ANGARSK (Irkutsk Region), October 25 (RIA Novosti) - The European Aeronautic Defense and Space Company (EADS) plans to convert its shares in the Irkut aircraft company into United Aircraft Corporation (UAC) shares, a first deputy premier said on Thursday.
"All private shareholders, including EADS, plan to convert Irkut shares into United Aircraft Corporation stock," Sergei Ivanov told the press in Angarsk, east Siberia.
Ivanov said the "two largest aircraft corporations", EADS and the UAC, will now own each other's shares.
He said the Russian authorities had decided to transfer 5% of EADS shares owned by VTB Bank (RTS: VTBR) to the UAC, which was established by a government commission for the integration of Russian aviation companies in November 2006.
The Irkut aircraft manufacturing company has begun the shipment of Airbus À320 components. Some of them have been successfully tested and integrated into A320 batch production in the city of Meaulte, France.
The first agreements for the production of various À320 components were signed in December 2004, and are worth $200 million over ten years. Estimated order portfolio may reach $1.9 billion by 2015.
As of this December, the components will be made of Russian parts. Annual shipments from 2010 onwards are planned to be worth at least $100 billion, with a further goal of a turnover of $300 million a year.
The UAC unites the Sukhoi Company, Aviaexport, Ilyushin Finance Co., Irkut, Ilyushin aircraft company, Tupolev, and other companies.
The UAC controls 50.09% of Irkut stocks, of which 38.2% consists of private shares in the UAC authorized capital, and 11.89% is owned by the Sukhoi Company.
