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Air Canada’s Transat purchase faces additional government scrutiny

Transport Canada says C$720 million deal “raises public interest issues” and requires review that could last until May 2020.

Air Canada is set to pay C$700 million for Transat. Photo: Air Canada

Air Canada (TSX:AC) will face an additional level of government scrutiny as it seeks to acquire Transat (TSX:TRZ), delaying the deal by as much as nine months.

The Ministry of Transport said on Aug. 26 that the C$720 million (a Canadian dollar equals US$0.76)  acquisition “raises public interest issues related to national transportation” will be subject to additional review to assess the effects on competition. 

The review begins on Nov. 4 and could last up to 250 days — to May 2020. The timing means that any decision about Canada’s largest airline acquiring the parent company of the country’s No. 3 carrier will come long after October’s federal elections. 

The federal government’s announcement came days after Transat’s shareholders approved a newly sweetened offer by Air Canada to fight off a rival bid


Transat also offers cargo services, which accounted for a portion of the C$135 million it recorded as “other” revenue in 2018. While small, Transat’s cargo business could be a welcome addition to Air Canada, which has seen its air freight revenues sag amid trade disputes.

Regulators are likely to focus on the implications for the passenger market. Canada has among the highest air travel costs in the world, and the Transat purchase would consolidate the market for flights between Canada and popular vacation spots, particularly in the Caribbean. 

Nate Tabak

Nate Tabak is a Toronto-based journalist and producer who covers cybersecurity and cross-border trucking and logistics for FreightWaves. He spent seven years reporting stories in the Balkans and Eastern Europe as a reporter, producer and editor based in Kosovo. He previously worked at newspapers in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the San Jose Mercury News. He graduated from UC Berkeley, where he studied the history of American policing. Contact Nate at ntabak@freightwaves.com.