Air India hopes to raise $990 million (₹6,500 crore) through the sale and lease back (SLB) arrangement for nine Boeing 787 aircraft with Duetsche Bank.
The Air India officials indicated that the funds raised through the SLB route will be used to repay loans that the airline had taken for acquiring the nine aircraft.
The deal with Duetsche Bank is expected to be concluded by the middle of next month.
Globally, airlines use the SLB route to sell the aircraft to the sellor and then acquire it back on lease for a long period of time and is looked as a method to unlock the asset value, the official said.
The SLB is likely to be for 12 years with an option to renew by another three years, officials said.
Fleet expansionAir India ordered 27 Boeing 787 aircraft of which 21 have already joined the fleet.
The remaining six are expected to join the fleet by 2018.
The airline is one of the largest operators of the Boeing 787 aircraft in the Asian continent with the aircraft flying on routes to the UK, Europe, Russia Far East, South-East Asia and the Gulf.
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