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Finmeccanica and BAE Close to Striking a New Deal
The much-discussed military avionics project between Finmeccanica
and BAE Systems is very close to being a reality, says Finmeccanica
president and CEO Pier-Francesco Guarguaglini. What's more he
says, the new joint venture-often referred to as AeroSystems-will
be "colossal" with annual revenues of 1.7 billion euros.
"When we first announced our intention to do this a lot of
people in the press were not very optimistic," says Guarguaglini,
"but there has been some progress. I can tell you that we
will sign an agreement, not in six months or so, but sooner then
that, and it will be a pillar of our future business. The new
venture will be a strategic alliance. We will come together with
different points of view but similar objectives. It has all been
heavily discussed."
The Italian contribution will include Alenia Marconi Systems (already
a 50:50 joint venture with BAE Systems), Galileo Avionica and
Marconi Selenia (the former Marconi Mobile). Beyond this the company
sees that increased co-operation with BAE Systems may open new
opportunities for the two to join forces on future training aircraft,
reviving memories of the failed EMAC plan. "The initial contribution
will be about 30% to 35% from Finmeccanica, but the fact is that
our contribution is important," said Guarguaglini.
By Robert
Hewson
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