STOCK OPTIONS

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2021

Share-based Payment Arrangement [Abstract]

STOCK OPTIONS

14. Stock Options.

The Company has a stock option plan (“Plan”). The purpose of this Plan is to provide additional incentives to key employees, officers, directors and consultants of the Company and its subsidiaries in order to help attract and retain the best available personnel for positions of responsibility and otherwise promote the success of the Company’s business. It is intended that options issued under this Plan constitute non-qualified stock options. The general terms of awards under the option plan are that 100% of the options granted will vest the year following the grant. The maximum term of options granted is 5 years and the exercise price for all options are issued for not less than fair market value at the date of the grant.

The following table summarizes the Company’s stock option activities for the year ended December 31, 2020 and the nine month period ended September 30, 2021:

	Number of shares			Exercise price per share		Weighted average exercise price
Balance, December 31, 2019		635,000		$	0.75 – 1.75	$	1.35
Granted		172,000		$	2.44	$	2.44
Cancelled or expired		(13,000	)	$	2.44 – 3.46	$	2.75
Exercised		(45,000	)	$	0.75 – 1.05	$	0.88
Balance, December 31, 2020		749,000		$	0.75 – 4.13	$	2.42
Cancelled or expired		(29,799	)	$	1.42 – 3.46	$	2.45
Exercised		(66,701	)	$	0.75 – 3.46	$	1.60
Balance, September 30, 2021		652,500		$	1.42 – 4.13	$	2.50
Exercisable, September 30, 2021		411,500		$	1.42 – 4.13	$	2.66

The weighted average remaining contractual life of options outstanding is 3.6 years.

The fair value of each option grant is calculated using the following weighted average assumptions:

	2021
Expected life – years		3.0
Interest rate		0.37	%
Volatility		70.14	%
Weighted average fair value of options granted	$	1.12

The Company did not grant any options during the nine months ended September 30, 2021 or 2020. Options granted in previous quarters resulted in expenses in the amount of $39,196 for consultants (2020 - $33,816) and $79,571 for employees (2020 - $54,929) during the nine months ended September 30, 2021. There were 33,500 employee and 33,201 consultant stock options exercised during the nine months ended September 30, 2021 (2020 – 15,000 employee and 10,000 consultant stock options).

As of September 30, 2021, there was approximately $48,573 of compensation expense related to non-vested awards. This expense is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 6 months.

The aggregate intrinsic value of vested options outstanding at September 30, 2021 is $388,460 (2020 – $nil).