Cargojet Receives Final Court Approval to Increase Permitted Foreign Ownership Levels to the Levels Permitted under Canada Transportation Act
Mississauga, ON, April 1, 2020 - Cargojet Inc. (“Cargojet” or the “Corporation”) (TSX: CJT) is pleased to announce that the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Commercial List) issued earlier today a final order approving the previously announced plan of arrangement under the Business Corporations Act (Ontario) effecting amendments to Cargojet’s articles of incorporation to align the permitted level of non-Canadian ownership and control of its voting shares within its articles with those prescribed by the new definition of "Canadian" under the Canada Transportation Act (“CTA”) as amended in June 2018.
Prior to the CTA amendments, no more than 25% of the voting interests of a Canadian air carrier could be owned or controlled by non-Canadians. The Government of Canada's stated purpose in implementing the CTA amendments is to attract more foreign investment and encourage growth in the aviation sector by increasing, from 25% to 49%, the permitted level of foreign ownership of Canadian air carriers. At the same time, the CTA amendments introduced two new limitations on voting ownership and control, by capping the voting rights of single non-Canadians and of the aggregate of non-Canadian air carriers at 25%.
Cargojet expects that its amended articles will be filed and become effective on or about April 3, 2020. Further details regarding the amendments are set out in the management information circular of Cargojet dated February 26, 2020 and in Cargojet’s news release of the same date which are available on SEDAR under Cargojet’s profile at www.sedar.com.
Cargojet is Canada’s leading provider of time sensitive premium overnight air cargo services and carries
over 8,000,000 pounds of cargo weekly. Cargojet operates its network across North America each business
night serving 15 major cities, and selected international destinations. Cargojet owns a fleet of 26 aircraft.
Pauline Dhillon
Executive Vice President Marketing, Government & Public Relations
Tel: (905) 501 7373
pdhillon@cargojet.com
Notice on Forward Looking Statement
Certain statements contained herein constitute "forward-looking statements", including potential timing and benefits to amending the Company’s articles in accordance with the Canada Transportation Act amendments. Forward-looking statements look into the future and provide an opinion as to the effect of certain events and trends on the business. Forward-looking statements may include words such as "plans," "intends," "anticipates," "should," "estimates," "expects," "believes," "indicates," "targeting," "suggests" and similar expressions. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and entail various risks and uncertainties. Reference should be made to the Company’s most recent Annual Information Form filed with the Canadian securities regulators, and its most recent Annual Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes thereto and related Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A), for a summary of major risks. Actual results may materially differ from expectations, if known and unknown risks or uncertainties affect our business, or if our estimates or assumptions prove inaccurate. In particular, failure to obtain the necessary court and any regulatory approvals, or the failure to otherwise satisfy the conditions to the implementation of the proposed plan of arrangement and the resulting amendments to Cargojet’s articles, may result in the proposed plan of arrangement and amendments not being completed on the proposed terms, or at all. The forward-looking statements contained or incorporated by reference in this news release represent Cargojet’s expectations as of the date of this news release (or as of the date they are otherwise stated to be made) and are subject to change after such date. However, Cargojet disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities regulations.