Scandinavian Airlines System Is Spending $4.4B On Airbus Aircraft And The Rolls-Royce Engines To Power Them

Scandinavian Airlines System (SAS), the carrier that’s majority-owned by the governments of Sweden, Denmark and Norway, is spending $4.3 billion in two separate deals to bulk up its fleet: one to buy 12 planes from Airbus and another to purchase the engines for the aircraft from Rolls-Royce Holding PLC (LON:RR).

Though a preliminary deal was announced Tuesday, EADS NV (EPA:EAD), the Netherlands-based maker of Airbus, will deliver eight Airbus A350-900s and four A330-300 Enhanced jets in a $3.3 billion deal that includes some upgrades to SAS’ existing fleet, according to Reuters.

"It will truly increase our competitiveness and strengthen our customer offering," SAS CEO Rickard Gustafson said of the fleet renewal. "Furthermore, we are able to significantly bring down fuel consumption, which will lower our costs and support our goals to reduce emissions."

Meanwhile, the British aircraft engine maker announced Tuesday that SAS has agreed to purchase eight Trent XWB and four Trent 700 engines for these planes in a $1 billion deal. Rolls-Royce says it has already received or delivered orders for 1,400 Trent XWBs, made specifically for the A350. SAS currently has four A330s powered by Rolls-Royce’s Trent 700 engines.