Ethiopian Airlines, Sanad Aerotech sign deal to develop MRO business in Africa

February 06, 2020: Ethiopian Airlines and Sanad Aerotech (Sanad) have joined forces to create a maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) Center of Excellence in Africa.

Sanad Aerotech is a part of Sanad - a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mubadala Investment Company (Mubadala).

Signed at MRO Africa, the agreement paves the way for Sanad and Ethiopian Airlines to collaborate and maximise on untapped MRO business opportunities in the region. The initial phase of the agreement will see Sanad and Ethiopian Airlines establishing a Centre of Excellence for the repair and overhaul of auxiliary power units (APU) in Addis Ababa and will start with APU's used on B737 and A320 aircraft. This will pave the way for future collaboration in the provision of APU MRO services to other African airlines.

The strategic alliance also has future aspirations to expand capabilities to include aircraft components and aircraft engine MRO.

The latest agreement between Sanad and Ethiopian Airlines builds on a 2018 memorandum of understanding (MoU) to collaborate on APU capabilities, among others.

Mansoor Janahi, Sanad Aerotech CEO, said, "Sanad continues to push ahead with its strategy of expanding a global presence through strategic alliances with well-established companies that share the same vision for quality and excellence. Our strategic alliance with Ethiopian Airlines goes beyond this announcement, as it provides greater opportunities for us to jointly collaborate and develop mutually beneficial activities across the entire African continent."

Ethiopian Airlines Group chief executive officer, Tewolde GebreMariam said, "This Strategic Alliance with Sanad Aerotech is consistent with Ethiopian Airlines' vision of making its MRO facility the leading MRO service provider in Africa through strategic partnerships with OEMs and selected international MRO service providers. Our MRO facility is ready to provide cost-effective and efficient overhaul services with standard turnaround time (TAT) to APUs of African Airlines. Ethiopian would like to expand this cooperation with Sanad Aerotech to cover other aircraft components."

Sanad has built strategic relationships with leading international OEMs including Rolls-Royce, General Electric (GE), and International Aero Engines (IAE), which have enabled Sanad to deliver competitive aircraft engine MRO expertise throughout a variety of engine maintenance service programmes across multiple engine platforms.