State Corporation Rostec, Italy’s Finmeccanica and the oil company Rosneft have signed a tripartite agreement on strategic partnership. Under the agreement, the HeliVert plant near Moscow, a joint enterprise between Russian Helicopters and AgustaWestland (subsidiaries of Rostec and Finmeccanica respectively) will launch production of medium AW189 helicopters, HeliVert currently produces medium commercial AW 139 helicopters (a lighter class) for Russia and CIS countries.

Rosneft, the world’s largest publicly-traded oil company, is joining the project as a new partner. Rosneft is slated to become the first customer for the AW189. By 2025, HeliVert is due to produce and deliver 160 helicopters to Rosneft. A preliminary phase of the cooperation will see the introduction of a first batch of 2 AW189 helicopters, followed by additional 8 units, to allow the operator to familiarize with the new technology and to set up the needed and appropriate infrastructures to get ready once Rosneft is ready for full scale operations with the new model.

The strategic partnership agreement was signed by Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov, Finmeccanica Group head Mauro Moretti and Rosneft CEO Igor Sechin.

“Production of the AW189 within Russia opens up new opportunities for continuing our successful engagement with our Italian partners – the Finmeccanica Group and AgustaWestland. The project will be implemented on the basis of an exclusive licence agreement giving HeliVert the right to produce these helicopters for sale in Russia and to CIS countries,” Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov said. “Attracting the leading company in Russia’s oil sector, Rosneft, to join this project will give a new impetus to the further development of our joint venture, and to our expanded production.”

“We are proud of this agreement – Finmeccanica CEO and General Manager Mauro Moretti said – which provides further evidence of the modernity and competitiveness of our Family of new generation civil helicopters. The entry of the civil AW189 into the Russian market, following the success of the AW 139, is a major result for our strategy aimed at a further growth in a market which shows huge potential for helicopter operations”.

After the agreement was signed, Igor Sechin stressed “Developing shelf projects is Rosneft’s strategic goal. Attaining this goal is impossible without the latest Arctic and maritime technology, oil and gas platforms, and the latest aircraft. We are pleased with the agreement reached, thanks to which we are able to build strategic cooperation in this vital sphere.”

The multirole AW189 AgustaWestland is an intermediate class of helicopter, with a maximum take-off weight of 8.3 tonnes. This versatile helicopter was designed specifically for offshore use and search-and-rescue operations, and also to carry out cargo and passenger transport roles. The standard AW189 cabin is designed to carry 16 passengers. It has a maximum cruising speed of 287 km/hr, a maximum range of 600 nautical miles (1111 km) with additional fuel tanks.

Launching assembly of the AW189 is another major project that will be implemented at HeliVert. The joint venture has been assembling medium twin-engined AW139s, with a take-off weight of 6300/6800 kg since June 2012. In December that year, the first Russian-made AW 139 took to the skies on its maiden flight. In autumn 2014, Russian Helicopters and AgustaWestland announced the creation of a maintenance and repair centre for AW 139 helicopters. Today, the centre provides a comprehensive maintenance and repair service to various models of medium AW 139 helicopters made in Russia or Italy.

HeliVert is a joint venture between Russian Helicopters and AgustaWestland. HeliVert is building and managing an assembly plant to produce the AW-139, a medium twin-engined civilian helicopter, in Russia, with the primary goal of meeting market demand in Russia and the CIS.

AgustaWestland, a Finmeccanica company, is a major force in commercial and military helicopter markets around the world and offers an unrivalled range of helicopters, training and support solutions to satisfy customer’s mission requirements. AgustaWestland’s main facilities are located in Italy, the United Kingdom, Poland and the United States of America.

Finmeccanica – is Italy’s main industrial group. It is the leader in the high-technology sector and ranks among the top 10 companies in the aerospace and defence sector worldwide. Finmeccanica has 362 locations and production facilities in 22 countries, with a significant presence on four core markets: Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Poland. Its key areas of business include helicopter building (AgustaWestland), aircraft building (Alenia Aermacchi), and defence and security (Selex ES, DRS). The company is listed on the Milan Stock Exchange (FNC IM; SIFI.MI), The Group’s revenues for 2013 amounted to approximately 16 billion euro.

Rosneft Oil Company – is the leader of Russia’s petroleum industry and the world’s largest publicly traded petroleum company. Rosneft’s activities include hydrocarbon exploration and the production of oil, gas and gas condensate, upstream offshore projects, hydrocarbon refining, and crude oil, gas and product marketing in Russia and abroad. The company is included in the list of Russia’s strategic companies and organisations. In total in 2013 the company paid over 2.7 trillion roubles in tax. Rosneft conducts its exploration and production activities in all key hydrocarbon provinces of Russia including West Siberia, Southern and Central Russia, Timan-Pechora, East Siberia, Far East, and Russian continental shelf including the Arctic region. The company is also active in Belarus, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, China, Vietnam, Mongolia, Germany, Italy, Norway, Algeria, Brazil, Venezuela and the UAE.

Russian Helicopters, (part of State Corporation Rostec), is one of the global leaders in helicopter production and the only helicopter design and production powerhouse in Russia. Russian Helicopters was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Moscow. The company comprises five helicopter production facilities, two design bureaus, a spare parts production and repair facility, as well as an aftersale service branch responsible for maintenance and repair in Russia and all over the world. Its helicopters are popular among Russian ministries and state authorities (Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Emergency Control Ministry), operators (Gazpromavia, UTair), major Russian corporations. In 2013 its IFRS revenues increased 10% to RUB 138.3 billion. Deliveries reached 275 helicopters.

The Rostec State Corporation is a Russian Corporation, established in 2007 with the purpose of support the design, manufacture and export of high-tech industrial products of civilian and military designation. It includes 700 organizations, of which nine are currently holding companies in the defense industry and five are holdings in civilian industries. In addition, 22 organizations are directly subordinate. The Rostec portfolio includes such famous brands as AvtoVAZ, KAMAZ, Russian Helicopters, VSMPO-AVISMA, etc. Rostec is located in the territory of 60 federal subjects of the Russian Federation, and it delivers products to markets in more than 70 countries. In 2013, Rostec revenue totaled 1.04 trillion rubles. Tax payments to public coffers at all levels exceeded RUB 138 billion.