GOL Linhas Aéreas announced yesterday the signing of a contract to acquire MAP Transportes Aéreos Ltda, a company that serves regional destinations with a fleet of ATR turboprops and has operating bases in São Paulo / Congonhas and Manaus.
«The challenge for GOL to consolidate at a regional level is in sight, expanding its market in times of recovery from COVID 19, thanks to a careful financial plan and its effective and efficient operating model,» says its Executive Director, Pablo Kakinoff.
Gol stands out for maintaining its fleet homogeneity (Boeing B737NG and MAX), this gives its operations a character of effectiveness and efficiency. For its part, MAP has seven ATR turboprops with 70 seats, and operates in the Amazon region from Manaus and in the South / Southeast of Brazil from its base in Congonhas. This strategic purchase for the company and for the local market promises a 10% increase in operations at the San Pablo airport, incorporating 26 daily slots. In this sense, once the restrictions as a consequence of COVID have been overcome, this operating model will be adopted in which MAP will serve to feed the Gol network, providing more options to passengers.
«The transaction is another example that the company is ready for its regional expansion and long-term investment in the Brazilian airline market,» added Richard Lark, Gol’s Chief Financial Officer.
MAP will be acquired for 28 million reais in cash and shares, to be paid once the closing conditions are met, with the amount made up of 100,000 Gol shares (GOLL4) at 28 reais per share, and 25 million reais in 24 monthly installments, as detailed in Aeroin, our partner media in Brazil.
Gol will also assume 100 million reais in financial obligations from MAP, an airline that had been acquired by the former Passaredo (now Voepass) in 2019.