(Reuters) – Boeing is nearing a potential sale of some two dozen 777X jets to Korean Air in a roughly $4 billion to $6 billion deal that could be finalised as early as July’s Farnborough Airshow, industry sources said.
South Korea’s largest carrier has been in talks over a potential return to its traditional supplier of long-haul aircraft for months after placing a surprise order for 33 A350 jets from Boeing’s European rival Airbus in March.
The sources said the potential new order could involve as many as 20 to 30 of the 777X aircraft, which are worth some $198 million each after typical market discounts, according to estimated delivery prices from Cirium Ascend.
“We are discussing with manufacturers but nothing has been confirmed yet,” an airline spokesperson said.
Boeing said it does not comment on commercial discussions and referred any queries on Korean’s intentions to the airline.
(Reporting by Allison Lampert, Lisa Barrington, Tim Hepher; Editing by Richard Chang)
