From the Newsroom
São Paulo – Embraer announced yesterday (16) that the first unit of their ERJ 145 regional jet produced in China has made its maiden flight. The airplane was produced by Harbin Embraer Aircraft Industry Company, a joint venture established in December last year between Embraer and Chinese companies Harbin Aircraft and Hafei Aviation, belonging to the China Aviation Industry Corporation II, to produce "mainly" airplanes for the Chinese market.
According to Embraer, when the factory starts operating at full throttle, it is expected that it may deliver one 145 family airplane per month.
The company, however, does not announce when this should occur, neither does it inform the price of the aircraft on the Chinese market. It also refuses to inform the average price of the same model produced in Brazil.
The 145 family was released in 1996, and is made up of regional jets capable of carrying between 37 and 50 passengers. According to company information, 750 units of these airplanes have already been produced in Brazil.
When the company announced the construction of the factory in China, last year, Embraer stated that investment for creation of the joint venture would total US$ 25 million. Today, according to a company spokesperson, Embraer owns 51% of Harbin Embraer capital. However, the Brazilian company does not state how much was really invested in the business.
The company states that Harbin Embraer currently employs 152 people, and it is estimated that in July next year there should be a total of 180 employees. Initial estimates, announced last December, were that the joint venture should employ up to 220 people, but it did not mention up to when this figure would be reached.
Information announced at the signing of the contract shows that the company, located in the Chinese city of Harbin, should cover an area of 24,000 square meters. Yesterday Embraer stated that in the 11 months that have gone by since the formation of the joint venture, "important Hafei installations have been remodeled."
Embraer evaluates that the Chinese market should absorb 635 regional jets with a capacity for transport of between 30 and 120 passengers over the next 20 years, 7.5% of future global demand that, according to the company, will be 8,450 airplanes in 20 years.
