Iran reaches agreement to buy 100 Boeing aircraft

Agence France Presse
A Boeing 747 of Iran's national airline is seen at Mehrabad International Airport in Tehran. (AP)

TEHRAN: Iran said it has reached an agreement with American aerospace giant Boeing to purchase 100 aircraft to renew its ageing fleet, though the deal must still be approved by the US government.
Iran has ordered about 200 planes from three Western manufacturers since mid-January, when economic sanctions were lifted following a deal on Tehran’s nuclear program.
Ali Abedzadeh, head of Iran’s civil aviation authority, said in remarks published by the daily Iran newspaper that an agreement had been reached with Boeing for the purchase but said the deal was contingent on US Treasury permission.
Deputy Transport Minister Asghar Fakhrieh Kashan, however, said he hoped the initial accord could be completed within a month.
Many of Iran’s ageing civil aviation fleet — 230 planes out of 250 according to Abedzadeh — are in desperate need of replacement.
Boeing has fallen behind the race to restock Iran because as an American company it has to obtain the green light from the US Office of Foreign Assets Control before completing any contracts with Iran.
It has requested final authorization for the sale, according to Abedzadeh.
He said the contract’s reported value of $17 billion (15 billion euros) was not final and that more details will be provided after further negotiations.
Boeing confirmed earlier that it was in talks with Iranian airlines interested in buying its passenger planes.
“We have been engaged in discussions with Iranian airlines approved by the (US government) about potential purchases of Boeing commercial passenger airplaned and services,” the company said.
In February, the American company was granted approval from the US government to explore resuming sales to Iran after sanctions were partially lifted in January.
Iran in January reached a memorandum of understanding with European aircraft manufacturer Airbus for the purchase of 118 planes.
That agreement is also still pending permission from the US Treasury, since more than 10 percent of Airbus components are of American origin.