Belfast's Spirit AeroSystems losses hit €430m
Spirit AeroSystems
'
Belfast
business topped €430 million last year, new figures show.
The aerospace multinational owns Shorts Brothers in Belfast, which rival aircraft manufacturers
Airbus
and
Boeing
look poised to share in a break up of the company sparked by the latter's bid for Spirit.
Accounts filed by Short Brothers plc show it lost $504.1 million (€436 million) last year, about 50 per cent more than the $338 million loss the company reported for 2023.
The historic plant, which makes wings and other parts for aircraft manufacturers, has been caught up in US giant Boeing's $4.7 billion takeover of Spirit Aerospace Systems.
READ MORE
Boeing recently confirmed that it would take over part of the Shorts facility as a consequence.
That means it will share the Belfast complex with European manufacturer Airbus, its main rival in global commercial aircraft production.
Airbus agreed earlier this year to take over part of the business that makes wings for its A220 jets, and said it would, if necessary, take on another element that produces part of the fuselages for the same model.
About people 3,500 people work in Shorts. The Airbus deal secured 1,500 of those jobs, but doubts remain about the remaining 2,000, who work on making parts for Boeing and other aerospace manufacturers including Bombardier and Rolls-Royce.
Boeing's statement confirming its move earlier this month gave no indication about its plans for that section of the workforce.
The Belfast plant's former owner, Canadian manufacturer, Bombardier, which is also among its customers, had been in the running to take on the parts of the business that were not part of the Airbus agreement.
Shorts Brothers figures show that turnover grew 11 per cent last year to almost $805 million, from $723 million in 2023.
A $260 million charge for the likely cost of fulfilling contracts after taking inflation, disruption to supplies and other costs, added to its costs, as did more than $140 million in exceptional costs, including a fall in the value of assets.
Net liabilities grew $488 million to $944 million on December 31st. The company blamed onerous contract provisions, asset impairments, intercompany loans and other costs for this.
An assessment of the company's ability to continue as a going concern notes that it has commitments to deliver wings to Airbus up to September next year.
It points out that high costs and other barriers make it difficult for aircraft manufacturers to switch suppliers during the course of a contract.
Airbus has already indicated that it intends to continue supporting the Shorts operation.
Ownership of the Belfast site has passed from the UK government to Bombardier and then to Spirit over decades.
The current carve up stems from Boeing's move to reacquire Spirit, which the US giant off in 2005.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Post
11 minutes ago
- Irish Post
O'Leary criticises Irish government's development and infrastructure plan
RYANAIR CEO Michael O'Leary has criticised the Irish government's infrastructure plan, accusing it of wasting public money while obstructing airline growth at Dublin Airport. Speaking after Ryanair reported a record €820 million net profit for the first quarter of its fiscal year, which is more than double from the same period last year, O'Leary said the government's inaction on lifting the airport's passenger cap was stifling growth and pushing business abroad. 'Here is infrastructure that is built and paid for that they won't allow us to use,' O'Leary said, referring to the terminal and runway capacity at Dublin Airport, which remains capped at 32 million passengers annually. The airline boss labelled the government's forthcoming €100 billion infrastructure plan as 'smoke and mirrors' from 'a government that wastes money' and accused Transport Minister Darragh O'Brien of 'dither, delay and indecision.' As a result, O'Leary warned that Ryanair is changing its expansion plans to other European markets, particularly Poland, due to the growth restrictions in Dublin. Ryanair's latest quarterly results showed impressive gains, buoyed by a recovery in airfares and increased traffic. Revenue grew 20% to €4.34 billion, with a 21% jump in average fares. Passenger numbers rose by 4% to nearly 58 million, and unit revenue per passenger climbed by 15%, while costs increased just 1%. Fuel costs were cushioned by effective hedging, providing stability in a volatile energy market. Despite the upbeat earnings, O'Leary acknowledged that passenger growth will be constrained for the rest of the fiscal year due to delayed aircraft deliveries from Boeing. Ryanair is still waiting on 29 long-delayed 737 jets originally due by spring. Boeing has now asked Ryanair to accept delivery as late as 2026, though O'Leary said this would strain the company's cash flow. He also confirmed that the new 737 Max 10 jets are expected to receive certification by the end of this year. Ryanair and Boeing are exploring options to mitigate the risk of tariffs on US-built aircraft due to a potential EU-US trade dispute. O'Leary said Boeing would be contractually responsible for any tariffs and hinted at the possibility of registering some aircraft in Britain, where no such tariffs apply under the British-US agreement. O'Leary also recently caused a stir by confirming that Ryanair staff are paid commission for catching passengers with oversized cabin bags. Employees earn €1.50 per oversized bag, with monthly commissions reportedly capped at €80, although O'Leary suggested this cap may rise. 'We're thinking of increasing it,' he said, calling oversized bags 'a scourge' and saying strict enforcement is necessary given the limited baggage space on full flights. He dismissed proposed EU regulations that would entitle all passengers to bring a 7 kg cabin bag and a small personal item free of charge, casting doubt on their viability. O'Leary said Ryanair 'cautiously expects to recover almost all of last year's 7% full-year fare decline,' which could lead to further profit growth. However, he warned that risks remain, citing tariff threats and geopolitical instability in Ukraine and the Middle East. Despite these challenges, the airline remains confident in its long-term growth if it is allowed to make full use of the infrastructure already in place at Dublin Airport. 'Until the government gets serious about aviation and stops playing politics, Ireland will continue to lose out,' he said. See More: Darragh O'Brien, Michael O'Leary, NDP, Ryanair
Irish Times
14 minutes ago
- Irish Times
Liverpool agree €92m deal for Hugo Ekitike, taking spending to almost €350m
Liverpool are to take their summer spending to almost €350 million after agreeing to pay €80m plus €11.5m in add-ons for the Eintracht Frankfurt striker Hugo Ekitike. Ekitike emerged as the Premier League champions' favoured number nine after they received no encouragement regarding their interest in Newcastle's Alexander Isak. Liverpool accelerated talks with Eintracht late last week, having been granted permission to discuss personal terms with the player. The £10m in add-ons for the France under-21 international relate to individual and club achievements. The deal amounts to €91m, €9m less than the €100m release clause in the forward's contract. Ekitike is set to become the champions' seventh signing of an ambitious summer transfer window, after Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Milos Kerkez, Giorgi Mamardashvili, Armin Pecsi and Freddie Woodman. READ MORE The 23-year-old Frenchman has agreed a six-year contract in principle and is expected to join Arne Slot's squad later this week on their 10-day pre-season tour of Hong Kong and Japan. Liverpool arrived in Hong Kong on Monday in advance of their friendly against Milan on Saturday. Ekitike is scheduled to undergo a medical in the UK on Tuesday before finalising his contract and flying to Hong Kong. Liverpool's sporting director, Richard Hughes, and members of their medical staff remained in the UK to complete the transfer. Ekitike scored 22 goals and made 12 assists in all competitions last season, his first in the Bundesliga, as Eintracht qualified for the Champions League. He emerged as a leading transfer target this summer for Newcastle, who had a £70m bid rejected last week, but made it clear his preference was to join Slot's side. - Guardian
Irish Daily Mirror
35 minutes ago
- Irish Daily Mirror
Ryanair bag size crackdown coming as €1.50 staff bonus could be raised
Ryanair is considering increasing a bonus paid to staff for identifying passengers' oversized luggage, its chief executive said. The airline currently pays staff around €1.50 for intercepting customers who are bringing bags that are too big onto the aircraft. It is reported that the bonus is capped at about €80 for each staff member per month. Passengers are charged a fee of up to €75 for bringing luggage that is larger than they paid for while booking their journey. Ryanair currently includes a small carry-on bag - capped at a size of 40x20x25cm and weight of 10kg - with every ticket. Passengers must pay a fee if they want to bring larger luggage, or if they want to bring multiple bags. Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary said today that summer fares would, on average, be the same rate as 2023 - but added that he expects a boost in profitability for the airline by "controlling costs". Members of the European Parliament are pushing for airlines to allow passengers to be allowed to bring on free an on-board personal item and small hand luggage. However, Mr O'Leary predicted the proposal will not come into law due to a lack of space. Speaking to the business news on RTE's Morning Ireland, he said: "We're flying largely full flights, about half the passengers can bring two bags and the other half can only bring one - because that's all that fits in the plane. "We're already struggling with that amount of baggage. That's one of the reasons we are so aggressive about eliminating the scourge of passengers with excess baggage." Mr O'Leary said more than 99.9% of passengers comply with baggage rules, with "sizers" located within the airport. He said: "We are happy to incentivise our (staff) with a share of those excess baggage fees, which we think will decline over the coming year or two." The chief executive added: "It is about €1.50 per bag and we're thinking of increasing it, so we eliminate it." Meanwhile, Mr O'Leary predicted that US President Donald Trump will "chicken out" of introducing increased tariffs for Europe on August 1. Asked if he anticipated tariffs applying to Boeing aircraft being delivered to the airline, he said: "Trump will probably chicken out again, I suspect the August 1 will get moved to September or October. We have taken delivery of five aircraft in the first quarter but no tariffs applied to those aircraft "There is a risk of tariffs being introduced by the Europeans or the Americans in some tit-for-tat in August, September or October – but Boeing will have to pay those tariffs." Mr O'Leary said Ryanair would work with Boeing to ensure no tariffs are applied to commercial aircraft, which he said would be bad for the manufacturer's exports to Europe as well as Airbus's sales to the US - as well as the Irish aircraft leasing industry. He added: "There's increasing optimism, though, in Washington that commercial aircraft will be exempt from any tariffs – if Trump ever gets around to actually imposing tariffs." Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest news from the Irish Mirror direct to your inbox: Sign up here.
