TORONTO and CALGARY — Rogers Communications, Shaw Communications and the Shaw Family Living Trust today announced they have extended the outside date of the proposed $26-billion merger of Rogers and Shaw to Dec. 31, 2022.
The outside date for closing the merger has already been extended twice before by the companies from the original date of March 15, 2022. The closing extension comes as the most recently announced outside date of July 31, 2022 was fast approaching.
The new outside date “may be further extended to January 31, 2023 at the option of Rogers or Shaw, provided Rogers has committed financing available to complete the merger,” reads a press release, which notes the two companies remain committed to completing “this transformative combination”.
“Rogers and Shaw continue to pursue the divestiture of Freedom Mobile to Quebecor on the terms set out in the previously disclosed agreement. Negotiation of the definitive transaction documents are progressing, and the parties will provide an update in due course,” the release says.
“The Transaction has already been approved by the shareholders of Shaw and the Court of Queen’s Bench of Alberta, and the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission, and remains subject to review by the Competition Tribunal and Competition Bureau and approval by the Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry and other customary closing conditions.”
The CRTC approved the broadcast side of the proposed merger in March. Earlier this month, Rogers and Shaw announced mediation with the Commissioner of Competition had failed to result in a resolution, and last week the Competition Bureau asked for the Competition Tribunal hearing process to be delayed due news of the proposed divestiture of Freedom and a request from Quebecor to intervene.
Today’s news comes the same day Rogers Communications announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2022.
