Canada’s top dealmakers honoured at third annual gala

Toronto, March 3, 2010 – The third annual Canadian Dealmakers Gala was held this evening, in celebration of the best M&A deals of 2009. Strategists, corporate executives, investment bankers, private equity firms and lawyers in advisory and underwriting roles in M&A were honoured. Founded by Deloitte, Lexpert®, The Globe and Mail and Thomson Reuters, the awards recognized Canadian companies that have created value through M&A transactions.

The Strategic Deal of the Year award was presented to Suncor Energy Inc. for its merger with Petro-Canada. For a full listing of award recipients see chart below.

“This event recognizes the best transactions of 2009 that positively influenced the future of Canadian business,” says Charles Knight, partner and national M&A transaction services leader, Deloitte. “A key element of the success being recognized relates to companies completing the most strategically-relevant deal for their sector, as well as being able to complete the transaction, from start to finish, with a proven methodology.”

The awards honour Canadian companies and individuals whose transactions have significantly impacted their industry through innovation and growth; establishment of best practices; enhancement of customer needs and products and creation of value. The judging panel considered quantitative and qualitative factors, including, financial soundness, improved industry ranking, strength of deal thesis, complexity of the deal and pre-merger and post-merger integration activities.

“The M&A activity that occurred in Canada over the last year, while the world was in financial crisis, is a testament to the strength of business in Canada,” adds Knight. “Increasingly, Canadian companies are taking a global leadership role with significant expansion outside of Canada, further enhancing Canada’s role in the global economy.”

The Canadian Dealmakers Gala was attended by over 400 corporate executives, legal professionals and investment bankers. The net proceeds raised from the Gala were donated to Junior Achievement of Canada.

The Canadian Dealmakers of 2009 award winners are:

Industrials Industry Award

Aecon Group Inc.

Acquisition: Lockerbie & Hole Inc. ("Lockerbie")
Value (US$ millions): 170.20
Recipient advisors: Bennett Jones LLP • TD Securities • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Acquisition advisors: Macleod Dixon LLP • Dorsey & Whitney LLP • GMP Securities L.P. • KPMG LLP

Private Equity Award

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB)

Acquisition: Macquarie Communications Infrastructure Group (MCG)
Value (US$ millions): 5,271.64
Recipient advisors: Rothschild • Goldman Sachs JBWere • Spectrum Value Partners • Gibson Quai-AAS • Allens Arthur Robinson • Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer LLP • KPMG LLP • URS Corporation
Acquisition advisors: Macquarie Bank Limited • Clifford Chance LLP • Freehills• PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Deal Team of the Year Award

Crescent Point Energy Corp.

Acquisition: Awarded for multiple acquisitions
Value (US$ millions): Multiple transactions
Recipient advisors: McCarthy Tétrault LLP • Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP • Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP • BMO Capital Markets • Scotia Capital Inc. • CIBC World Markets Inc. • RBC Capital Markets • FirstEnergy Capital Corp. • National Bank Financial • Peters & Co. Limited • Deloitte & Touche LLP
Acquisition advisors: N/A

IPO of the Year Award

Dollarama Inc.

Acquisition: N/A
Value (US$ millions): 300.00
Recipient advisors: Stikeman Elliott LLP • Ogilvy Renault LLP • Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP •PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP • RBC Dominion Securities Inc. • CIBC World Markets Inc. • Credit Suisse Securities (Canada), Inc.
Acquisition advisors: N/A

Mining Industry Award

Eldorado Gold

Acquisition: Sino Gold Mining Limited
Value (US$ millions): 1,632.51
Recipient advisors: Macquarie Capital Advisors • Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP • Freehills • Deloitte & Touche LLP • KPMG LLP • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP • Link Market Services Limited • Valiant Trust Company 
Acquisition advisors: Goldman Sachs • JBWere Pty Ltd. • Allens Arthur Robinson • Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP • Ernst & Young LLP • Grant Samuel & Associates Pty Limited • Registries Limited

Consumer Business Industry Award

Groupe Aeroplan Inc.

Acquisition: Carlson Marketing Group, Inc.
Value (US$ millions): 168.8
Recipient advisors: RBC Capital Markets • Deutsche Bank Securities Inc. • Ogilvy Renault LLP • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP • Stikeman Elliott LLP • Royal Bank of Canada
Acquisition advisors: Petsky Prunier LLC

Value Creation Award

Petrobank Energy and Resources Ltd.

Acquisition: TriStar Oil and Gas
Value (US$ millions): 869.0
Recipient advisors: TD Securities • Haywood Securities Inc. • Merrill Lynch Canada Inc. • UBS Securities Canada Inc. • Saether Capital Corp. • McCarthy Tétrault LLP • Deloitte & Touche LLP • Toronto-Dominion Bank • Bank of Montreal • Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce • Bank of Nova Scotia • Royal Bank of Canada • Société Générale (Canada Branch) • Bnp Paribas (Canada) • Alberta Treasury Branches • Union Bank, Canada Branch • HSBC Bank Canada • Credit Suisse, Toronto Branch • Canadian Western Bank
Acquisition advisors: Macquarie Capital Markets Canada Ltd. • BMO Capital Markets • CIBC World Markets Inc. • GMP Securities L.P. • National Bank Financial

Information Technology Industry Award

Sierra Wireless Inc.

Acquisition: Wavecom S.A.
Value (US$ millions): 379.4
Recipient advisors: CIBC World Markets Inc. • TD Securities • Lazard • Linklaters LLP • Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP
Acquisition advisors: Merrill Lynch • Jones Day

Strategic Deal of the Year Award and Energy Industry Award

Suncor Energy Inc.

Acquisition: Petro-Canada
Value (US$ millions): 19,478.12
Recipient advisors: CIBC World Markets Inc. • Morgan Stanley • Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP • Shearman & Sterling LLP • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP
Acquisition advisors: RBC Capital Markets • Deutsche Bank • Macleod Dixon LLP • Torys LLP • Deloitte & Touche LLP

Private Equity Mid-Market Award

TorQuest Partners and FirstOnSite Restoration L.P.

Acquisition: Woodhouse Contracting • Edenvale Restoration Specialists • Higgins • Airkem Disaster Kleenup • Premiere Restoration Services • K.B. Clarke Disaster Kleenup • Rosco Enterprises • MJL • Ezi-Way (Charlottetown • Ezi-Way (Moncton) • Springfresh Cleaning and Restoration • Airkem Damage Restoration Services • General Maintenance Contractors • First General Services • Servpro Disaster Restoration
Value (US$ millions): Multiple transactions
Recipient advisors: Stikeman Elliott LLP • Deloitte & Touche LLP • KPMG LLP • PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP • Bank of Montreal • Bank of Nova Scotia • National Bank Financial
Acquisition advisors: CCC Investment Banking • Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP

Utilities Industry Award

TransAlta Corporation

Acquisition: Canadian Hydro Developers
Value (US$ millions): 1,514.10
Recipient advisors: Goldman Sachs • RBC Capital Markets • Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP • Ernst & Young LLP • Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce • Bank of Nova Scotia • HSBC Bank Canada • Royal Bank of Scotland • Longview Communications 
Acquisition advisors: FirstEnergy Capital Corp. • Societé Générale • Blake, Cassels & Graydon LLP

Global Expansion Deal of the Year Award

Viterra Inc.

Acquisition: ABB Grain Ltd.
Value (US$ millions): 1,685.52
Recipient advisors: Torys LLP • Genuity Capital Markets • Freehills • Macquarie Capital Advisors • Deloitte & Touche LLP
Acquisition advisors: Johnson Winter & Slattery • JPMorgan Chase & Co. • Deloitte & Touche LLP

Mid-Market Award

Worldlynx Wireless LP and Mistral Equity Partners LLC

Acquisition: Independent Bell Mobility dealers
Value (US$ millions): N/A
Recipient advisors: Genuity Capital Markets • Cassels Brock & Blackwell LLP • McCarthy Tétrault LLP • Aird & Berlis LLP • DLA Piper US LLP • Van Doorne N.V. • Deloitte & Touche LLP • Grant Thornton LLP • Straighthink Inc. • G.C. Anderson Partners, LLC • Kent Thexton • Randall Reynolds • Lance McIntosh. • Bank of Montreal • TD Commercial Banking
Acquisition advisors: McCarter Grespan Beynon Weir • Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP • Lockington Lawless Fitzpatrick LLP • Mosher Chedore Barrister & Solicitors • Aird & Berlis LLP • Ernest H. Cutler Law Office • Giffen & Partners • Bingham, Robinson, MacLennan Ehrhardt Teed LLP • Cunningham Swan Carty Little & Bonham LLP • Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP

About the Dealmakers Awards
As the only program of its kind in Canada, Canadian Dealmakers recognizes participants whose M&A activities have made a significant contribution to Canadian business. The awards honour Canadian companies and individuals whose transactions have significantly impacted their industry through innovation and growth; establishment of best practices; enhancement of customer needs and products; and creation of value. The Canadian Dealmakers awards are jointly run by Deloitte, Lexpert®, The Globe and Mail and Thomson Reuters and draw on a panel of eminent judges. Please see www.canadiandealmakers.ca for more information.

About Deloitte
Deloitte, one of Canada's leading professional services firms, provides audit, tax, consulting, and financial advisory services through more than 7,700 people in 58 offices. Deloitte operates in Québec as Samson Bélair/Deloitte & Touche s.e.n.c.r.l. Deloitte & Touche LLP, an Ontario Limited Liability Partnership, is the Canadian member firm of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu. Deloitte refers to one or more of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, a Swiss Verein, and its network of member firms, each of which is a legally separate and independent entity. Please see www.deloitte.com/about for a detailed description of the legal structure of Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu and its member firms.

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