EXIM Approves $500 Million in Financing to Support U.S.-Manufactured Commercial Aircraft Exports to WestJet
August 6, 2021
(Ex-Im Bank)
Transaction Supports an Estimated 2,900 U.S. Jobs in Aircraft Manufacturing and
Supply Chain
WASHINGTON – The Board of Directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United
States (EXIM) yesterday approved a $500 million loan guarantee to support
exports of U.S.-manufactured Boeing 787-9 aircraft to WestJet Airlines Ltd.,
headquartered in Calgary, Alberta. EXIM’s loan guarantee is estimated to
support 2,900 American aerospace jobs at The Boeing Company’s manufacturing
facilities, primarily in South Carolina, and at Boeing’s suppliers throughout
the United States.
The asset-backed transaction includes EXIM’s Bridge-Backstop financing, one of
the agency’s temporary COVID-19 relief measures approved by the Board of
Directors in 2020. Bridge-Backstop financing offers flexible prepayment options
to the borrower and facilitates replacing the EXIM financing with commercial
financing as market conditions warrant.
“This transaction represents well-structured, prudent lending, and it fills a
present gap in aircraft financing in the private sector,” said Acting
President and Chairman James Burrows. “EXIM’s ability to move forward in the
aerospace sector helps to provide confidence to commercial lenders that these
transactions remain creditworthy.”
EXIM’s Board of Directors voted on Thursday following the referral of the
transaction for a 35-day congressional review period that began on July 1 and
expired on August 4. Notification of the transaction was also posted on the
Federal Register for a period ending July 27. Comments received in response to
the Federal Register notice were from the Aerospace Industries Association
(AIA), and a Boeing supplier, Solvay Specialty Polymers USA, LLC, in Alpharetta,
Georgia. Both expressed strong support for EXIM’s financing of the aircraft
exports to WestJet.
AIA Senior Vice President for Policy Remy Nathan noted that “EXIM’s
financing is vital for certainty” for U.S. businesses of all sizes in the
supply chain. “Support from U.S. government agencies like EXIM provides our
industry with the ability to compete in the global market, keep our
manufacturing industrial base strong, create jobs and drive economic growth,”
Nathan wrote. AIA currently has more than 300 member companies.
Under EXIM’s Bridge-Backstop financing, EXIM staff underwrites and seeks
approval for the full repayment term. The borrower has the option to prepay the
EXIM-guaranteed loan at one or more agreed-upon dates from commencement of the
financing or opt to continue for the full repayment term. The borrower may
prepay the EXIM financing in full on the option date(s), which it selects,
subject to EXIM’s approval, and thereby recoup the portion of the premium
associated with the unused portion of the EXIM financing.
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