Saab CEO says company, Canada still in ‘intensive’ talks

Saab CEO Micael Johansson speaks about their proposal to build in Canada if Ottawa purchases Gripen fighter jets.

OTTAWA - The CEO of the Swedish manufacturing company Saab says there are still “intensive” talks underway with the Canadian government around the potential purchase of Gripen fighter jets, but that he has no timeline for when Canada will finish its review of the American-made F-35s.

The federal government launched a review a year ago of its plan to purchase dozens of F-35 fighter jets from the U.S. firm Lockheed Martin, pledging at the time it would make a decision by the end of summer.

Now, months later, the government has yet to announce the results of that review, leaving Saab in limbo as it pitches its Gripen fighter jets to Canada.

“We are providing as much information as possible to the Canadian authorities and the politicians and industry to make sure that the case is accessible, in terms of how quickly we can do this, affordability, infrastructure perspectives,” Saab president and CEO Micael Johansson told CTV Question Period host Vassy Kapelos in an interview airing Sunday, adding while he’s asked for a timeline, he has yet to receive a “firm answer” on one.

“So, the information is there, and then there is some sort of process evaluating this as we speak,” he said. “But I don’t honestly have a clear answer on when I think that decision will be made,” he also said.

Later in the interview, when asked by Kapelos to describe the frequency and nature of the company’s conversations with the federal government, Johansson said they’re “quite intensive.”

He also said there’s still a “political decision” to be made by the Canadian government about whether to have a dual fleet of aircraft by purchasing both the F-35s — several of which are already in production at Lockheed Martin — and the Gripens.

Last November, also in an interview for CTV Question Period, Defence Minister David McGuinty told Kapelos that Canada isn’t ruling out diversifying its fighter-jet purchases from more than one company in order to fulfil capability requirements.

When asked to gauge the level of possibility that the deal with Canada goes forward, Johansson said he believes there’s “really good potential,” but again pointed to the “political decision” the federal government needs to make first.

He added he believes it’s “absolutely credible” that Saab can deliver in five years, with the first Canadian aircraft leaving the factory in that time.

When pressed on a previous eight-year delay in delivering Gripen jets to the government of Brazil, Johansson said Canada presents a different context, and that “the Canadian foundation to do this is broader.”

He added while there were lessons learned from the delays with Brazil, delivering to Canada in five years is “absolutely doable” because Canada has the infrastructure in place to better receive the technology.

You can watch Saab CEO Micael Johansson’s full interview on CTV Question Period Sunday at 11 a.m. ET.