Bombardier, Inc.’s (OTC:$BDRBF) floundering CSeries jetliner program has been tossed a life preserver. Airbus SE (OTC:$EADSF) has announced that it has agreed to acquire the majority stake in the program, possibly breathing new life into the poorly selling aircraft.
Airbus will acquire a 50.01% stake in the single-aisle plane platform. The program previously had left the Montreal-based Bombardier drained of cash after it ran into cost overruns and delays. The program will also be 31% owned by Bombardier, and 19% owned by the province of Quebec. The partners will not have to put up any cash when the deal closes.
In a joint statement on Monday, the companies said, “The agreement brings together Airbus’ global reach and scale with Bombardier’s newest, state-of-the-art jet aircraft family.”
This deal will prove monumental for the aerospace industry by giving the C Series new life, which has lacked a major order for the last 18 months. The deal also draws Airbus into the heated feud between Bombardier and Boeing (NYSE:$BA). After a complaint was filed by the U.S. planemaker, President Donald Trump’s administration imposed an import duty of 300% on the Canadian-made plane recently.
Airbus will also open up manufacturing of the C Series in their Alabama based factory. They also stated they plan to expand the global industrial footprint, with a final assembly line in Canada.
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