More than 50 people attended its annual shareholder meeting at the Dunedin Public Art Gallery. Pacific Edge’s chairman and director for the past 11 years, Dunedin businessman Chris Swann, has stood down and was yesterday replaced as chairman by director Chris Gallaher, who was most recently Fulton Hogan’s chief financial officer.
With three non-invasive bladder cancer related products in several markets, Pacific Edge’s key customers are in the United States, and include the Veterans Association (VA) and health insurer and provider Kaiser Permanente.
They have memberships in the millions, the latter more than double New Zealand’s population.
Chief executive David Darling said: "It’s just starting, but we’re expecting to see steady growth from the the VA this year."
Pacific Edge has markets for its Cxbladder product in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia, Spain and Portugal, but the US market, where it has regulatory approvals, is the big prize, with 17,000 urologists who can recommend tests to millions of patients.
The non-invasive urine-sample test and follow ups are cheaper by several thousands dollars compared with traditional tests and monitoring.
At present, there are three separate products — Cxbladder Detect, Triage and Monitor — but by the end of the year Pacific Edge would launch Cxbladder Predict in New Zealand, then take it overseas, Mr Darling said.
For the year to March, Pacific Edge posted an expected $15.7million loss, booking annual operational costs around $22million, while retaining $24million cash in hand.
Since listing, Pacific Edge has booked 12 consecutive losses and burnt through more than $73million of funds, but has remained adamant during the past two years it can achieve a targeted $100million turnover during full year 2018.
To a shareholder’s question, Mr Darling said: "Yes, that’s still out goal. We have three large US transformational customers. That [$100million goal] is still well within reach."
While the company raised $35million capital from shareholders in 2015, turnover for 2015-16 was $5million, primarily from US work.Another shareholder raised concerns the proceeds from US sales took a long time to appear on the balance sheet as cashflow.
"Reimbursement is a long time between [point of] sale and getting revenue, but that will speed up," as products were used more by the large US institutions, Mr Darling said.
Mr Darling also briefed the shareholders on an announcement earlier this week, where Pacific Edge said its Cxbladder diagnostics tests had been approved for by use a "leading health insurance" provider in New Zealand.
"Our goal is to provide all New Zealanders with access to Cxbladder, whether it be through the private or public health system," Cxbladder was under trial with the Canterbury District Health Board and he expected the rest of the country’s health boards to follow suit in time.
