Airbus, Quebec government sole owners of A220 programme as Bombardier exits

Airbus SE, the government of Quebec and Bombardier Inc have agreed upon a new ownership structure for the A220 programme under which Bombardier transferred its remaining shares in Airbus Canada Limited Partnership (Airbus Canada) to Airbus and the government of Quebec.

Airbus SE, the government of Quebec and Bombardier Inc have agreed upon a new ownership structure for the A220 programme under which Bombardier transferred its remaining shares in Airbus Canada Limited Partnership (Airbus Canada) to Airbus and the government of Quebec. The transaction is effective immediately, Airbus said in a statement on Wednesday (local time).

With this transaction, Bombardier will receive a consideration of 591 million dollars from Airbus net of adjustments of which 531 million dollars was received at closing and 60 million dollars to be paid over the 2020-21 period. The agreement also provides for the cancellation of Bombardier warrants owned by Airbus as well as releasing Bombardier of its future funding capital requirement to Airbus Canada.

It brings shareholdings in Airbus Canada, responsible for the A220, to 75 per cent for Airbus and 25 per cent for the government of Quebec respectively. "We are committed to this fantastic aircraft programme and we are aligned with the government of Quebec in our ambition to bring long-term visibility to the Quebec and Canadian aerospace industry," said Airbus Chief Executive Officer Guillaume Faury.

The government's stake is redeemable by Airbus in 2026 -- three years later than before. As part of this transaction, Airbus, via its wholly-owned subsidiary Stelia Aerospace, has also acquired the A220 and A330 work package production capabilities from Bombardier at Saint-Laurent in Quebec. Since Airbus took majority ownership of the A220 programme on July 1, 2018, total cumulative net orders for the aircraft have increased by 64 per cent to 658 units at the end of January 2020.

The single-aisle market is a key growth driver, representing 70 per cent of the expected global future demand for aircraft. Ranging from 100 to 150 seats, the A220 is highly complementary to Airbus' existing single-aisle aircraft portfolio, which focuses on the higher end of the single-aisle business (150 to 240 seats). (ANI)

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