Transat A.T. completes transaction with H10 Hotels, creating a 5-hotel joint venture in Mexico and Dominican Republic

On December 10, 2007, Transat A.T. Inc., one of the largest integrated tourism companies in the world and Canada's holiday travel leader, and H10 Hotels, based in Barcelona, (Spain) completed the transaction leading to the creation of a joint venture to own and operate five existing hotels in Mexico and Dominican Republic, following an announcement made on November 27, 2007. H10 Hotels retains a 65% interest in the new company, while Transat acquired the remaining 35% (with an option to go to 45% within five years of closing) by contributing to the joint venture through a capital increase representing a consideration of US$55 million in cash. In the Riviera Maya, Mexico, holdings include the H10 Hacienda Maya (320 rooms), the H10 Punta Coral and H10 Punta Turquesa (586 rooms in total, to open in December 2007), and in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, the joint venture will offer the H10 Ocean Blue and H10 Ocean Sand (708 rooms in total), for a combined total of more than 1,600 rooms. All hotels are beachfront, high-quality properties. Transat A.T. was represented by Fasken Martineau with a team that included Claude Gendron, Lise Rochette, Jean Philippe Gagné, Hsiao-Chen Lin and Jean-Philippe Mikus.