Emirates has signed a $90 million Islamic financing agreement for an Airbus A330 airliner using Islamic funds over a 10-year term. This is the third A330 that Emirates has financed using Islamic funds during the last 12 months.
The aircraft is scheduled for delivery in August and is the 23rd of 29 Airbus A330-200s currently on firm order. The A330 fleet is powered by Rolls Royce Trent 700 Series engines.
Last year, Emirates was awarded the global Aircraft Leasing Deal of the Year by Jane's Transport Finance magazine for its first-ever Islamic partial aircraft financing facility, which was combined with Export Credit Agency financing, arranged by HSBC.
The latest financing, a 10-year Islamic lease, was arranged by HSBC's Structured Finance team in Hong Kong, with HSBC Amanah Finance and Dubai Islamic Bank as Islamic structuring advisers.
The Islamic funding is provided by Dubai Islamic Bank, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, National Bank of Dubai, HSBC Bank Middle East, Kuwait Finance House and British Arab Commercial Bank, at a competitive rate of return as compared with traditional modes of finance, according to a company press release.
Emirates was the world's first airline to place firm orders for 22 of the 575-seat A380s. At last year's Dubai Air Show, it unveiled a $15 billion fleet expansion, which also included 25 Boeing 777s, eight A340-600s, and three A330s—a total of 58 aircraft to bring its fleet to 100 by 2010.
It has since ordered more A330s to raise its total fleet of them to 29, and recently chose the GP7200 engine family, produced by the GE-P&W Engine Alliance, to power the A380s on firm order. The order is for GP7270 engines, with a total list price, including options, of some $1.5 billion. Emirates flies to 59 cities in 41 countries and will start flights to Mauritius and Osaka later this year. It has won more than 200 awards for service. — (menareport.com)
© 2002 Mena Report (www.menareport.com)
