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On Thursday morning, AGLC officials wouldn’t comment on the move or say where the licences were being granted.

Before the release of the latest permits, 24 stores in Calgary had been granted one.

In January, the commission released 10 licences after seeing a modest improvement in the supply situation.

One of those receiving a licence is Okotoks’ Micro Gold Cannabis, which opted to begin selling paraphernalia last December while waiting for a permit to market marijuana.

“We’re elated, excited,” said store co-owner Beverly Gilbert.

“We’ve been saving our pennies, making sure everything was running, our staff has been trained, we’re all ready to go.”

Micro Gold, she said, has been able to weather the licensing delay better than others, whose retail spaces have sat empty since recreational cannabis legalization went into effect last October.

“It’s been a hardship for them, but we’ve had the wherewithal,” said Gilbert.

“We thought we could be out for a year, that was our drop-dead date.”

Her store, she said, could have cannabis to sell in about a week.

Gilbert said one of the licences has been issued to family members who are opening a store in Medicine Hat.

In the letter to retailers, the AGLC said it would issue more licences as soon as it can.

“As always, we are analyzing our supply situation regularly and will issue more licences as our inventory grows and the marketplace can sustain additional retailers,” it stated. “We know the current situation is challenging and we assure you we are diligently working to limit the impact it is having on this emerging industry in Alberta.”