/reeve.gif)
Finmeccanica Sells Helos to Turkmenistan
By TOM KINGTON
Published: 4 Nov 2010 19:22
ROME - Italian defense group Finmeccanica has sold helicopters, including the AgustaWestland AW101 and the AW139, to the government of Turkmenistan, the firm said Nov. 4.
The sale was announced during a conference call with analysts. During the call, Chief Financial
Officer Alessandro Pansa also said that a long-delayed deal to sell the M-346 jet trainer to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) could be struck in 2011.
Wrapping up negotiations could take "months" he said, adding "2011 will be a crucial year" for inking the contract.
The UAE first selected the M-346, built by Finmeccanica unit Alenia Aermacchi, in February 2009, but talks to buy 48 aircraft in a 1 billion euro ($1.4 billion) deal have reportedly stalled over a parallel deal for UAVs.
A presentation published by Finmeccanica to accompany the conference call lists the sale to Turkmenistan during the third quarter of 2010 of two AgustaWestland AW101 helicopters for civil VIP transport, as well as five AW139s.
CEO Pierfrancesco Guarguaglini participated last year at a forum here on trade between Italy and Turkmenistan, attended by Turkmenistan's President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov.
Pansa told analysts that Finmeccanica would book new orders worth 7 billion euros before the end of 2010, adding to the 13.5 billion euros in new orders received so far this year.
Finmeccanica announced profits for the first nine months of 2010 of 321 million euros, down from 364 million euros in the same period of 2009. Revenue stood at 12.9 billion euros, up 2.2 percent.
Net debt at the end of 2010 will reach 3.2 billion euros to 3.3 billion euros, he added.
Pansa said he is not concerned about further potential cuts to Italian defense spending, which he said he expects to remain stable in coming years. Cuts to U.K. defense spending will not harm the group, he added.
Earnings before interest, tax and amortization in the third quarter of 2010 dropped 6 percent year on year to 268 million euros. Pansa said that a large amount of high margin work on the Eurofighter Typhoon program in 2009 had boosted margins.
A drop in higher margin work on ATR aircraft in 2010 had been matched by an increase in lower margin work on the Boeing 787 aircraft, he said.
This is a subscription only section
Want to read more? It's only €10/year.
No account yet? Just Create an account first and head to the shop