TORONTO — Vitran announced today that it has entered into an agreement to sell its U.S. LTL business to a company owned by Matthew Moroun, son of Ambassador Bridge owner Manuel ‘Matty Moroun.

“For the last several years, Vitran has invested substantial time and capital to improve its U.S operating results,” said William Deluce, Vitran’s Interim President and CEO. “While we believe these efforts have made Vitran’s U.S. LTL business a better operating company, they did not result in financial results that are acceptable to management or the Board.

“With the assistance of our financial advisors, we have evaluated a wide range of strategic alternatives over the last five months,” Deluce explained “We are pleased to have agreed upon a plan that we believe gives Vitran’s U.S. LTL employees and customers the best chance to prosper while also preserving value for all of Vitran’s stakeholders.”

One of Moroun’s entities will pay $2 million for 100 percent of the common stock of the wholly-owned U.S. subsidiary that operates Vitran’s U.S. LTL business. The transaction is expected to close within 10 days, with Moroun’s company slated to take over operations anytime between today and the closing date.

“We are also excited about the positive impact this transaction will have on Vitran’s Canadian LTL business,” Deluce said. “Over the last 25 years, Tony Trichilo and his team have built one of Canada’s premier providers of LTL services. This model has resulted in consistent profitability and cash flow generation. With this transaction, we are now excited to be solely focused on the Canadian business, which currently has cash of approximately $22 million.”