Airbus quashed expectations of a possible tie-up with Bombardier late on Tuesday, hours after it was reported that the latter had offered Airbus an investment into its CSeries jet program.
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Following the Airbus Group’s statement indicating that the Group held talks with Bombardier regarding certain business opportunities, Bombardier confirmed that such discussions occurred and are no longer being pursued.
A CSeries stake sale would enable Bombardier to lean on financially stronger Airbus to help finance marketing of the CSeries. A person familiar with the situation said Airbus had ended the talks shortly after they became public.
The company is already looking at selling a minority stake in its railway products division.
Bombardier said it would continue to “explore initiatives, such as a potential participation in industry consolidation”, but gave no further details. The shares are still worth less than a quarter of their value in July 2008, when Bombardier officially launched the CSeries jet.
Meanwhile, the 110-seat CS100 version of the CSeries family is nearing certification later this year and entry into service in the first half of next year with Swiss global Air Lines, followed by the debut of the CS300 six months later.
Bombardier couldn’t be immediately reached for comment, but Reuters said neither company would comment on the “market rumour”. Bombardier also plans an initial public offering for its rail unit this year to boost liquidity.
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A source described the discussions are exploratory.
