Kuwait Airways to buy 10 Boeing 777s for $3.3bn

Kuwait Airways Co said Thursday it has agreed to buy 10 Boeing 777-300ERs, with delivery to begin in two years, as Boeing put the deal's value at $3.3 billion.
"KAC has agreed to an offer by Boeing to buy 10 Boeing 777-300ER jets," chairwoman Rasha al-Rumi said in a statement carried by the official KUNA news agency, which gave no details on the value of the deal.
The offer was accepted after securing all necessary official approvals and the contract will be signed soon, Rumi said.
Delivery of the long-range, wide-body planes will begin in November 2016.
Boeing confirmed the deal, saying it will cost $3.3 billion.
"Boeing is pleased that Kuwait Airways has announced its intent to purchase 10 777-300ER (Extended Range) airplanes worth $3.3 billion at current list prices," the company said in a statement posted on its website.
"We appreciate the start of a new partnership with Kuwait Airways," said Marty Bentrott, vice president of sales for Middle East, Russia and Central Asia, Boeing Commercial Airplanes.
In February, loss-making state-owned KAC signed contracts with Airbus to buy 25 planes in its first order for new aircraft in more than 20 years.
The airline, which is slated for eventual privatisation, has an ageing fleet of 15 Airbuses and two Boeings.
Under the deal, KAC will buy 15 A320neo aircraft and 10 A350-900s, with an option to buy five more of each. Delivery is to commence in 2019.
Under a second contract, KAC will lease seven A320s and five A330s, with delivery due to start next month.
The value of the deals was not disclosed but local media put the figure at around $4 billion (2.9 billion euros).
In addition to modernising its fleet, the KAC wants to become profitable before offering a 40 percent stake to a local or foreign investor.
It has posted losses in all but one of the past 21 years, amounting to a total of more than $2.7 billion (two billion euros), which has been covered by the government.