The Eurofighter aircraft are produced by Italy's Finmeccanica,
BAE Systems and Airbus
Kuwait signs deal to buy Eurofighter jets worth $9bn
ROME, September 11, 2015
Kuwait has signed a memorandum of understanding to buy Eurofighter jets in a deal worth up to €8 billion ($9 billion), Italian industry sources said.
The Eurofighter aircraft are produced by Italy's Finmeccanica, BAE Systems and Airbus.
The sources said the 20-year-long deal with Kuwait would be finalised "in a few weeks.”
The news, first reported on Italian daily Corriere della Sera's web site, drove up Finmeccanica shares by more than four per cent. The company, which has a 36 per cent stake in the Eurofighter programme, could not be immediately reached for comment.
An industry source said Finmeccanica was the leading partner of the Kuwait deal and expected to get over 50 per cent of its value.
The agreement, which includes future maintenance services, was for 28 jets, of which 22 single seaters and six double seaters, the source added.
Kuwait and other Gulf and Middle Eastern countries are looking to acquire new high-tech military equipment to protect themselves from neighbouring Iran and internal threats unleashed by the 2011 Arab Spring uprising. - Reuters
