“…Eve Urban Air Mobility has become the next major urban air mobility (UAM) company to announce plans to go public through a merger with Zanite Acquisition Corp. (Nasdaq: ZNTE), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC).

The deal, which gives Eve a pre-money valuation of around US$2.4 billion, has been in the works at least since early June, when Zanite confirmed it was in negotiations with Eve. Pending shareholder approval, the companies expect the deal to close in the second quarter of 2022.

Eve said the deal, after transaction expenses, will unlock about $512 million in net cash, funded through a combination of Zanite’s $237 million cash held in trust and $305 million in total private investment in public equity (PIPE) associated with the merger.

Eve parent company Embraer is contributing $175 million to the PIPE, with Zanite’s sponsor kicking in $25 million and the remaining $105 million coming from a consortium of financial and strategic investors including Azorra Aviation, BAE Systems, Banco Bradesco, Falko Regional Aircraft, Republic Airways, Rolls-Royce, and SkyWest.

Eve separately announced conditional orders for its eVTOL aircraft from Azorra, Republic Airways, and Skywest, and a deal with BAE to explore potential defense variants of the model.

But if Eve’s business combination with Zanite is anything like previous eVTOL SPAC deals, the company could see much lower gross proceeds should Zanite’s shareholders choose to redeem their shares rather than remain invested in the combined company.