(AOF) – Latecoere, a leading partner of the main international aeronautical manufacturers, announces that it has taken a major step in its recapitalization with the signing and approval. The Commercial Court of Toulouse has signed and approved a conciliation protocol between its reference shareholder Searchlight Capital Partners LP (“SCP”), the European Investment Bank (“EIB”), and its lenders under certain Guaranteed Loans by the State, taking up the terms of the agreement in principle concluded on May 8, 2023.
This recapitalization agreement was negotiated and concluded under the aegis of the Interministerial Committee for Industrial Restructuring (CIRI).
Latecoere and its stakeholders have obtained the approval of the definitive recapitalization agreement for an amount of 283 million euros, including a guaranteed capital increase of at least 100 million euros and a reduction of an amount of 183 million euros of its financial debt.
This agreement allows Latecoere to rely on a solid structure to continue to support the growth of its customers, and to meet its increased working capital needs linked to the recovery of the aerospace industry.
This agreement, which also enables the implementation of the Group’s industrial objectives, confirms the central role played by France and Toulouse in its strategy.
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The end of a duopoly?
For several decades, the American Boeing and the European Airbus have shared 99% of the world market for airliners with more than 110 seats. This market weighs more than 100 billion dollars per year. However, this duopoly seems to be weakened in 2022 for several reasons. First, for the first time, two medium-haul single-aisle aircraft, the Chinese Comac’s C919 and the Russian Irkut’s MC-21, are about to enter service. Added to this is the Boeing 737 MAX crisis. With the cessation of deliveries of this aircraft between 2019 and 2021, the production balance has been broken. In 2021 Boeing posted 340 deliveries, with Airbus remaining well ahead with 611.