Quebecers will have to be patient before their investment in the A220 aircraft, the former CSeries, shows a return. The book value of the program does not reflect its economic potential, assures the Minister of the Economy, Pierre Fitzgibbon, who attended an official visit on Tuesday highlighting the expansion of Airbus Canada’s facilities in Mirabel.
Airbus will be able to buy out the 25% stake from the Quebec government in 2030. By then, Airbus will have accelerated its production rate to 14 aircraft per month by mid-decade. The current rate is six devices. “I have very good hopes that the value of the investment during the sale will be greater than all the money invested,” said the minister on the sidelines of the visit.
Before the government added US$300 million to the adventure last February, Investissement Québec estimated that the value of the program was nil as of March 31, 2021, according to the most recent estimates. In 2016, the Couillard government had paid the equivalent of 1.3 billion, when the device was owned by Bombardier. The government’s total investment is nearly $1.68 billion.
However, this theoretical value is governed by accounting rules and does not take into account the economic value of the program once Airbus production has reached full cruising speed in mid-decade. “The order book is very well filled [740 appareils], said the minister. Now, they have to be delivered, they have to be executed, prices have to come down. »
Airbus Canada President and CEO Benoît Schultz said civil aviation is a “fairly long cycle” industry. “We develop an aircraft, it takes time. It takes almost ten years to have an aircraft on the market at maturity. It takes a bit of time to get it up to speed, it takes a few years to get it to its production rate, and from there, we’re on a product that delivers the results we expect. »
A new area in Mirabel
At the start of the year, Airbus Canada commissioned a new zone at its Mirabel facilities in the Laurentians. The zone is intended for the assembly of sub-components of the A220 (pre-FAL).
“Simply put, this pre-FAL will allow us to optimize production cycles, accelerate production and ultimately achieve the ramp-up from 6 aircraft per month today to 14 aircraft per month towards the middle of the decade,” Schultz explained during a press briefing.
While Western sanctions against Russia disrupt the activities of several multinationals, the leader assures that the geopolitical crisis has no effect on the ramp-up of production, for the moment, both on the side of customers and suppliers . “At this stage, we can say that we have not detected any major concerns. Of course, it’s a daily job. »
The area has an area of 11,600 m2, the equivalent of “over 7 rinks” in the NHL. This is the first area dedicated to the pre-assembly of Airbus components outside of Europe. Airbus Canada has 2,500 employees in Mirabel.