Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis
ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion and analysis is intended to provide a narrative of our financial results and an evaluation of our results of operations and financial condition. The discussion should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and notes thereto. A description of our business is discussed in Item 1 of this Comprehensive Form 10-K, which contains an overview of our business as well as the status of our ongoing project operations.
Results of Operations
The dollar values discussed in the following tables, except as otherwise indicated, are approximations to the nearest thousands and therefore do not necessarily sum in columns or rows. For more detail refer to the Financial Statements in Item 8. The tables identify years 2023 and 2022, all of which included a twelve-month period ended December 31.
2023 Compared to 2022
Increase/(Decrease)
2023 vs. 2022
(Dollars in thousands)
2023
2022
( As Restated)
$
%
Total revenues
$
804
$
1,335
$
(531
)
(39.8
%)
Marketing, general and administrative
6,843
9,427
(2,584
)
(27.4
%)
Operations and research
4,298
9,761
(5,463
)
(56.0
%)
Total operating expenses
$
11,141
$
19,188
$
(8,047
)
(41.9
%)
Total other income (expense)
$
6,453
$
(11,969
)
$
18,422
(153.9
%)
Income tax benefit
$
—
$
—
$
—
0.0
%
Net loss attributable to non-controlling interest
$
9,230
$
7,742
$
1,488
19.2
%
Net Income / (Loss) attributable to Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc.
$
5,346
$
(22,080
)
$
27,426
(124.2
%)
Revenue
The revenue generated in each period was a result of performing marine research and project administration for our customers and related parties. Total revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023 was $804,000, a $531,000 decrease compared to $1.3 million from the year ended December 31, 2022. We provided these services in both years to a deep-sea mineral exploration company, CIC, which we consider to be a related party because our lead director is an indirect minority equity holder of CIC (see NOTE 8 Related Party Transactions). In 2023, we started providing services to OML, which is also a related party as we account for OML investment under the equity method of accounting.
Operating Expenses
Marketing, general and administrative expenses primarily include all costs within the following departments: Executive, Finance & Accounting, Legal, Information Technology, Human Resources, Marketing & Communications, Sales and Business Development. Costs decreased $2.6 million to $6.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to $9.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The primary items contributing to this $2.6 million decrease was a decrease of non-cash long-term incentive share-based compensation of $1.2 million. Legal fees also decreased by $462,000, and a decrease in offering costs related to the 2022 Warrant by $1.1 million. These decreases were offset in part by an increase in audit fees of $350,414.
Operations and research expenses are primarily focused around deep-sea mineral exploration, which includes minerals research, scientific services, marine operations and project management. Operations and research expenses decreased by $5.5 million to $4.3 million during the year ended December 31, 2023 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, primarily as a result of a $5.7 million decrease in litigation financing costs directly associated with our NAFTA arbitration and a $674,000 decrease in professional services. These decreases were partially offset by a $402,000 increase in the cost for the Mexican exploration license, a $223,000 contract labor expense associated with ROV sea trials, a $143,000 increase in depreciation expense for certain marine equipment, a $142,000 increase in employee benefits and compensation related expenses, a $95,000 increase in freight, and a gain on sale of equipment of $135,000.
Total Other Income and Expense
Total Other income and expense was $6.5 million in net income and $12.0 million in net expense for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, resulting in a net change of $18.4 million. This change is primarily attributable to an increase in interest income of $316,000 related to our equity investment partners, $22.2 million gain on debt extinguishment predominantly from the termination of the MINOSA debt, a $174,107 gain from the sale of a wholly owned subsidiary. These items were offset mainly by an increase in the loss of $279,000 from our equity investment, an increase of $2.7 million in interest expense, a $1.0 million financing fee and a $525,000 foreign exchange expense increase.
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Taxes and Non-Controlling Interest
Due to losses, we did not incur any income taxes in 2023 or 2022.
In 2013, we became the controlling shareholder of Oceanica. Our financial statements thus include the financial results of Oceanica and its subsidiary, ExO. Except for intercompany transactions that are fully eliminated upon consolidation, Oceanica’s revenues and expenses, in their entirety, are shown in our consolidated financial statements. The share of Oceanica’s net losses corresponding to the equity of Oceanica not owned by us is subsequently shown as the “Non-Controlling Interest” in the consolidated statements of operations. The non-controlling interest adjustment in the year ended December 31, 2023 was $9.2 million as compared to $7.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The substance of these amounts is primarily due to the increase in permits fees and other standard operating costs.
Liquidity and Capital Resources
(Dollars in thousands)
2023
2022
(As Restated)
Summary of Cash Flows:
Net cash used in operating activities
$
(10,170
)
$
(10,210
)
Net cash (used in) by investing activities
(1,029
)
(2,477
)
Net cash provided by financing activities
13,778
11,856
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents
$
2,579
$
(831
)
Beginning cash and cash equivalents
1,443
2,274
Ending cash and cash equivalents
$
4,022
$
1,443
Discussion of Cash Flows
Net cash used by operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2023 was $10.2 million. This represents a comparable use of funds when compared to the use of $10.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Cash flows used in operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2023 of $10.2 million reflected a net income $5.3 million and is adjusted primarily by non-cash items of $17.2 million, which primarily includes depreciation of $243,000, debt accretion and amortization of fees and discounts of $3.7 million, interest paid in kind of $859,000, share-based compensation of $586,000, and change in derivatives liabilities fair value of $8.3 million offset by a gain on debt extinguishment net of $21.2 million, change in investment of an unconsolidated entity of $780,000 and a noncash adjustment from our noncontrolling interests of $9.2 million. Other operating activities resulted in an increase in working capital of $1.7 million. This $1.7 million increase primarily comprises a $2.7 million increase to accrued expenses, and a decrease in accounts payable of $1.7 million offset by an increase of approximately $600,000 in other working capital accounts. The increase in accrued expenses and accounts payable is predominantly related to increased accrued interest and permit fees.
Cash flows used in operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2022 of $10.2 million reflected a net loss before non-controlling interest of $29.9 million and is adjusted primarily by an increase in non-cash items of 11.3 million, which primarily includes share-based compensation of $1.8 million, note payable accretion of $0.3 million and the $0.3 million non-cash adjustment loans payable prepayment premium and offset by an investment in unconsolidated entity of $1.2 million. Other operating activities resulted in an increase in working capital of $8.3 million. This $8.3 million increase includes a $2.7 million increase to accrued expenses and an increase of $6.0 million to accounts payable in 2022. The increase in accrued expenses and accounts payable is predominantly related to our NAFTA arbitration.
Cash flows used in investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2023 was $1.0 million. This represents an approximate $1.4 million decrease from cash flows used by investing activities of $2.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the primary items impacting the net cash used in investing activities were $1.2 million for the purchase of property and equipment, cash paid for the investment in a new unconsolidated entity of $1.0 million, offset by proceeds from the note receivable repayment of $1.0 million and proceeds from the sale of equipment of $318,000.
Cash flows used by investing activities for the year ended December 31, 2022 of $2.5 million was from the purchase of property and equipment for $1.5 million coupled with a $1.0 million loan payment.
Cash flows provided by financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2023 were $13.8 million. The $13.8 million comprises $21.4 million received from the issuance of loans payable, proceeds from warrants exercised of $303,000, $239,000 proceeds from the issuance of common stock and $4.1 million of proceeds from the sale leaseback transaction, offset by the $11.5 million of debt obligation payments and $370,000 sale leaseback payments.
Cash flows provided by financing activities for the year ended December 31, 2022 were $11.9 million. The $11.9 million comprises $16.5 million received from the June 2022 issuance of stock and $2.2 million received from the issuance of loans payable offset by the $5.5 million of debt obligation payments and $1.8 million of offering costs associated with the stock issuance.
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General Discussion 2023
At December 31, 2023, we had cash of $4.0 million, an increase of $2.6 million from the December 31, 2022 balance of $1.4 million. Debt obligations from loans to the company were $23.3 million at December 31, 2023 and $22.4 million at December 31, 2022. During March 2023, we entered into a Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement, pursuant to which we issued and sold to an institutional investor (a) a promissory note (the “March 2023 Note”) in the principal amount of up to $14.0 million, of which $13.1 million was advanced in March 2023, an additional $450,000 was advanced during the three months ended June 30, 2023 and the final $449,925 was advanced during the three months ended September 30, 2023, and (b) a warrant (the “March 2023 Warrant” and, together with the March 2023 Note, the “Securities”) to purchase up to 3,703,703 shares of Odyssey’s common stock. We also paid AHMSA $9.0 million in cash to terminate the Minosa Notes (as defined below) and converted a portion of the Minosa Notes into 304,879 shares of Odyssey’s common stock. During April 2023, Odyssey entered into a $3.5 million sale-leaseback arrangement for marine equipment and CIC repaid principal and interest in the aggregate amount of $1.1 million in full satisfaction of the convertible promissory note and the Loan Agreement. A portion of the proceeds of the April sale-leaseback transaction was used to repay the note outstanding to the seller of the marine equipment that we issued in December 2022. During June 2023, Odyssey entered into a Note Purchase Agreement with 37North SPV 11, LLC for $1.0 million and entered into a $1.0 million sale-leaseback arrangement for marine equipment. During August 2023, CIC repaid principal and interest in the aggregate amount of $686,976 in full satisfaction of the Services Agreement Note. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, holders of warrants issued by Odyssey on June 10, 2022, exercised 90,552 warrants with an exercise price of $3.35 per share. On December 1, 2023, we entered into a Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement (the “December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement”) with institutional investors pursuant to which we issued and sold to the investors (a) a series of promissory notes (the “December 2023 Notes”) in the principal amount of up to $6.0 million and (b) two tranches of warrants (the “December 2023 Warrants” and, together with the December 2023 Notes, the “December 2023 Securities”) to purchase shares of our common stock. We issued December 2023 Notes in the aggregate amount of $3.75 million and related warrants on December 1, 2023, and December 2023 Notes in the aggregate amount of $2.25 million and related warrants on December 28, 2023.
Because SEMARNAT declined to approve the environmental permit application of our Mexican subsidiary in April 2016 and again in October 2018, notwithstanding that the Superior Court of the Federal Court of Administrative Justice (“TFJA”) in Mexico nullified SEMARNAT’s 2016 denial, we continue to support the efforts of our subsidiaries and partners to work through the administrative, legal and political process necessary to have the decision reviewed and overturned in the TFJA. On January 4, 2019, we initiated the process to submit a claim against Mexico to arbitration under the investment protection chapter of the NAFTA. On September 4, 2020, we filed our First Memorial with the Tribunal. The First Memorial is the filing that fully lays out our case, witnesses and evidence for the Tribunal. Mexico filed its counter-memorial, on February 23, 2021. On June 29, 2021, we filed our reply to Mexico’s counter-memorial. ’The NAFTA Tribunal hearing took place in January and May 2022. In accordance with the procedural calendar, written post hearing briefs were filed in September 2022. The evidentiary phase of the case is now closed And the Tribunal has begun its deliberations. On October 6, 2023, Odyssey received a letter from ICSID advising that the Tribunal is well advanced in the drafting of the Awa r d and expects to issue the Award in the first quarter of 2024. ICSID also advised that Odyssey would be duly notified of any change to the timing estimate provided. On March 8, 2024, Odyssey received a letter from ICSID advising that the Tribunal “has continued to make progress in finalizing its determinations” and that it “expects to render the Award in the second quarter of this year.”
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Financings
The Company’s consolidated notes payable consisted of the following carrying values and related interest expense at:
Loans Payable
December 31,
2023
December 31,
2022
(As Restated)
MINOSA 1
$
—
$
14,750,001
MINOSA 2
—
5,050,000
MARCH 2023 Note
14,858,816
—
December 2023 Note
6,000,000
—
Emergency Injury Disaster Loan
150,000
149,900
Vendor note payable
484,009
484,009
Seller Note payable
—
1,400,000
AFCO Insurance note payable
468,751
562,280
Pignatelli note
500,000
—
37N Note
804,997
—
Finance liability (NOTE 13)
4,112,332
—
Total Loans payable
27,378,905
22,396,190
Less: Unamortized deferred lender fee
(106,488
)
—
Less: Unamortized deferred discount
(3,955,449
)
—
Total Loans payable, net
23,316,968
22,396,190
Less: Current portion of loans payable
(15,413,894
)
(21,732,654
)
Loans payable - long term
$
7,903,074
$
663,536
Stock Purchase Agreement
On March 11, 2015, we entered into a Stock Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) with Penelope Mining LLC (the “Investor”), and, solely with respect to certain provisions of the Stock Purchase Agreement, Minera del Norte, S.A. de C.V. (“MINOSA”). The Stock Purchase Agreement provided for us to issue and sell to the Investor shares of our preferred stock in the amounts and at the prices set forth below (the numbers set forth below have been adjusted to reflect the 1-for-12 reverse stock split of February 19, 2016):
Series
No. of Shares
Price per
Share
SeriesAA-1
8,427,004
$
12.00
SeriesAA-2
7,223,145
$
6.00
The closing of the sale and issuance of shares of the Company’s preferred stock to the Investor was subject to certain conditions, including the Company’s receipt of required approvals from the Company’s stockholders (received on June 9, 2015), the receipt of regulatory approval, performance by the Company of its obligations under the Stock Purchase Agreement, receipt of certain third party consents, the listing of the underlying common stock on the Nasdaq Stock Market and the Investor’s satisfaction, in its sole discretion, with the viability of certain undersea mining projects of the Company. Completion of the transaction required amending the Company’s articles of incorporation to (a) effect a reverse stock split, which was completed on February 19, 2016, (b) adjusting the Company’s authorized capitalization, which was also completed on February 19, 2016, and establishing a classified board of directors.
The Stock Purchase Agreement provided for the purchase and sale of 2,916,667 shares of Series AA-1 Preferred Stock at an initial closing and for the purchase and sale of the remaining 5,510,337 shares of Series AA-1 Preferred Stock according to a specified schedule, was subject to the satisfaction or waiver of certain other conditions set forth in the Stock Purchase Agreement. The initial closing and subsequent closings did not occur because certain conditions to closing were not satisfied or waived.
Subject to the terms set forth in the Stock Purchase Agreement, the Lender provided the Company, through a subsidiary of the Company, with a loan of $14.75 million, the outstanding amount of which, plus accrued interest, was to be repaid from the proceeds from the sale of the shares of Series AA-1 Preferred Stock at the initial closing. The outstanding principal balance of the loan at December 31, 2023 was zero and at December 31, 2022 was $14.75 million.
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The obligation to repay the loan was evidenced by a promissory note (the “Note”) in the amount of up to $14.75 million and bore interest at the rate of 8.0% per annum, and, pursuant to a pledge agreement (the “Pledge Agreement”) between the Lender and Odyssey Marine Enterprises Ltd., an indirect, wholly owned subsidiary of the Company (“OME”), was secured by a pledge of 54.0 million shares of Oceanica Resources S. de R.L., a Panamanian limitada (“Oceanica”), held by OME. On December 15, 2015, the Promissory Note was amended to provide that, unless otherwise converted as provided in the Note, the adjusted principal balance shall be due and payable in full upon written demand by MINOSA; provided that MINOSA agreed that it would not demand payment of the adjusted principal balance earlier than the first to occur of: (i) 30 days after the date on which (x) SEMARNAT made a determination with respect to the current application for the Manifestacion de Impacto Ambiental relating to our phosphate deposit project, which determination is other than an approval or (y) Enterprises or any of its affiliates withdraws such application without MINOSA’s prior written consent; (ii) termination by Odyssey of the Stock Purchase Agreement; (iii) the occurrence of an event of default under the Note; (iv) March 30, 2016; or (v) if the Investor had terminated the Stock Purchase Agreement pursuant to Section 8.1(d)(iii) thereof, March 30, 2016. On March 18, 2016 the agreements with MINOSA and Penelope were further amended and extended the maturity date of the loan to March 18, 2017 (see NOTE 11 Loans Payable). The August 10, 2017 amendment to the Stock Purchase Agreement also amended the due date of the Note to a due date which may be no earlier than December 31, 2017, and at least 60 days subsequent to written notice that Minosa intended to demand payment. In December 2017 MINOSA transferred the Note to its parent company, Altos Hornos de México, S.A.B. de C.V. (“AHMSA”).
On March 3, 2023, Odyssey, AHMSA, MINOSA and Phosphate One LLC (f/k/a Penelope Mining LLC, “Phosphate One” and together with AHMSA and MINOSA, the “AHMSA Parties”) entered into Settlement, Release and Termination Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”).
Pursuant to the Termination Agreement:
•
Odyssey paid AHMSA $9.0 million (the “Termination Payment”) in cash on March 6, 2023;
•
the parties agreed that, concurrently with the payment of the Termination Payment, a portion of the Minosa Notes would be deemed automatically converted into 304,879 shares of Odyssey’s common stock;
•
the Minosa Notes, the Stock Purchase Agreement, and the Pledge Agreements were terminated;
•
each of the AHMSA Parties, on the one hand, and Odyssey, on the other, agreed to release the other parties and their respective affiliates, equity holders, beneficiaries, successors and assigns (the “Released Parties”) from any and all claims, demands, damages, actions, causes of action or liabilities of any kind or nature whatsoever under the SPA, the Minosa Notes, the Minosa Purchase Agreement, or the Pledge Agreements (the “Released Matters”); and
•
each of the AHMSA Parties, on the one hand, and Odyssey, on the other, agreed not to make any claims against any of the Released Parties related to the Released Matters.
The transactions contemplated by the Termination Agreement were completed on March 6, 2023.
On March 6, 2023, Odyssey entered into a Release and Termination Agreement with James S. Pignatelli, who was a director of Company, to terminate and release a portion of the MINOSA 2 Note assigned to Mr. Pignatelli in 2021, the related Note Purchase Agreement (“NPA”) and the Pledge Agreement.
On March 6, 2023, Odyssey issued a new Unsecured Convertible Promissory Note in the principal amount of $500,000 to Mr. Pignatelli of the Company that bears interest at the rate of 10.0% per annum convertible at a conversion price of $3.78 per share. Pursuant to the Release and Termination Agreement with Mr. Pignatelli noted above, he agreed, in exchange for the issuance of this Unsecured Convertible Promissory Note by Odyssey, to release the assigned portion of the MINOSA 2 note issued by Odyssey Marine Exploration, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, to Mr. Pignatelli in the principal amount of $404,634 and convertible at a conversion price of $4.35 per share, pursuant to which the outstanding aggregate obligation with accrued interest was $630,231.
AFCO Insurance Note Payable
On December 1, 2021, we executed the Premium Finance Agreement with AFCO Credit Corporation (“AFCO”). Pursuant to the Premium Finance Agreement, AFCO agreed to finance the D&O Insurance premiums evidenced by the promissory note, bearing interest at a rate of 2% per annum, that matured on November 30, 2022. On November 1, 2022, we executed the Premium Finance Agreement with AFCO Credit Corporation (“AFCO”). Pursuant to the Premium Finance Agreement, AFCO agreed to finance the D&O Insurance premiums evidenced by the promissory note, bearing interest at a rate of 4.95% per annum, that matured on October 31, 2023. On November 1, 2023, we signed the Premium Finance Agreement – Promissory Note with AFCO bearing an interest rate of 7.20% per annum maturing on October 31, 2024.
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Seller Note Payable
On December 2, 2022, we executed an Amended and Restated Purchase and Sale Agreement (“Purchase and Sale Agreement”) with the seller of certain marine equipment (“Seller”). Pursuant to the Purchase and Sale Agreement, Seller agreed to sell us the marine equipment, related tooling items and spares for $2.5 million. On or before the closing date, Odyssey paid the Seller $1.1 million for the acquisition of the assets. Pursuant to the Purchase and Sale Agreement, we paid the Seller the $1.4 million balance of the purchase price as a fully amortizing loan, bearing interest at a rate of 20% per annum, maturing on June 5, 2024 (the “Seller Note”). We paid the Seller Note in full on April 4, 2023, using part of the proceeds from the April 2023 sale-leaseback transaction.
March 2023 Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement
On March 6, 2023, Odyssey entered into a Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement (the “March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement”) with an institutional investor pursuant to which Odyssey issued and sold to the investor (a) a promissory note (the “March 2023 Note”) in the principal amount of up to $14.0 million, of which $13.1 million was advanced in March 2023, an additional $450,000 was advanced during the three months ended June 30, 2023 and the final $449,925 was advanced during the three months ended September 30, 2023 and (b) a warrant (the “March 2023 Warrant” and, together with the March 2023 Note, the “March 2023 Securities”) to purchase shares of Odyssey’s common stock.
The principal amount outstanding under the March 2023 Note bears interest at the rate of 11.0% per annum, and interest is payable in cash on a quarterly basis, except that, (a) at Odyssey’s option and upon notice to the holder of the March 2023 Note, any quarterly interest payment may be satisfied, in lieu of paying such cash interest, by adding an equivalent amount to the principal amount of the March 2023 Note (“PIK Interest”), and (b) the first quarterly interest payment due under the March 2023 Note will be satisfied with PIK Interest. The March 2023 Note provides Odyssey with the right, but not the obligation, upon notice to the holder of the March 2023 Note to redeem (x) at any time before the first anniversary of the issuance of the March 2023 Note, all or any portion of the indebtedness outstanding under the Note (together with all accrued and unpaid interest, including PIK Interest) for an amount equal to one hundred twenty percent (120%) of the outstanding principal amount so being redeemed, and (y) at any time on or after the first anniversary of the issuance of the March 2023 Note, all or any portion of the indebtedness outstanding under the March 2023 Note (together with all accrued and unpaid interest, including PIK Interest). Unless the March 2023 Note is sooner redeemed at Odyssey’s option, all indebtedness under the March 2023 Note is due and payable on September 6, 2024. Under the terms of the March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, Odyssey agreed to use the proceeds of the sale of the Securities to fund Odyssey’s obligations under the Termination Agreement (as defined below), to pay legal fees and costs related to Odyssey’s NAFTA arbitration against the United Mexican States, to pay fees and expenses related to the transactions contemplated by the March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, and for working capital and other general corporate expenditures. Odyssey’s obligations under March 2023 Note are secured by a security interest in substantially all of Odyssey’s assets (subject to limited stated exclusions).
Under the terms of the March 2023 Warrant, the holder has the right for a period of three years after issuance to purchase up to 3,703,703 shares of Odyssey’s common stock at an exercise price of $3.78 per share, which represents 120.0% of the official closing price of Odyssey’s common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market immediately preceding the signing of the March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, upon delivery of a notice of exercise to Odyssey. Upon exercise of the Warrant, Odyssey has the option to either (a) deliver the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise or (b) pay to the holder an amount equal to the difference between (i) the aggregate exercise price payable under the notice of exercise and (ii) the product of (A) the number of shares of common stock indicated in the notice of exercise multiplied by (B) the arithmetic average of the daily volume-weighted average price of the common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market for the five consecutive trading days ending on, and including, the trading day immediately prior to the date of the notice of exercise. The warrant provides for customary adjustments to the exercise price and the number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise in the event of a stock split, recapitalization, reclassification, combination or exchange of shares, separation, reorganization, liquidation, or the like.
In connection with the execution and delivery of the March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, Odyssey entered into a registration rights agreement (the “Registration Rights Agreement”) pursuant to which Odyssey agreed to register the offer and sale of the shares (the “Exercise Shares”) of Odyssey common stock issuable upon exercise of the Warrant. Pursuant to the Registration Rights Agreement, Odyssey agreed to prepare and file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a registration statement covering the resale of the Exercise Shares and to use its reasonable best efforts to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC as soon as practicable thereafter, subject to stated deadlines.
We incurred $98,504 in related fees which are being amortized over the term of the March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement and charged to legal expense with-in marketing, general and administrative expense. The initial proceeds of $13.6 million were allocated between debt and equity for the warrants based on the relative fair value of the two instruments. As a result, there was a debt discount of $3,536,154, which is being amortized over the remaining term of the March 2023 Note Purchase Agreement using the effective interest method, which is charged to interest expense.
For the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded $2,044,377 of interest expense from the amortization of the debt discount and $53,810 interest from the fee amortization, respectively. The December 31, 2023 carrying value of the debt was $13,116,138 and was net of unamortized debt fees of $44,693, net of unamortized debt discount of $1,697,985 associated with the fair value of the warrant. The total face value of this obligation at December 31, 2023 was $14,858,816.
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37North
On June 29, 2023, we entered into a Note Purchase Agreement (“Note Agreement”) with 37North SPV 11, LLC (“37N”) pursuant to which 37N agreed to loan us $1,000,000. The proceeds from this transaction were received in full on June 29, 2023. Pursuant to the Note Agreement, the indebtedness was non-interest bearing and matured on July 30, 2023. At any time from 31 days after the maturity date, 37N has the option to convert all or a portion of the outstanding amount of the indebtedness into a number of conversion shares equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (A) 120% of the amount of the indebtedness, by (B) the lower of $3.66 or 70% of the 10-day volume-weighted average price of Common Stock. The aggregate maximum number of shares of Common Stock to be issued in connection with conversion of the indebtedness is not to exceed (i) 19.9% of the outstanding shares of Common Stock prior to the date of the Agreement, (ii) 19.9% of the combined voting power of the outstanding voting securities, or (iii) such number of shares of Common Stock that would violate the applicable listing rules of the Principal Market if the stockholders did not approve the issuance of Common Stock upon conversion of the indebtedness.
Any time prior to maturity, we had the option to prepay the indebtedness at an amount of 108% of the unpaid principal. From the maturity date to 29 days after the maturity date (August 27, 2023), we were permitted to repay all (but not less than all) of an amount equal to 112.5% of the unpaid amount of the indebtedness. At any time after the 30th day after the maturity date (August 28, 2023), we were permitted to repay all (but not less than all) of an amount equal to 115% of the unpaid amount of the indebtedness after 10 days’ notice. If 37N delivers an exercise notice during this 10-day period, the note issued pursuant to the Note Agreement (the “37N Note”) would be converted to shares of Common Stock, instead of being repaid. As of December 31, 2023, we had not repaid this Note Agreement. On December 27, 2023, 37N delivered an exercise notice to us pursuant to which it exercised its right to convert $360,003 of the outstanding indebtedness under the Note Agreement into shares of our Common Stock. In accordance with the Note Agreement, based on the applicable conversation rate of $2.3226 under the agreement, we issued 155,000 shares of our common Stock to 37N on December 29, 2023.
If the number of shares issuable pursuant to any exercise notices by 37N is limited by the 19.9% limitation outlined above, then we are permitted to repay all of the remaining unpaid amount of the Loan in an amount equal to 130% of the remaining unpaid amount.
We evaluated the indebtedness and, based on the criteria of ASC 480 and 815-15-25-1, the 37N convertible note is classified as a liability on the consolidated balance sheet with a share settled redemption feature that is recorded as an embedded derivative. As a result, the share settled redemption feature was recorded at fair value at each reporting period outstanding with changes recognized through Interest expenses on the consolidated statement of operations. At December 31, 2023, the debt instrument and embedded derivatives were recorded on the consolidated balance sheets at fair value of $804,997, in Loans payable – short term, and $702,291, in Litigation financing and other – long term.
Certain default put provisions were not considered to be clearly and closely related to the debt host, but management concluded that the value of these default put provisions was de minimis.
On March 7, 2022, we entered into a Note Purchase Agreement (“2022 Note Agreement”) with 37N in which 37N agreed to loan us up to $2,000,000. These loan proceeds were received in full on March 25, 2022. Pursuant to the 2022 Note Agreement, the indebtedness was non-interest bearing and matured on June 25, 2022. Anytime from 30 days after the maturity date, 37N had the option to convert all or a portion of the outstanding amount of the indebtedness into conversion shares equal to the quotient obtained by dividing (A) 125% of the amount of the indebtedness, by (B) the lower of $5.94 and 70% of the 10-day VWAP. The aggregate maximum number of shares of Common Stock to be issued in connection with conversion of the indebtedness was not to exceed (i) 19.9% of the outstanding shares of Common Stock prior to the date of the 2022 Note Agreement, (ii) 19.9% of the combined voting power of the outstanding voting securities, or iii) exceed the applicable listing rules of the Principal Market if the stockholders did not approve the issuance of Common Stock upon conversion of the indebtedness.
Any time prior to maturity, we had the option to prepay the indebtedness at an amount of 110% of the unpaid principal. From the maturity date to 29 days after the maturity date (July 24, 2022), we were permitted to prepay all (but not less than) an amount equal to 115% of the unpaid amount of the indebtedness. Anytime, after the 30 th day after the maturity date (July 25, 2022), we were permitted to prepay all (but not less than) an amount equal to 125% of the unpaid amount of the indebtedness, however, we were required to provide 37N a prepayment notice at least 10 days prior to repayment. If 37N delivered an exercise notice during this 10-day period, the Note would be converted, rather than prepaid.
If 37N delivered an exercise notice and the number of shares issuable is limited by the 19.9% limitation outlined above, then we were permitted to prepay all (but not less than all) an amount equal to 130% of the remaining unpaid amount.
On June 29, 2022, the Company paid $2,200,000 of the outstanding amounts payable under the 2022 Note Agreement with 37N. On July 6, 2022, the Company paid the remaining $100,000 of the outstanding amounts payable under the 2022 Note Agreement with 37N.
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December 2023 Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement
On December 1, 2023, we entered into a Note and Warrant Purchase Agreement (the “December 2023 Purchase Agreement”) with institutional investors pursuant to which we issued and sold to the investors (a) a series of promissory notes (the “December 2023 Notes”) in the principal amount of up to $6.0 million and (b) two tranches of warrants (the “December 2023 Warrants” and, together with the December 2023 Notes, the “December 2023 Securities”) to purchase shares of our common stock. We issued the December 2023 Notes in the aggregate amount of $3.75 million and related warrants on December 1, 2023, and December 2023 Notes in the aggregate amount of $2.25 million and related warrants on December 28, 2023.
The principal amount outstanding under the December 2023 Notes bears interest at the rate of 11.0% per annum, and interest is payable in cash on a quarterly basis, except that, (a) at our option and upon notice to the holder of the December 2023 Notes, any quarterly interest payment may be satisfied, in lieu of paying such cash interest, by adding an equivalent amount to the principal amount of the December 2023 Notes (“December 2023 PIK Interest”), and (b) the first quarterly interest payment due under the December 2023 Notes will be satisfied with December 2023 PIK Interest. The December 2023 Notes provide us with the right, but not the obligation, upon notice to the holders of the December 2023 Notes to redeem (x) at any time before the first anniversary of the issuance of the December 2023 Notes, all or any portion of the indebtedness outstanding under the December 2023 Notes (together with all accrued and unpaid interest, including December 2023 PIK Interest) for an amount equal to one hundred twenty percent (120%) of the outstanding principal amount so being redeemed, and (y) at any time on or after the first anniversary of the issuance of the December 2023 Notes, all or any portion of the indebtedness outstanding under the December 2023 Notes (together with all accrued and unpaid interest, including December 2023 PIK Interest). Unless the December 2023 Notes are sooner redeemed at our option, all indebtedness under the December 2023 Notes is due and payable on June 1, 2025. Under the terms of the December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, we agreed to use the proceeds of the sale of the December 2023 Securities for working capital and other general corporate expenditures and to pay fees and expenses related to the transactions contemplated by the December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement. Our obligations under December 2023 Notes are secured by a pledge of and security interest in our equity interests in Odyssey Marine Cayman Limited (subject to limited stated exclusions).
Under the terms of the first tranche of December 2023 Warrants, the holders have the right for a period of three years after issuance to purchase an aggregate of up to 1,411,765 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $4.25 per share, which represents 120.0% of the official closing price of our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market immediately preceding the signing of the December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, upon delivery of a notice of exercise to Odyssey. Under the terms of the second tranche of December 2023 Warrants, the holders have the right for a period of three years after issuance to purchase an aggregate of up to 211,565 shares of our common stock at an exercise price of $7.09 per share, which represents 200.0% of the official closing price of our common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market immediately preceding the signing of the December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, upon delivery of a notice of exercise to Odyssey. Upon exercise of the December 2023 Warrants, Odyssey has the option to either (a) deliver the shares of common stock issuable upon exercise or (b) pay to the holder an amount equal to the difference between (i) the aggregate exercise price payable under the notice of exercise and (ii) the product of (A) the number of shares of common stock indicated in the notice of exercise multiplied by (B) the arithmetic average of the daily volume-weighted average price of the common stock on the Nasdaq Capital Market for the five consecutive trading days ending on, and including, the trading day immediately prior to the date of the notice of exercise. The December 2023 Warrants provide the holders with a cashless exercise option if we have announced payment of a dividend or distribution on account of our common stock. The December 2023 Warrants also include customary adjustments to the exercise price and the number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise in the event of a stock split, recapitalization, reclassification, combination or exchange of shares, separation, reorganization, liquidation, or the like.
In connection with the execution and delivery of the December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement, we entered into a registration rights agreement (the “December 2023 Registration Rights Agreement”) pursuant to which we agreed to register the offer and sale of the shares (the “December 2023 Exercise Shares”) of our common stock issuable upon exercise of the December 2023 Warrants. Pursuant to the December 2023 Registration Rights Agreement, we agreed to prepare and file with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a registration statement covering the resale of the December 2023 Exercise Shares and to use our reasonable best efforts to have the registration statement declared effective by the SEC as soon as practicable thereafter, subject to stated deadlines.
Monaco
On October 4, 2021, we and Monaco Financial, LLC and certain associated entities (collectively with Monaco, the “Monaco Parties”) entered into a Termination and Settlement Agreement (the “Termination Agreement”). We were parties to various loan arrangements and other commercial contractual relationships, and the purposes of the Termination Agreement were to terminate the loan agreements and contractual relationships and to settle the outstanding obligations thereunder between us and the Monaco Parties.
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Pursuant to the Termination Agreement, the loan agreements and contractual relationships were terminated, and we agreed to (a) issue 984,848 shares of our common stock (the “Settlement Shares”) to Monaco and (b) pay Monaco an aggregate amount of $3.0 million (the “Settlement Cash”) no later than December 1, 2021. The Settlement Shares were issued at a price equal to $6.60 per share, totaling $6.5 million, which was negotiated by the parties with reference to the recent market prices of our common stock and the other terms of the Termination Agreement. We delivered $500,000 of the Settlement Cash to Monaco upon execution and delivery of the Termination Agreement. At Monaco’s option, Monaco has the right, but not the obligation, to receive the remaining $2.5 million in shares of our common stock rather than in cash. This amount was to be settled December 1, 2021, but remained outstanding at December 1, 2021. This indebtedness did not bear interest. Under the terms of the Termination Agreement, (a) the Monaco Parties agreed that approximately $14.5 million of indebtedness, which included accrued interest, owed by us to the Monaco Parties was satisfied in full and (b) certain of the Monaco Parties assigned to us all of their right, title, and interest in a portion of the proceeds from a specified shipwreck project. As a result of the termination of the loan agreements and contractual relationships, (x) our right to receive a percentage of the proceeds derived by the Monaco Parties from certain shipwreck projects was terminated, and (y) Monaco’s option to convert certain indebtedness held by it into shares of Oceanica Resources, S. de R.L. held indirectly by us was terminated. The Termination Agreement also set forth mutual releases and other customary representations, warranties, and covenants of the parties. The Company determined that the embedded conversion feature was clearly and closely related to the host contract and met the scope exception under FASB ASC 815-40. Thus, it did not require derivative liability classification under ASC 815. The Company then evaluated the conversion feature under FASB ASC 470-20, “Debt with conversion and other options” for consideration of any beneficial conversion features (“BCF”). Based on the market price of the common stock on the date of the agreement as compared to the conversion price, they determined there was a BCF of 232,175 which was recorded in additional paid-in capital. A BCF results in a debt discount which should be amortized over the stated maturity of the convertible instrument, or the earliest potential conversion date. Because the contract was convertible upon issuance, the discount was immediately accreted and charged to interest expense.
As a result of the Termination Agreement, we recognized a gain on debt settlement of approximately $5.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2021, which represented the difference between the loan principal, accrued interest and accounts payable forgiven of approximately $14.7 million and total consideration given of approximately $9.5 million.
The shares of common stock issuable under the Termination Agreement were offered and sold pursuant to a base prospectus and a prospectus supplement, both filed pursuant to Odyssey’s shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 0333-227666).
On June 14, 2022, the Company paid the $2,500,000 outstanding amount payable under the Termination Agreement with Monaco.
Other Financing Arrangement
Litigation Financing
On June 14, 2019, Odyssey and Exploraciones Oceánicas S. de R.L. de C.V., our Mexican subsidiary (“ExO” and, together with Odyssey, the “Claimholder”), and Poplar Falls LLC (the “Funder”) entered into an International Claims Enforcement Agreement (the “Agreement” and the funding provided pursuant to the Agreement, as amended or amended and restated from time to time, the “Litigation Financing”), pursuant to which the Funder agreed to provide funding to the Claimholder to facilitate the prosecution and recovery of the claim by the Claimholder against the United Mexican States under Chapter Eleven of the North American Free Trade Agreement (“NAFTA”) for violations of the Claimholder’s rights under NAFTA related to the development of an undersea phosphate deposit off the coast of Baja Sur, Mexico (the “Project”), on our own behalf and on behalf of ExO and United Mexican States (the “Subject Claim”). Pursuant to the Agreement, the Funder agreed to specified fees and expenses regarding the Subject Claim (the “Claims Payments”) incrementally and at the Funder’s sole discretion.
Under the terms of the Agreement, the Funder agreed to make Claims Payments in an aggregate amount not to exceed $6,500,000 (the “Maximum Investment Amount”). The Maximum Investment Amount was made available to the Claimholder in two phases, as set forth below:
(a)
a first phase, in which the Funder shall make Claims Payments in an aggregate amount no greater than $1,500,000 for the payment of antecedent and ongoing costs (“Phase I Investment Amount”); and
(b)
a second phase, in which the Funder shall make Claims Payments in an aggregate amount no greater than $5,000,000 for the purposes of pursuing the Subject Claim to a final award (“Phase II Investment Amount”).
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Upon exhaustion of the Phase I Investment Amount, the Claimholder will have the option to request Tranche A of the Phase II Investment Amount, consisting of funding up to $3.5 million (“Tranche A Committed Amount”). Upon exhaustion of the Tranche A Committed Amount, the Claimholder will have the option to request Tranche B of the Phase II Investment Amount, consisting of funding of up to $1.5 million (“Tranche B Committed Amount”). The Claimholder must exercise its option to receive the Tranche A Committed Amount in writing, no less than thirty days before submitting a Funding Request to the Funder under Tranche A. The Claimholder must exercise its option to receive the Tranche B Committed Amount in writing within forty-five days after the exhaustion of the Tranche A Committed Amount. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Claimholder agreed that, upon exercising the Claimholder’s option to receive funds under Phase I, Tranche A of Phase II, or Tranche B of Phase II, the Funder will be the sole source of third-party funding for the specified fees and expenses of the Subject Claim under each respective phase and tranche covered by the option exercised, and the Claimholder will obtain funding for such fees and expenses only as set forth in the Agreement. The Funder was due a closing fee of $80,000 for the Phase I Investment Amount, and $80,000 for the Phase II Investment Amount to pay third parties in connection with due diligence and other administrative and transaction costs incurred by the Funder prior to and in furtherance of execution of the Agreement.
Upon the Funder making Claims Payments to the Claimholder or its designees in an aggregate amount equal to the Maximum Investment Amount, the Funder has the option to continue funding the specified fees and expenses in relation to the Subject Claim on the same terms and conditions provided in the Agreement. The Funder must exercise its option to continue funding in writing, within thirty days after the Funder has made Claims Payments in an aggregate amount equal to the Maximum Investment Amount. If the Funder exercises its option to continue funding, the parties agreed to attempt in good faith to amend the Agreement to provide the Funder with the right to provide at the Funder’s discretion funding in excess of the Maximum Investment Amount, in an amount up to the greatest amount that may then be reasonably expected to be committed for investment in Subject Claim. If the Funder declines to exercise its option, the Claimholder may negotiate and enter into agreements with one or more third parties to provide funding, which shall be subordinate to the Funder’s rights under the Agreement.
The Agreement provides that the Claimholder may at any time without the consent of the Funder either settle or refuse to settle the Subject Claim for any amount; provided, however, that if the Claimholder settles the Subject Claim without the Funder’s consent, which consent shall not be unreasonably withheld, conditioned, or delayed, the value of the Recovery Percentage (as defined below) will be deemed to be the greater of (a) the Recovery Percentage (under Phase I or Phase II, as applicable), or (b) the total amount of all Claims Payments made in connection with such Subject Claim multiplied by three (3).
If the Claimholder ceases the Subject Claim for any reason other than (a) a full and final arbitral award against the Claimholder or (b) a full and final monetary settlement of the claims, including in particular, for a grant of an environmental permit to the Claimholder allowing it to proceed with the Project (with or without a monetary component), all Claims Payments under Phase I and, if Claimholder has exercised the corresponding option, the Tranche A Committed Amount and Tranche B Committed Amount, shall immediately convert to a senior secured liability of the Claimholder. This sum shall incur an annualized internal rate of return (“IRR”) of 50.0% retroactive to the date each Funding Request was paid by the Funder (under Phase I), or, to the conversion date for the Tranche A Committed Amount and Tranche B Committed Amount of Phase II if the Claimholder has exercised the respective option (collectively, the “Conversion Amount”). Such Conversion Amount and any and all accrued IRR shall be payable in-full by the Claimholder within 24 months of the date of such conversion, after which time any outstanding Conversion Amounts, shall accrue an (“IRR”) of 100.0%, retroactive to the conversion date (the “Penalty Interest Amount”). The Claimholder will execute such documents and take other actions as necessary to grant the Funder a senior security interest on and over all sums due and owing by the Claimholder in order to secure its obligation to pay the Conversion Amount to the Funder. If the Claimholder ceases the Subject Claim due to the grant of an environmental permit (with or without a monetary component), all Claims Payments under Phase 1 and, if the Claimholder has exercised the corresponding option, the Tranche A Committed Amount and Tranche B Committed Amount shall immediately convert to a senior secured liability of the Claimholder and shall incur an annualized an IRR of 50.0% on the Conversion Amount, noted above, from the conversion date. Management has estimated it is more likely than not the Subject Claim will result in the issuance of the environmental permit requiring us to record interest under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles in the United States (“US GAAP”). Reliance should not be placed on this estimate in determining the likely outcome of the Subject Claim.
If, at any time after exercising its option to receive funds under either Tranche A or Tranche B of Phase II, the Claimholder wishes to fund the Subject Claim with its own capital (“Self-Funding”) (which excludes any Claims Payments made, either directly or indirectly, by any other third party), the Claimholder shall immediately pay to the Funder the Conversion Amount, provided that this requirement shall not apply if, after the Funder has made Claims Payments in an aggregate amount equal to the Maximum Investment Amount, the Funder does not exercise its option to provide Follow-On Funding.
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In the event of any receipt of proceeds resulting from the Subject Claim (as defined in the Agreement, “Proceeds”), the Funder shall be entitled to any additional sums above the Conversion Amount to which the Funder is entitled as described below. Should the Claimholder cease the Subject Claim as described above after Self-Funding the Claim, accrued IRR and Penalty Interest shall be calculated and paid to the Funder as set forth above. The Funder’s rights to the Recovery Percentage as defined below shall survive any decision by Claimholder to utilize Self-Funding. The parties acknowledged that the Agreement constitutes a sale of the right to a portion of the Proceeds (if any) arising from the Subject Claim as set forth in this Agreement. The Claimholder has relinquished its right to the portion of the proceeds, if any, that the Funder would have the right to as described below. This sale of proceeds is being accounted for under the guidance of ASC 815 Derivatives and Hedging .
On each Distribution Date, distributions of the Proceeds shall be made to the Claimholder and the Funder in accordance with subparagraph (a) or (b) below (the “Recovery Percentage”), as applicable:
(a)
If the Claimholder receives only the Phase I Investment Amount from the Funder, the first Proceeds shall be distributed as follows:
(i)
first, 100.0% to the Funder, until the cumulative amount distributed to the Funder equals the total Claims Payments paid by the Funder under Phase I;
(ii)
second, 100.0% to the Funder until the cumulative amount distributed to the Funder equals an IRR of 20% of Claims Payments paid by the Funder under Phase I (“Phase I Compensation”), per annum; and
(iii)
thereafter, 100.0% to the Claimholder.
(b)
If the Claimholder exercises its options to receive Tranche A or both Tranche A and Tranche B of the Phase II Investment Amount, the first Proceeds shall be distributed as follows:
(i)
first, 100.0% to the Funder until the cumulative amount distributed to the Funder equals the total Claims Payments paid by the Funder under Phases I and II;
(ii)
second, 100.0% to the Funder until the cumulative amount distributed to the Funder equals an additional 300.0% of Phase I Investment Amount; plus an additional 300% of the Tranche A Committed Amount (i.e. 300.0% of $3.5 million), less any amounts remaining of the Tranche A Committed Amount that the Funder did not pay as Claims Payments; plus an additional 300.0% of the Tranche B Committed Amount (i.e. 300.0% of $1.5 million), if the Claimholder exercises the Tranche B funding option, less any amounts remaining of the Tranche B Committed Amount that the Funder did not pay as Claims Payments;
(iii)
third, for each $10,000 in specified fees and expenses paid by the Funder under Phase I and Phase II and any amounts over each $10,000 of the Tranche A Committed Amount and the Tranche B Committed Amount (if the Claimholder exercises the Tranche B funding option), 0.01% of the total Proceeds from any recoveries after repayment of (i) and (ii) above, to the Funder; and
(iv)
thereafter, 100% to the Claimholder.
The Agreement provides that if no Proceeds are ever paid to or received by the Claimholder or its representatives and if the environmental permit is not issued, the Funder shall have no right of recourse or right of action against the Claimholder or its representatives, or any of their respective property, assets, or undertakings, except as otherwise specifically contemplated by the Agreement. If (a) Proceeds are paid to or received by the Claimholder or its representatives; (b) such Proceeds are promptly applied and/or distributed by the Claimholder or on behalf of the Claimholder in accordance with the terms of the Agreement; and (c) the amount received by the Funder as a result thereof is not sufficient to pay all of the Recovery Percentage and all of the amounts due to the Funder under the Agreement, then (provided that all of the Proceeds which the Funder will ever be entitled to have been paid to or received by the Funder), the Funder shall have no right of recourse or action against the Claimholder or its Representatives, or any of their property, assets, or undertakings, except as otherwise specifically contemplated by the Agreement. Pursuant to the Agreement, the Claimholder acknowledged the Funder’s priority right, title, and interest in any Proceeds, including against any available collateral to secure its obligations under the Agreement, which security interest shall be first in priority as against all other security interests in the Proceeds. The Claimholder also acknowledged and agreed to execute and authorize the filing of a financing statement or similar and to take such other actions in such jurisdictions as the Funder, in its sole discretion, deems necessary and appropriate to perfect such security interest. The Agreement also includes representations and warranties, covenants, conditions, termination and indemnification provisions, and other provisions customary for comparable arrangements.
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Amendment and Restatement (January 31, 2020)
On January 31, 2020, the Claimholder and the Funder entered into an Amended and Restated International Claims Enforcement Agreement (the “Restated Agreement”). The material terms and provisions that were amended or otherwise modified are as follows:
•
the Funder agreed to provide up to $2.2 million in Arbitration Support Funds for the purpose of paying the Claimholder’s litigation support costs in connection with Subject Claim;
•
a closing fee of $200,000 has been retain by the Funder in connection with due diligence and other transaction costs incurred by the Funder;
•
a warrant was issued to purchase our common stock which is exercisable for a period of five years beginning on the earlier of (a) the date on which the Claimholder ceases the Subject Claim for any reason other than a full and final arbitral award against the Claimholder or a full and final monetary settlement of the claims or (b) the date on which Proceeds are received and deposited into escrow. The exercise price per share is $3.99, and the Funder can exercise the warrant to purchase the number of shares of our common stock equal to the dollar amount of Arbitration Support Funds provided to us pursuant to the Restated Agreement divided by the exercise price per share (subject to customary adjustments and limitations); and
•
all other terms in the Restated Agreement are substantially the same as in the original Agreement.
During 2020, the Funder provided us with $2.0 million of the Arbitration Support Funds, and we incurred $200,000 in related fees that were treated as an additional advance. Upon each funding, the proceeds were allocated between debt and equity for the warrants based on the relative fair value of the two instruments. As a result, there was an immediate expense of $1,063,811 related to the derivative.
Although the warrants only become exercisable upon the occurrence of future events, they are considered issued for accounting purposes and were valued using a binomial lattice model. The expected volatility assumption was based on the historical volatility of our Common Stock. The expected life assumption was primarily based on management’s expectations of when the Warrants will become exercisable and the risk-free interest rate for the expected term of the warrant is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of measurement.
Second Amendment and Restatement (December 12, 2020)
On December 12, 2020, the Claimholder and the Funder entered into a Second Amended and Restated International Claims Enforcement Agreement (the “Second Restated Agreement”) relating to the Subject Claim. Under the terms of the Second Restated Agreement, the Funder agreed to make Claims Payments in an aggregate amount not to exceed $20,000,000 (the “Maximum Investment Amount”). The Second Restated Agreement required the Funder to make Claims Payments in an aggregate amount no greater than $10,000,000 for the purposes of pursuing the Subject Claim to a final award (“Phase III Investment Amount”). We also incurred $200,000 in related fees, which were treated as an additional advance. The Second Restated Agreement includes the same representations and warranties, covenants, conditions, termination and indemnification provisions, and other provisions as in the original agreement.
Third Amendment and Restatement (June 14, 2021)
On June 14, 2021, the Claimholder and the Funder entered into a Third Amended and Restated International Claims Enforcement Agreement (the “Third Restated Agreement”) relating to the Subject Claim. Under the terms of the Third Restated Agreement, the Funder made and agreed to make Claims Payments in an aggregate amount not to exceed $25,000,000, an increase of $5.0 million (the “Incremental Amount”). The Third Restated Agreement required the Claimholder to request $2.5 million of the Incremental Amount (the “First $2.5 Million”). Within 15 days after exhaustion of the First $2.5 Million, the Claimholder may either (a) request the remaining $2.5 million (the “Second $2.5 Million”) of the Incremental Amount or (b) notify the Funder that the Claimholder has decided to self-fund the Second $2.5 Million. We also incurred $80,000 in related fees which were treated as an additional advance. This Second Restated Agreement includes the same representations and warranties, covenants, conditions, termination and indemnification provisions, and other provisions as in the original agreement. As of December 31, 2023, the Funder has made Claim Payments in the aggregate amount of $4.8 million.
Litigation Financing Waiver and Consent
On March 6, 2023, the Claimholder and the Funder under the Agreement entered into a Waiver and Consent Agreement, pursuant to which, among other things, (i) the Funder provided a waiver and consent (i) to allow the Claimholder to fund certain costs and expenses arising from the Subject Claim from the Claimholder’s own capital in an aggregate amount not to exceed $5,000,000, and (ii) Odyssey paid a $1,000,000 nonrefundable waiver fee to the Funder.
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The Company determined that the financing arrangement was a derivative, measured at fair value within the scope of ASC 815 Derivatives and Hedging. Subsequently, any changes in the fair value of the derivative will be reported in earnings on a quarterly basis. Fair value was calculated as the midpoint of estimated ranges of the probability-weighted present value of potential results based on management assumptions. As such, the fair value of the obligation on December 31, 2023, and 2022 was $52.1 million and $45.4 million, respectively, with changes in the fair value of $6.7 million and $6.1 million.
See NOTE 2 for discussion of the restatement of a material prior period error.
June 2022 Subscription Agreement and Warrant Agreements
In June 2022, we sold an aggregate of 4,939,515 shares of our Common Stock and warrants (the “2022 Warrants”) to holders to purchase up to 4,939,515 shares of our Common Stock pursuant to a Subscription Agreement and Warrant Agreements dated as of June 10, 2022 (the “2022 Equity Transaction”). The net proceeds received from sale, after offering expenses of $1.8 million, were $14.7 million. The shares of Common Stock and 2022 Warrants were sold in units, with each unit consisting of one share of common stock and one warrant to purchase one share of common stock at an exercise price of $3.35 (the “Warrant Price”) per share of common stock. Each unit was sold at a negotiated price of $3.35 per unit. The 2022 Warrants are exercisable at any time beginning on December 10, 2022, and ending on the close of business on June 10, 2027.
Under the terms of the warrant agreement, the Holders are entitled to purchase from the Company one share of Common Stock, at the price of $3.35 per share. The Company in its sole discretion may lower the Warrant Price at any time prior to the expiration date for a period of not less than twenty Business Days, provided that the Company shall provide at least twenty days prior written notice of such reduction to holders of the 2022 Warrants and, provided further that any such reduction shall be identical among all of the 2022 Warrants.
A 2022 Warrant may be exercised by the Holder by delivering the aggregate exercise price unless the Holder chooses net settlement via the cashless exercise option if, there is no active registration statement or available prospectus for the issuance of the Warrant Shares by the Holder. In a cashless exercise, the Holder will receive a number of Warrant Shares determined by dividing [(A-B) (X)] by (A), where (A) represents volume-weighted average price of the common stock or the bid price of common stock, depending on the circumstances, (B) represents the Exercise Price of the 2022 Warrant, as adjusted, and (X) represents the number of Warrant Shares that would be issued upon exercise of the Warrant, if it were a cash exercise rather than a cashless exercise.
If the Company fails to deliver the Warrant Shares to the Holder within the time frame required by the agreement, and the Holder must purchase shares of Common Stock to fulfill a sale that was based on receiving the Warrant Shares (referred to as a “Buy-In”), then the Company must reimburse the Holder in cash for the difference between the total purchase price of the Common Stock purchased and the product of the number of Warrant Shares that should have been delivered and the sale price at which the obligation to purchase arose. The 2022 Warrants also included customary adjustments to the exercise price and the number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise in the event of a stock split, recapitalization, reclassification, combination or exchange of shares, separation, reorganization, liquidation, or the like.
The Company determined that the 2022 Warrants meet the definition of a derivative and are not considered indexed to the Company’s own stock due to the input related to the price per share and any non-cash consideration. Management determined that this input would preclude the 2022 Warrants from being indexed to the Company’s stock given that this input could be affected by variables that are extraneous to the pricing of a fixed-for-fixed option or forward contract on equity shares. As such, the 2022 Warrants were recognized as derivative liabilities and will be initially and subsequentially measured at fair value with the gain or loss due to changes in fair value recognized in the current period. The Company noted that when debt is issued with liability-classified stock purchase warrants, the residual method should be used so that the 2022 Warrants are recognized at fair value at issuance and the residual proceeds are allocated to the debt.
Management determined that the $1.8 million in incremental costs directly attributable to the Common Stock Offering and the issuance of 2022 Warrants shall be allocated between the two instruments in proportion to the allocation of the issuance proceeds. Furthermore, the incremental costs allocated to the Common Stock were recorded as a reduction of the proceeds in equity while the incremental costs allocated to the 2022 Warrants were expensed as incurred.
See NOTE 2 for discussion of the restatement of a material prior period error.
Going Concern Consideration
We have experienced several years of net losses and may continue to do so. Our ability to generate net income or positive cash flows for the following twelve months is dependent upon financings, our success in developing and monetizing our interests in mineral exploration entities, generating income from contracted services or collecting on amounts owed to us.
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Our 2024 business plan requires us to generate new cash inflows to effectively allow us to perform our planned projects. We continually plan to generate new cash inflows through the monetization of our receivables and equity stakes in seabed mineral companies, financings, syndications or other partnership opportunities. If cash inflow ever becomes insufficient to meet our projected business plan requirements, we would be required to follow a contingency business plan based on curtailed expenses and fewer cash requirements. On December 1, 2023, we entered into the December 2023 Note Purchase Agreement with institutional investors pursuant to which we issued and sold to the investors the December 2023 Notes in the principal amount of up to $6.0 million and the December 2023 Warrants to purchase shares of our common stock. We issued December 2023 Notes in the aggregate amount of $3.75 million and related warrants on December 1, 2023, and December 2023 Notes in the aggregate amount of $2.25 million and related warrants on December 28, 2023. On May 3, 2024, we received a payment of approximately $9.4 million arising from a residual economic interest in a salvaged shipwreck. The balance of the proceeds from the December 2023 Notes and a portion of the proceeds received in May 2024, together with other anticipated cash inflows, are expected to provide operating funds through at least the third quarter of 2024.
Our consolidated non-restricted cash balance at December 31, 2023 was $4.0 million. We have a working capital deficit at December 31, 2023 of $26.6 million. The total consolidated book value of our assets was approximately $22.8 million at December 31, 2023, which includes cash of $4.0 million. The fair market value of these assets may differ from their net carrying book value. The factors noted above raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern. These consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments to the amounts and classification of assets and liabilities that may be necessary should we be unable to continue as a going concern.
Off Balance Sheet Arrangements
We do not engage in off-balance sheet financing arrangements. In particular, we do not have any interest in so-called limited purpose entities, which include special purpose entities (“SPEs”) and structured finance entities.
Indemnification Provisions
Under our bylaws and certain consulting agreements, we have agreed to indemnify our officers and directors for certain events arising as a result of the officer’s or director’s serving in such capacity. Separate agreements may provide indemnification after term of service. The term of the indemnification agreement is as long as the officer or director remains in the employment of the company. The maximum potential amount of future payments we could be required to make under these indemnification agreements is unlimited. However, our director and officer liability insurance policy limits its exposure and enables us to recover a portion of any future amounts paid. As a result of our insurance policy coverage, we believe the estimated fair value of these indemnification agreements is minimal and no liabilities are recorded for these agreements as of December 31, 2023.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
The discussion and analysis of our financial position and results of operations is based upon our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with US GAAP. The preparation of these financial statements requires us to make estimates and judgments that affect our financial position and results of operations. Changes in these estimates and assumptions by our management could materially impact our results of operations and financial condition. Our management has discussed these critical accounting policies and the related estimates and assumptions with the audit committee of our board of directors.
See NOTE 3 Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to the consolidated financial statements for a description of our significant accounting policies. Critical accounting estimates are defined as those that are reflective of significant judgment and uncertainties, and potentially result in materially different results under different assumptions and conditions. We have identified the following critical accounting policies that rely upon assumptions and estimates and were used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements. We have discussed the development, selection and disclosure of these policies with our audit committee.
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Derivative Financial Instruments
We evaluate all of our agreements to determine whether such instruments have derivatives or contain features that qualify as embedded derivatives. For derivative financial instruments that are accounted for as liabilities, the derivative instrument is initially recorded at its fair value and is then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in the fair value reported in the statements of operations. In evaluating the fair value of derivative financial instruments, there are numerous assumptions that management must make that may influence the valuation of the derivatives that would be included in the financial statements. The classification of derivative instruments, including whether such instruments should be recorded as liabilities or as equity, is evaluated at the end of each reporting period. Derivative instrument liabilities are classified in the balance sheet as current or non-current based on whether or not net-cash settlement of the derivative instrument could be required within 12 months of the balance sheet date.
As discussed in NOTE 11 Loans Payable and NOTE 12 Fair Value Financial Instruments to the consolidated financial statements, we have certain litigation financing with detachable warrants, warrant liabilities, the OML Put Option and an embedded derivative related to the 37N Note included in the consolidated balance sheets at December 31, 2023 and 2022 that are considered derivative financial instruments.
The Litigation Financing agreement involved numerous amendments, significant non-cash financing, issuance of warrants, and issuance costs. Determination of the fair value of the derivative required significant judgment of and assumptions and estimates regarding the facts and circumstances regarding the potential liability. The fair value of the derivative is an inherently uncertain estimate because almost none of the inputs used in calculating the estimate–other than amounts funded–is objectively quantifiable. The inputs are based on management’s good-faith but unavoidably subjective assumptions, judgments and estimates regarding the potential outcomes of the NAFTA arbitration case, the potential outcomes and award amounts conditional on Odyssey winning the arbitration, the potential repayment dates, the potential dates on which any proceeds from the arbitration might be received, and certain market inputs such as discount rates. The calculations based on these inputs resulted in a range of estimated fair values. The Company reported the midpoint of that range as the fair value at each relevant period. The estimate has changed each period based on management’s revised judgments and assumptions regarding timing and other inputs. The estimate reported as the fair value is sensitive to the methods, assumptions, judgments and estimates underlying the fair value calculations because the use of different probabilities regarding potential case outcomes, potential awards, repayment dates, discount rates, or other estimated assumptions, or another method of reporting the fair value from within the calculated range, could result in a significantly or materially different estimated fair value being reported.
The fair values of 2022 Warrant and the December 2023 Warrant, which are accounted for as derivative liabilities, were estimated using a Black-Scholes valuation model. The assumptions used in this model included the use of key inputs, including expected stock volatility, the risk–free interest rate, the expected life of the option and the expected dividend yield. Expected volatility is calculated based on the historical volatility of our Common Stock over the term of the warrant. Risk–free interest rates are calculated based on risk–free rates for the appropriate term. The expected life is estimated based on contractual terms as well as expected exercise dates. The dividend yield is based on the historical dividends issued by us. If the volatility rate or risk-free interest rate were to change, the value of the warrants would be impacted.
The fair value of the embedded derivative liability related to the share settled redemption feature recognized in connection with the 37N Note is determined using the with-and-without valuation method. As inputs into the valuation, we considered the type and probability of occurrence of certain events, the amount of the payments, the expected timing of certain events, and a risk-adjusted discount rate.
The OML put option was initially recorded at its fair value and is then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in the fair value reported in the statements of operations. The OML Put Option valuation was based on the exercise period of the equity exchange agreement, share price and volatility.
Investment in Unconsolidated Entities
We account for our interests in entities in which we are able to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies, generally 50% or less ownership interest, under the equity method of accounting. In such cases, our original investments are recorded at cost and adjusted for our share of earnings, losses and distributions. We account for our interests in entities where we have virtually no influence over operating and financial policies under the cost method of accounting. In such cases, our original investments are recorded at the cost to acquire the interest and any distributions received are recorded as income. All investments are subject to our impairment review policy.
As discussed in NOTE 8 Related Party Transactions and NOTE 7 Investment in Unconsolidated Entity Entities to the consolidated financial statements, the Company has a cost investment in a related party. The Company has entered into numerous agreements with the related party that required analysis of ASC 810-10 to determine that the Company was not the primary beneficiary. This analysis required judgment and review of the facts and circumstance to determine the proper accounting for this cost method investment. We also reviewed the impairment guidance to determine any potential impairment of the investment.
The current investment in unconsolidated entities accounted for under the equity method consists of a 6.28% in interest in OML, with an opportunity to purchase up to 40% of OML in the 18 months following the initial acquisition. We determined that the Company has a significant influence over OML’s operation due to the agreements to purchase additional interests in OML and the services we provide to OML which require our involvement in the decisions made over OML’s operations. The initial value of an investment in an unconsolidated affiliate accounted for under the equity method is recorded at the fair value of the consideration paid. As part of this acquisition, we entered into the OML Put Option to acquire additional interest in OML, which was determined to be an obligation to issue a variable number of shares that is predominantly based on variations in something other than the fair value of the company’s equity shares, within the scope of ASC 480. As such, the OML Put Option is initially recorded at its fair value and is then re-valued at each reporting date, with changes in the fair value reported in the statements of operations. The OML Put Option valuation was based on the exercise period of the equity exchange agreement, share price and volatility.
Segment Reporting
We evaluate the products and services that produce our revenue and the geographical regions in which we operate to determine reportable segments in accordance with ASC 280 – Segment Reporting . Based on that evaluation, we have determined that we have only one operating segment and therefore we do not disclose segment information.
Contractual Obligations
At December 31, 2023, except as disclosed in NOTE 18 Commitments and Contingencies regarding our office lease and NOTE 13 Sale-Leaseback Financing Obligations, the Company did not have any other contractual obligations that extended beyond 12 months.