SpiceJet in talks with Boeing, Airbus for $11-billion jet deal

-Budget airline SpiceJet  is in talks with Boeing and Airbus Group to acquire about 100 new narrow-body jets, its chief financial officer Kiran Koteshwar said on Wednesday, in a deal worth about $11 billion at list prices.

"SpiceJet wants to buy more Airbus A320 neo and Boeing 737 Max aircraft", Kiran Koteshwar told Reuters. He said the company plans to place an order by the end of this financial year and would look to raise fresh equity or debt to pay for the planes once it had decided how many to buy.

"We have to place an order so we have a long-term business plan in place. The focus is now on sizeable growth," he said.

SpiceJet's plans for expansion come after India's second-largest low-cost carrier almost collapsed late last year, before it was bailed out by new chairman Ajay Singh.

The company's stock gained 6.57 per cent to Rs 28.35  its 52-week high  at the BSE.

(Reuters)