Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Operating Leases

v3.22.2.2
Operating Leases
9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2022
Leases [Abstract]  
Operating Leases

8. Operating Leases

As of September 30, 2022, the current and non-current portions of the total liability for operating leases was $4.6 million and $2.5 million, respectively. As of September 30, 2022, the weighted average remaining lease term on the operating leases is 21 months. The weighted average incremental borrowing rate used to determine the operating lease liabilities included on the condensed balance sheet was 8.5%.

Facility leases

In April 2020, the Company entered into a one-year lease agreement for its headquarter facility located in South San Francisco, California with a significant portion of the premises allocated to the research lab. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of the entire facility was temporarily designated to research, and as such, all associated costs were expensed as research and development. In addition to payment of base rent, the Company is also required to pay property taxes, insurance, and common area expenses. The Company records lease expense on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease. The original term of the lease was from May 11, 2020 to June 30, 2021 with an option to renew. In March 2021, the Company entered into an amendment to the lease agreement and extended the term of the lease to September 30, 2021. The lease expired without further renewal and was terminated on September 30, 2021.

On January 27, 2021, the Company entered into a new lease agreement for office and lab space in South San Francisco, California that included two office suites. The lease terms for the two office suites commenced during July and August 2021, respectively. The term of the lease is 44 months for the first office suite and 43 months for the second office suite with an option to extend the term for an additional two years on the same terms and conditions. This option to extend the lease term was not determined to be reasonably certain and therefore has not been included in the Company’s calculation of the associated operating lease liability under ASC 842. The corresponding right-of-use assets and lease liabilities related to the two office suites were recorded on the Company’s balance sheet upon the lease commencement date, which was the date the Company was deemed to have obtained control of the premises.

On November 10, 2021, the Company entered a sublease agreement for office and lab space located in Brisbane, California. The sublease expires on December 6, 2023. The corresponding right-of-use assets and lease liabilities related to the sublease were recorded on the Company’s balance sheet upon the lease commencement date, which was the date the Company was deemed to have obtained control of the premises.

As of January 1, 2021, the Company did not have any operating leases with terms greater than twelve months and accordingly, did not have any right-of-use assets recorded on its condensed balance sheet. As of September 30, 2022, the Company had operating lease right-of-use assets of $4.8 million and operating lease liabilities of $5.2 million related to the office suite leases recorded on its condensed balance sheet.

Embedded leases

On May 10, 2021 and August 30, 2021, the Company and LCGM entered into the LCGM MSA and SOW #3, respectively, for the exclusive use of a manufacturing suite at the LCGM facility. Pursuant to the terms of SOW #3, LCGM agreed to provide the Company with certain dedicated space for the clinical manufacturing, release testing, and product release in the Company’s Phase 1/2 CEDAR clinical trial to treat sickle cell disease. The Company concluded that the agreement contains an embedded lease as the Company controls the use of a dedicated manufacturing suite and the equipment therein. The agreement includes fixed lease payments of $5.6 million through April 30, 2023, the expiration date of SOW #3.

The Company and Explora BioLabs, Inc. (“Explora”) entered into a License Service Agreement and Master Services Agreement (together, the “Explora Agreements”) on November 17, 2021 and December 16, 2021, respectively. Pursuant to the terms of the Explora Agreements, Explora agreed to provide a certain dedicated space to perform in vitro or in vivo studies, obtain or house research animals, and provide scientific or technical consultation to the Company. The Company concluded that the agreement contains an embedded lease as the Company controls the use of a dedicated manufacturing suite and the equipment therein. The Explora Agreements contain fixed lease payments of $0.7 million through November 2023. As of September 30, 2022, the Company had operating lease right-of-use assets of $2.3 million and operating lease liabilities of $1.8 million related to the embedded leases recorded on its condensed balance sheet.

Operating Lease Obligations

As of September 30, 2022, the future minimum lease payments for the Company’s operating leases for each of the years ending December 31 were as follows (in thousands):

 

 

 

Amount

 

2022 (Remaining three months)

 

$

 

1,342

 

2023

 

 

 

4,332

 

2024

 

 

 

1,468

 

2025

 

 

 

375

 

2026

 

 

 

 

Thereafter

 

 

 

 

Total undiscounted lease payments

 

 

 

7,517

 

Present value adjustment

 

 

 

(510

)

Total net lease liabilities

 

$

 

7,007

 

Lease expense was $1.7 and $5.0 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022, respectively.

Under the terms of the remaining lease agreements, the Company is also responsible for certain variable lease payments that are not included in the measurement of the lease liability. Variable lease payments for operating leases were $0.3 and $1.0 million for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022, respectively, including non-lease components such as common area maintenance fees, taxes, and insurance.

The following information represents supplemental disclosure for the statement of cash flows related to the operating leases (in thousands):

 

 

 

September 30, 2022

 

Cash paid for amounts included in the measurement of lease liabilities

 

 

 

 

Operating cash flows under operating leases

 

$

 

4,029