Spirit Aerosystems to Divest Subang Operations to Airbus Following Merger with Boeing

KUALA LUMPUR: Spirit Aerosystems, which announced merger plans with The Boeing Company, today said that it will divest its business and operations in Subang that support Airbus programmes to Airbus.

Spirit today announced it has entered into a definitive merger agreement under which The Boeing Company will acquire Spirit for US$37.25 per share in Boeing, in an all shares deal.

Spirit also announced that it entered into a binding term sheet with Airbus SE. Under the term sheet, the parties will continue to negotiate in good faith to enter into definitive agreements for Airbus to acquire certain Spirit assets that serve Airbus programmes

The facility in Subang has been assembling aerostructures since 2009.

It is located on a 75-acre site adjacent to the runway at the Sultan Abdul Aziz Shah Airport in Subang.

In an announcement on its website, the Spirit said it will also divest business and operations in Prestwick, Scotland that support Airbus programmes, and  Belfast, Northern Ireland to Airbus.

The Spirit AeroSystems Malaysia site was founded out of a need for expansion and growth at the company's Prestwick, U.K., facility.

Since its establishment in 2007, Spirit has continued to expand the Malaysia operations, boost capabilities and ramp up production of aerostructures for some of the world's premier aircraft.

According to its website, work at Spirit has expanded at a rate of 20-30 percent each year in Malaysia.

Reuters reported that the Spirit deal is part of a broader framework between Boeing and European rival, Airbus, to separate Spirit facilities.