Despite the receipt of a belated and more expensive competing proposal, “an overwhelming majority” of shareholders of Air Transat (TS, Montreal Trudeau) parent company Transat AT approved a revised takeover offer of Air Canada (THAT, Montreal Trudeau), revealed the Montreal tour operator in a press release.

He said 91% of the shareholders present at the meeting, representing 60% of the shares, were in favor of Air Canada’s offer of 5 Canadian dollars (3.92 USD) per share, an offer that had been recommended. by Transat executives.

On October 10, as Covid-19 continued to dampen demand, the private national carrier reduced its supply by nearly 75%, from CAD 720 million ($ 564 million) to around CAD 188.7 million ($ 148 million ).

Nevertheless, the deal is still awaiting approval from European and Canadian regulators, with the deadline for a European decision being February 9. The agreement should then be finalized in early 2021.

“We are delighted with shareholder support for this revised arrangement which will create a global leader in Montreal-based leisure with the reach to overcome current industry turmoil and thrive beyond,” said Jean-Marc Eustache, President and CEO. of Transat in the December 15 press release. “We are more convinced than ever that it is in the interest of all our stakeholders to partner with Air Canada.

Earlier the same day, Transat revealed in a separate statement that it received an unsolicited proposal at the end of November from a private investor outside the travel industry. He did not identify the investor but said he allowed due diligence with access to the company’s financial data.

However, despite the fact that the non-travel industry investor would have led to less regulatory review, the board did not deem it superior to Air Canada’s offer.

A spokesperson for the development capital fund of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, one of Transat’s main shareholders, told the Canadian Press news agency that the agreement with Air Canada was “flawed”, but that ‘she still voted in favor. He added: “The Fund has taken several factors into consideration, including the future of Transat’s head office and jobs in Quebec, as well as the interests of our shareholder-savers.

While abstaining from commenting on the vote, Air Canada announced the same day a stock offering on the Toronto Stock Exchange for gross proceeds of approximately CAD 850 million ($ 667 million). The next day, he declared that he had set the public offering price of 35,420,000 Class A Variable Voting Shares and Class B Voting Shares at CAD 24 ($ 18.83) per share. . The measure is expected to end on or around December 30, and the company will use the proceeds to supplement its working capital and other general business objectives.