MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2016
B3
MARKET Iran, Japan orders provide boost to Airbus’ struggling superjumbo MORE COMPANIES RUSHING TO IRAN While two new orders save the world’s biggest commercial aircraft, the deal signed by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani points to new opportunities
TEHRAN: Iran’s surprise agreement to buy the Airbus A380 marks the second new deal for the superjumbo in three weeks and will help the planemaker paper over the cracks in its flagship programme - for now. The Iranian accord for 12 A380s, together with the sale of three of the double-deckers to Japan’s All Nippon Airways, disclosed in order data on January 12 and confirmed on Friday, provides some
Condotte D‘acqua: Italian infrastructure firm will sign deals for projects with Iranian firms worth €4 billion Hellenic Petroleum: Greece‘s biggest oil refiner agreed to buy crude oil from Iranian state company Peugeot Citroen: French car maker and Iran Khodro formed a joint venture to build Peugeot cars in Iran
cheer for Airbus after the model failed to find a single new airline buyer in three years. The 15 jets, worth $6.5 billion at list prices, will provide a vital breathing space as the Toulouse, France-based manufacturer seeks to drum up further orders and determine whether a life-extending upgrade of the jet sought by leading buyer Emirates of Dubai is viable. The planes will provide at least six months of work for the A380
Norinco International: This Chinese firm said its consortium had signed an agreement for a railway project in Iran for $350 million International airlines group: British Airways, part of IAG, hopes to start flying to Tehran in the near future Lukoil: Russia‘s oil major reached an agreement on the firm‘s possible participation in several oil projects National Aluminium: India‘s state-run firm is interested in setting up a $2 billion-smelter complex
INSURANCE
Al Anwar board approves sale of Falcon stake Times News Service MUSCAT: Al Anwar Holding on Sunday said that the company’s board has approved an offer to sell a substantial stake in Falcon Insurance Company. “The transaction is subject to completion of due diligence by the buyer and approval from regulatory authorities concerned,” the company noted in a stock market filing on the MSM website. “The transaction price would be
1.2 multiples of book value, subject to due diligence and audited financial statements, as of December 2015,” the report stated. On January 13, Al Anwar said the company received, through Oman Arab Bank, a preliminary offer from a party to acquire a substantial stake of Al Anwar Holdings in Falcon Insurance. In another disclosure statement, Al Anwar Holding said the company’s board approved the purchase of a plot of land at
EXPORT FIRMS
Supporting small B1 companies in Iran < FROM
Khedri Jahan Darya Company provides marine transportation services in Iran’s territorial waters, the Gulf, the Caspian Sea, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea. It also offers customs clearance and multimodal transportation services. The company owns a fleet capable of transporting dry and refrigerated containers and can handle hazardous and bulk cargos. Khedri said the company has launched an export management company to support small and medium-sized companies. Stress on exports These companies account for around 70 per cent of Iran’s market and their products need to be exported, he said, adding that they do not have many employees and it may not be financially viable for them to export their products directly given the size of their budget. “So we are paving the way to do marketing for these companies so that they can sell their products in Oman,” he stated. Asked about other projects that have been implemented in cooperation with Oman, Khedri said the company has helped Oman establish a first-of-itskind hydroponic greenhouse, which allows for growing plants using only water, without soil.
It has been a successful project and will hopefully be expanded with the cooperation of the Omanis, he added. New opportunities In addition, Mohammad Mohammadzadeh, chairman of Rah Abrisham Marine Shipping Agency, which is affiliated with Marine Silk Road Holding, said the existing opportunities in Iran and Oman need to be introduced to both sides. There is great untapped potential for cooperation between the two countries in various areas which should be utilised, he noted. Rah Abrisham Marine Shipping Agency is a representative of liner shipping services between Iran and Oman. It offers comprehensive customs clearance and transportation services in the ports of Iran and Oman. It provides specialised consultancy services for commercial activities in Iran, Oman and Northeast Africa as well as transport, customs clearance, warehousing and transit services in Iran and Oman. The company also offers reexport services from and to Iran, break-bulk services, cruise services, cargo handling, husbandry services, clearing and forwarding and roll-on/roll-off (RORO) services.
Azaiba North, held in the books of its Falcon Insurance Company, for a cash consideration of OMR1.90 million. “This being a related party transaction, is subject to approval from the board of directors and annual general meeting of Falcon Insurance,” the statement added. Al Anwar Holding shares surged by 8.5 per cent to close at 166 baisas, amid 6.04 million shares changing hands on the Muscat Securities Market.
line at the current build rate of 30 aircraft a year, swelling a backlog that was sufficient to support output only through about 2018. Airbus is seeking cost cuts to drop the annual break-even level to 25 or fewer, further eking out production. “The new orders may help push back the need for a new-engine version of the A380, thus encouraging potential airliner buyers to move forward more quickly with orders,” said Yan Derocles, an analyst at Oddo Securities in Paris with a ‘buy’ rating on Airbus stock. Japan breakthrough The Iranian commitment, likely to be for flag-carrier Iran Air, is especially welcome since Airbus has been seeking to sell the A380 to companies beyond the bestknown first-tier operators for years, with only limited success. The carrier was a global player in the 1970s and even placed an
order for the supersonic Concorde, which was canceled after the 1979 revolution. The last new airline buyer for the A380, No. 2 Russian carrier Transaero, collapsed last year after agreeing to buy four planes. Confirmation of Japan’s ANA deal also comes as a coup, with the Asian nation not only a long-established customer for Boeing but also a leading market for the 747 jumbo, which remains in production as the 747-8 Intercontinental. A bid to penetrate Japan in the past failed when Skymark Airlines went in to bankruptcy protection with six A380s on order. While two new orders received by themselves save the world’s biggest commercial aircraft, the deal signed by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani points to new opportunities. Airbus will now likely step up sales campaigns in other Islamic nations. - Bloomberg News