Jet Metal Corporation and Canada Jetlines Ltd. are pleased to announce that Jim Scott, CEO of Jetlines and Mark Morabito, President & CEO of Jet Metal Corp. applauded the announcement by Federal Transport Minister, Marc Garneau, that will allow Jetlines to move one step closer to becoming operational as Canada’s first true ULCC airline. Minister Garneau announced earlier on November 3, 2016 in Montreal, that he has approved Jetlines’ request for exemption from current foreign ownership rules, which will allow the airline to access necessary capital in order to begin operations.
On May 16 of this year, Jetlines and its strategic partner, Jet Metal, had applied directly to the Minister of Transport under subsection 62(1) of the Canada Transportation Act seeking to obtain a license for Jetlines at a foreign ownership threshold of up to 49%. The current rules set a foreign ownership level to a maximum of 25%. Under law, the Minister may grant an exemption, if the government believes it is in the “public interest” to do so.
While approving the exemption for Jetlines, the Minister has indicated he is pursuing a permanent policy change through the legislative process, in order to provide greater opportunities for investment and more options for Canadian air travellers.
Jetlines and Jet Metal will now be working to satisfy the final conditions associated with the closing of the business combination transaction between the parties (the “Transaction”). Additional information regarding the process for the closing of the Transaction will be provided in a subsequent news release from the parties.
Images: Jetlines.
