TORONTO, ON—Residents and businesses in several remote communities in Quebec could be receiving deliveries by drone in early summer 2021. Drone Delivery Canada Corp (DDC) has, with the assistance of its sales agent Air Canada, executed a Letter of Intent (LOI) with Drones Express Inc (DEI) for an expected multi-year, multi-route, Condor project in Quebec.
Under the terms of the LOI, the parties are cooperating to work towards a binding definitive agreement that will set out the terms and conditions respecting a drone delivery solution using multiple DDC Condor drones and DDC’s proprietary DroneSpot depots to service multiple coastal communities on multiple routes along the lower north shore region of Quebec.
The solution will use DDC’s patented and proprietary FLYTE system, in a SaaS model. DDC will provide implementation and commissioning of the system, training, technical support, managed services and remote monitoring from its operations control centre in Vaughan, ON. The expected term of the agreement is to be 10 years with a total revenue over the term to DDC of CAD3.6 million, plus other potential service revenues.
DEI expects to expand this initial solution to more Condor drones, more communities and more routes over time as this first project gains momentum during the term. All operations would be conducted in accordance with the Canadian aviation regulations and Transport Canada flight authorizations.
“Market response to our pre-selling of the Condor solution has been favourable in Canada and internationally, and we are excited to announce our first potential Condor project,” said Michael Zahra, president and CEO of DDC. “This is a pivotal milestone for us. We are pleased to be working with Drones Express on this innovative commercial opportunity to service the needs of rural communities in Quebec, with potential further network growth in the future.”
“We are very thrilled to partner with Drone Delivery Canada on this very innovative new service,” said François Bertrand, CEO of Drones Express Inc. “The current Canadian regulation regulatory framework allows the use of drones operating beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS), only in rural Canada for low-risk operations in remote and isolated regions of Canada. Our expertise lies in servicing remote communities in Québec. Using drones to transport cargo and courier parcels is an innovative, reliable, economical and fast transport solution, and the lower north shore of Quebec is an ideal region for the implementation of such an initiative. We are ready for the challenge, a first in Canada.”