redemption | — | — | — | — | — | (2,847,008 | ) | (2,847,008 | ) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | — | — | — | — | — | (2,590,948 | ) | (2,590,948 | ) | |||||||||||||||||||
Balance as of December 31, 2022 | — | $ | — | 7,187,500 | $ | 719 | $ | — | $ | (18,325,985 | ) | $ | (18,325,266 | ) | ||||||||||||||
For the Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||
2022 | 2021 | |||||||
Cash Flows from Operating Activities: | ||||||||
| Net (loss) income | $ | (2,590,948 | ) | $ | 4,273,078 | |||
| Adjustments to reconcile net (loss) income to net cash used in operating activities: | ||||||||
| Interest earned on Trust Account | (3,989,061 | ) | (16,153 | ) | ||||
| Initial fair value adjustment of promissory note | — | 18,323 | ||||||
| Change in fair value of promissory note | 170,741 | (83,768 | ) | |||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liabilities | (498,000 | ) | (6,155,125 | ) | ||||
| Offering costs allocated to warrants | — | 280,829 | ||||||
| Changes in current assets and current liabilities: | ||||||||
| Prepaid expenses | 512,296 | (600,508 | ) | |||||
| Accounts payable and accrued expenses | 4,350,391 | 275,500 | ||||||
| Income taxes payable | 330,151 | — | ||||||
Net cash used in operating activities | (1,714,430 | ) | (2,007,824 | ) | ||||
Cash Flows from Investing Activities: | ||||||||
| Investment of cash into Trust Account | — | (287,500,000 | ) | |||||
| Cash withdrawn from Trust Account for income and franchise taxes | 786,918 | — | ||||||
Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities | 786,918 | (287,500,000 | ) | |||||
Cash Flows from Financing Activities: | ||||||||
| Proceeds from Initial Public Offering, net of underwriters’ discount | — | 281,750,000 | ||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of Private Placement Warrants | — | 7,750,000 | ||||||
| Proceeds from promissory notes - related party | 705,000 | 1,196,548 | ||||||
| Repayment of promissory notes - related party | — | (75,174 | ) | |||||
| Payments of offering costs | — | (799,796 | ) | |||||
Net cash provided by financing activities | 705,000 | 289,821,578 | ||||||
Net Change in Cash | (222,512 | ) | 313,754 | |||||
| Cash — Beginning of period | 322,768 | 9,014 | ||||||
Cash — End of period | $ | 100,256 | $ | 322,768 | ||||
Non-cash Financing Activities: | ||||||||
| Initial value of Class A common stock subject to possible redemption | $ | — | $ | 268,954,328 | ||||
| Remeasurement to Redemption Value | $ | 2,847,008 | $ | 18,545,672 | ||||
Initial fair | $ | — | $ | 18,802,375 | ||||
Initial measurement of fair value of Promissory Notes | $ | (52,126 | ) | $ | (143,440 | ) | ||
Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flow Information: | ||||||||
| Payment of income taxes | $ | 426,918 | $ | — | ||||
| Gross proceeds from Initial Public Offering | $ | 287,500,000 | ||
| Less: | ||||
| Common stock issuance costs | (6,326,922 | ) | ||
| Proceeds allocated to public warrants | (12,218,750 | ) | ||
| Plus: | ||||
| Remeasurement of Class A common stock to possible redemption | 18,545,672 | |||
Contingently redeemable common stock at December 31, 2021 | 287,500,000 | |||
| Plus: | ||||
| Remeasurement of Class A common stock to possible redemption | 2,847,008 | |||
Contingently redeemable common stock at December 31, 2022 | $ | 290,347,008 | ||
For the Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||
2022 | 2021 | |||||||
| Common stock subject to possible redemption | ||||||||
| Numerator: | ||||||||
| Net (loss) income allocable to Class A common stock subject to possible redemption | $ | (2,072,758 | ) | $ | 3,301,319 | |||
| Denominator: | ||||||||
| Weighted Average Redeemable Class A common stock, Basic and Diluted | 28,750,000 | 24,417,808 | ||||||
| Basic and Diluted net (loss) income per share, Redeemable Class A common stock | $ | (0.07 | ) | $ | 0.14 | |||
Non-Redeemable Ordinary shares | ||||||||
| Numerator: | ||||||||
| Net (loss) income allocable to Class B common stock not subject to redemption | $ | (518,190 | ) | $ | 971,759 | |||
| Denominator: | ||||||||
Weighted Average Non-Redeemable common stock, Basic and Diluted | 7,187,500 | 7,187,500 | ||||||
| Basic and diluted net (loss) income per share | $ | (0.07 | ) | $ | 0.14 | |||
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at a price of $0.01 per Public Warrant; |
| • | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; and |
| • | if, and only if, the last sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $18.00 per share (as adjusted for stock splits, stock dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders. |
| • | in whole and not in part; |
| • | at a price equal to a number of shares of Class A common stock to be determined by reference to the agreed table set forth in the warrant agreement based on the redemption date and the “fair market value” of the Class A common stock; |
| • | upon not less than 30 days’ prior written notice of redemption to each warrant holder; and |
| • | if, and only if, the last sale price of our Class A common stock equals or exceeds $10.00 per share (as adjusted per share splits, share dividends, reorganizations, recapitalizations and the like) on the trading day prior to the date on which the Company sends the notice of redemption to the warrant holders. |
| • | Level 1, defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices (unadjusted) for identical instruments in active markets; |
| • | Level 2, defined as inputs other than quoted prices in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable such as quoted prices for similar instruments in active markets or quoted prices for identical or similar instruments in markets that are not active; and |
| • | Level 3, defined as unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions, such as valuations derived from valuation techniques in which one or more significant inputs or significant value drivers are unobservable. |
Description: | Level | December 31, 2022 | Level | December 31, 2021 | ||||||||||||
| Assets: | ||||||||||||||||
| U.S. Money Market Investing in Treasury Securities Held in Trust Account | 1 | $ | 290,718,297 | 1 | $ | 287,516,153 | ||||||||||
| Liabilities: | ||||||||||||||||
| Warrant liability—Public Warrants | 1 | 9,343,750 | 1 | $ | 8,625,000 | |||||||||||
| Warrant liability—Private Warrants | 3 | 2,805,500 | 3 | $ | 4,022,250 | |||||||||||
| Convertible Promissory Notes—Related Parties | 3 | 1,409,730 | 3 | $ | 956,115 | |||||||||||
December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2022 | |||||||
| Stock price | $ | 9.72 | $ | 10.05 | ||||
| Strike price | $ | 11.50 | $ | 11.50 | ||||
| Term (in years) | 4.15 | 3.15 | ||||||
| Volatility | 10.8 | % | 0.0 | % | ||||
| Risk-free rate | 1.13 | % | 4.12 | % | ||||
| Dividend yield | 0.00 | % | 0.00 | % | ||||
Inputs | December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2022 | ||||||
| Stock price | $ | 9.72 | $ | 10.05 | ||||
| Strike price | $ | 11.50 | $ | 11.50 | ||||
| Term (in years) | 5.42 | 5.25 | ||||||
| Volatility | 10.8 | % | 0.0 | % | ||||
| Risk-free rate | 1.29 | % | 3.91 | % | ||||
| Dividend yield | 0.00 | % | 0.00 | % | ||||
Public | Private Placement | Warrant Liabilities | ||||||||||
Fair value as of December 31, 2020 | $ | — | $ | — | $ | — | ||||||
| Initial measurement on March 1, 2021 | 12,218,750 | 6,583,625 | 18,802,375 | |||||||||
| Change in valuation inputs or other assumptions | (3,593,750 | ) | (2,561,375 | ) | (6,155,125 | ) | ||||||
Fair value as of December 31, 2021 | $ | 8,625,000 | $ | 4,022,250 | $ | 12,647,250 | ||||||
| Change in valuation inputs or other assumptions | 718,750 | (1,216,750 | ) | (498,000 | ) | |||||||
Fair value as of December 31, 2022 | $ | 9,343,750 | $ | 2,805,500 | $ | 12,149,250 | ||||||
Inputs | December 31, 2021 | December 31, 2022 | ||||||
| Exercise price | $ | 11.50 | $ | 11.50 | ||||
| Volatility | 12.9 | % | 1.2 | % | ||||
| Expected term to warrant expiration | 5.4 years | 5.3 years | ||||||
| Risk-free-rate | 1.32 | % | 3.91 | % | ||||
| Dividend yield | 0 | % | 0 | % | ||||
| Stock price | $ | 9.71 | $ | 10.05 | ||||
Fair value as of December 31, 2020 | $ | — | ||
| Proceeds received through Convertible Promissory Note on August 11, 2021 | 365,000 | |||
| Initial measurement of fair value of Promissory Note | 18,323 | |||
| Proceeds received through Convertible Promissory Note on December 29, 2021 | 800,000 | |||
| Initial measurement of fair value of Promissory Note | (143,440 | ) | ||
| Change in fair value of Promissory Notes | (83,768 | ) | ||
Fair value as of December 31, 2021 | $ | 956,115 | ||
| Proceeds received through Convertible Promissory Note on March 29, 2022 | 335,000 | |||
| Initial measurement of fair value of Promissory Note | (52,126 | ) | ||
| Change in fair value of Promissory Notes | 170,741 | |||
Fair value as of December 31, 2022 | $ | 1,409,730 | ||
December 31, 2022 | December 31, 2021 | |||||||
| Deferred tax asset | ||||||||
Start-up/organization costs | $ | 1,560,694 | $ | 311,152 | ||||
| Net operating loss carryforwards | — | 39,195 | ||||||
| Total deferred tax assets | 1,560,694 | 350,347 | ||||||
| Valuation allowance | (1,560,694 | ) | (350,347 | ) | ||||
| Deferred tax assets, net of allowance | $ | — | $ | — | ||||
Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||
2022 | 2021 | |||||||
Current | ||||||||
| Federal | $ | 757,069 | $ | — | ||||
| State | — | — | ||||||
Deferred | ||||||||
| Federal | (1,210,347 | ) | (349,999 | ) | ||||
| State | — | — | ||||||
Change in valuation allowance | 1,210,347 | 349,999 | ||||||
Income tax provision | $ | 757,069 | $ | — | ||||
| Years Ended December 31, | ||||||||
| 2022 | 2021 | |||||||
| Income tax at statutory rate | 21.0 | % | 21.0 | % | ||||
| Change in valuation allowance | (66.0 | )% | 8.2 | % | ||||
| Fair value of warrant adjustment | 3.7 | % | (29.2 | )% | ||||
| Income tax expense | (41.3 | )% | 0.0 | % | ||||
EXHIBIT INDEX
| * | Filed herewith |
| ** | Furnished herewith |
| † | Certain exhibits and schedules to this Exhibit have been omitted in accordance with Regulation S-K Item 601(b)(2). The Registrant agrees to furnish supplementally a copy of all omitted exhibits and schedules to the Securities and Exchange Commission upon its request. |
| ^ | Certain exhibits and schedules to this Exhibit have been omitted in accordance with Regulation S-K Item 601(a)(5). The Registrant agrees to furnish supplementally a copy of all omitted exhibits and schedules to the Securities and Exchange Commission upon its request. |
| (1) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 2, 2022. |
| (2) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on March 2, 2021. |
| (3) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form S-1, as amended, filed with the SEC on February 5, 2021. |
| (4) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on April 4, 2022. |
| (5) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on March 8, 2021. |
| (6) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on December 28, 2021. |
| (7) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on April 1, 2022. |
| (8) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on September 30, 2022. |
| (9) | Incorporated by reference to the Company’s Form 8-K, filed with the SEC on November 1, 2022. |
SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
March 31, 2023 | Flame Acquisition Corp. | |||||
| By: | /s/ James C. Flores | |||||
| Name: | James C. Flores | |||||
| Title: | Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | |||||
| (Principal Executive Officer) | ||||||
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this Report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
| Name | Position | Date | ||
/s/ James C. Flores James C. Flores | Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) | March 31, 2023 | ||
/s/ Gregory D. Patrinely Gregory D. Patrinely | Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) | March 31, 2023 | ||
/s/ Michael E. Dillard Michael E. Dillard | Director | March 31, 2023 | ||
/s/ Gregory P. Pipkin Gregory P. Pipkin | Director | March 31, 2023 | ||
/s/ Christopher B. Sarofim Christopher B. Sarofim | Director | March 31, 2023 | ||
