Budget carrier SpiceJet has placed an order for 42 737 MAX jets with the US aircraft maker Boeing for $4.4 billion (Rs 26,000 crore). As the news of this deal came to public, its shars surged 7.49 per cent to Rs 15.20 in intra-day trade but the SpiceJet scrip finally closed at Rs 14.61, up 3.32 per cent, on the BSE.
On the volume front, 45.47 lakh shares of the company changed hands on the BSE during the day. The two sides signed an memorandum of understanding (MoU) to this effect at the inaugural day of the 4th edition of the India Aviation Conference here. Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh inaugurated the 5-day long event. “SpiceJet greatly values the ties we have built over the years with Boeing. The Boeing Next-Generation 737 aircraft, the mainstay of the fleet ever since SpiceJet started operations, have vindicated our choice by their endurance, reliability and cost effectiveness,” said Sl Narayanan, Group CFO for The Sun Group.
“The induction of Boeing 737 MAX will further modernise our fleet, improve customer experience, and ensure that we operate the most efficient fleet well into the future,” he added. The 737 MAX brings the most advanced engine technologies to the world’s best-selling airplane, building on the strengths of Next-Generation 737, he said. It incorporates the latest-technology CFM International lEAP-1B engines to deliver the highest efficiency, reliability and passenger comfort in the single-aisle market.
“The order is a tremendous endorsement of the 737 MAX’s unsurpassed fuel efficiency,” said Dinesh Keskar, senior vice president of Asia Pacific and India Sales, Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Development of the 737 MAX is on schedule with firm configuration of the airplane achieved in July 2013. First flight is scheduled in 2016 with deliveries to customers beginning in 2017. Already a market success, the 737 MAX has accumulated more than 1,800 orders to date and will have 8 percent lower per-seat operating costs than the future competition.
With Thursday announcement, SpiceJet has ordered 90 airplanes directly from Boeing, which includes the 737-800, 737-900ER and now the 737 MAX. To date, SpiceJet has taken delivery of 31 of the airplanes.