More than four months after the federal government announced its program offering emergency loans to the country’s largest businesses amid the novel coronavirus pandemic, none of the applications have been approved and no money has been allocated.
The loans, starting at $60 million, were to be made available to companies that employ large numbers of Canadians and have at least $300 million in annual revenue, to provide short-term assistance to help them weather the pandemic.
On Wednesday, the ministry of finance confirmed it has received “more than a dozen” applications to the LEEFF so far.
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But none have been approved.
“The Canada Enterprise Emergency Funding Corporation (CEEFC), a subsidiary of the Canada Development Investment Corporation (CDEV) formed to administer the LEEFF, is evaluating these applications to ensure they are in the best interests of Canadian taxpayers, while also securing the cooperation of existing creditors,” the email reads.
Global News reached out to more than 30 large companies in Canada to determine which had applied to the LEEFF.
Only one — Porter Airlines — confirmed it had submitted an application, and a handful of others said they were considering the LEEFF as an option.
Unifor national president Jerry Dias said the LEEFF program has been “ineffective,” adding that it was introduced too late into the pandemic.
“A lot of the carnage had already been done,” Dias said. “Most employers had already laid off (employees) and made major, major cutbacks to their operations.”
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Coronavirus outbreak: Trudeau offers ‘bridge loans’ to large companies struggling during COVID-19 downturn
What’s more, with LEEFF offering interest loans of five per cent in the first year, and eight per cent the following year, Dias said most large companies “have opportunities to grab capital elsewhere through commercial means.
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“And so that’s what they’ve done.”
Benjamin Reitzes, director of Canadian rates and macro strategist at BMO Capital Markets, echoed Dias’s remarks, saying the pricing is “just not favourable enough to attract anyone to use the fund at this point,” and that it is really a “last resort for companies.”
He said the pricing is “quite punitive,” and comes with extra rules and conditions that could be “constricting” for companies.
“If you have any access at all to the capital markets, the rates charged are materially better,” he said.
Dias said the government should instead focus its efforts on improving the Canadian Emergency Wage Subsidy program (CEWS).
“They should eliminate the problems with that program,” he said. “I think you’ll find that that is something that the employers will jump all over and frankly, it’ll make the LEEFF program irrelevant.”
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As of Monday, the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS) program had received a total of 1,094,330 applications and had paid out $35.3B in subsidies.
However, Reitzes said it’s “certainly possible” that the LEEFF program was created just for show.
“The primary intent may have been just to drive a little bit more confidence and just to show that the money is there, the government is willing to backstop firms if necessary, but only in the most extreme cases,” he said.
He said that was enough to provide a “sufficient amount of confidence to markets that they are now functioning or able or willing to function and lend money a little bit more freely” than they were in April.
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In a statement, a spokesperson from the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry said it is continuing to analyze “the specific pain points that COVID-19 is causing for all industrial sectors as they grapple with unprecedented financial difficulties during this crisis.”
Daniel-Robert Gooch, president of the Canadian Airports Council, which represents 54 airports around the country, said the pandemic has had “devastating” effects on the airline industry.
He said the council’s forecasts project airports are going to lose $4.5 billion in 2020 and 2021.
“Just to keep the doors open, they’re anticipating having to take on $2.8 billion just for two years of additional debt to get through this crisis,” he said. “So they’re borrowing their way through the crisis.”
However, Gooch said LEEFF is “not really something that’s going to help out our airports,” adding that only four airports — Pearson International Airport, Vancouver International Airport, Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport and Calgary International Airport — are eligible for the program.
Gooch also said airports could access better terms from private lenders.
“It’s like being in a fully functioning lifeboat,” he said. “They’re not going to, you know, get into a leaky inflatable.”
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None of Canada’s largest airport authorities have applied for LEEFF.
Both the Greater Toronto Airports Authority and Aéroports de Montréal confirmed they had not submitted applications.
The Vancouver and Calgary Airport Authorities said they had not applied either, citing access to credit at lower rates elsewhere.
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Coronavirus: Trudeau says $19 billion for restarting economy to begin flowing to provinces
Global News also reached out to Canada’s largest airlines to determine if any had applied.
Porter Airlines said it has submitted an application “in order to better understand the terms available for loans under the program.”
However, the company said the talks are “currently inactive,” as it makes a “broader assessment” of its capital requirements.
“Discussions have not progressed to the point where potential approvals would be indicated,” a company spokesperson said in an email.
In the company’s latest earnings call last week, Air Transat president Jean-Marc Eustache voiced his frustrations with the federal government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, saying he felt the airline industry has been ignored.
Eustache said the company is in “advanced discussions” to secure more financing, and he called on Ottawa to step in and offer targeted support to the airline and tourism sectors.
A spokesperson for Air Transat would not comment further on potential sources of financing, but did say that it was exploring LEEFF as an option.
Air Canada, Sunwing and WestJet did not reply to requests for comment on this story.
Automotive and transportation sector
Asked if they had applied to the LEEFF program, the majority of the largest automotive companies in Canada said they had not.
Bombardier said that while it is looking at “various options,” it is not considering LEEFF “for the time being.”
In an email, a spokesperson at General Motors Canada said the company did not seek funding through the program.
Honda said it has “no plans” to apply to LEEFF. Similarly, Toyota said it is “not a program we have considered.”
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However, in an email, a spokesperson at New Flyer said it is continuing to explore all available programs “for their potential applicability to NFI and our employees,”
“But we are not in a position to comment on LEEFF specifically,” the email reads.
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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles declined to provide comment for this story.
Requests were also sent to Ford, Magna International Inc. and Nova Bus Inc., but were not returned by time of publication.
Oil and gas
Speaking about the program in May, then-finance minister Bill Morneau said the LEEFF program “will be very important for companies in the energy sector.”
But a number of large Canadian companies in the oil and gas sector confirmed they have not applied to the LEEFF, including Canadian Natural Resources, CNOOC Petroleum North America ULC, Crescent Point Energy, Enbridge Inc., Imperial Oil, Shell Canada and Suncor Energy.
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In an email, Cenovus Energy said it does “not provide details on our financing activities,” but that the company is in a “good financial position.”
Athabasca Oil, Husky Energy, Ovintiv and TC Energy did not reply to requests for comment.
Retail
Mountain Equipment Co-op said it “did explore the LEEFF program,” but determined it was “not a solution” for the company because it “could not meet all the pre-conditions.”
“Nor could the organization support the financial changes associated with the program,” a company spokesperson said in a statement.
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Global News also reached out to e-commerce company Shopify to determine if it had submitted an LEEFF application, but the request went unanswered.
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season and 32nd overall, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Monday night.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist and Anze Kopitar and Kevin Fiala also scored. The Kings have won two of their last three.
Juuse Saros made 24 saves for the Predators. They are 1-2-1 in their last four.
Kopitar opened the scoring with 6:36 remaining in the opening period. Saros denied the Kings captain’s first shot, but Kopitar collected the rebound below the goal line and banked it off the netminder’s skate.
Fiala, a former Predator, made it 2-0 35 seconds into the third.
The Kings held Nashville to just three third-period shots on goal, the first coming with 3:55 remaining and Saros pulled for an extra attacker.
Elsewhere in the NHL on Monday:
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DEVILS 3 OILERS 0
EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career, helping the New Jersey Devils close their western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored. The Devils improved to 8-5-2. They have won three of their last four after a four-game skid.
Calvin Pickard made 13 saves for Edmonton. The Oilers had won two straight.
