Under the deal, signed at the MAKS-2007 air show underway outside Moscow, Sukhoi Holding will own a 49% stake in the new company, named SuperJet-100 International, while Alenia will own 51%.
The SuperJet-100 project is a family of medium-range passenger aircraft developed by Sukhoi in cooperation with major American and European aviation corporations, including Boeing, Snecma, Thales, Messier Dowty, Liebherr Aerospace, and Honeywell.
Alenia Aeronautica, owned by high-tech industrial group Finmeccanica, is involved in international programs including Eurofighter Typhoon and the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter. It also designs and builds advanced airframe components for passenger planes, including the Airbus 380 and the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
The headquarters of the new company will be located in Venice, Italy, where Alenia has facilities that would enable the JV to market and sell the Russian medium-haul plane on the European and U.S. markets.
The overall market for the SuperJet-100 is estimated at about 5,500 aircraft, or $100 billion, through 2023.
Sukhoi plans to produce at least 800 of the regional jets, and intends to sell 35% of them in North America, 25% in Europe, 10% in Latin America, and 7% in Russia and China.
So far, Sukhoi Civil Aircraft has secured over 60 orders for its SuperJet-100s. Aeroflot, Russia's leading air carrier, is one of company's largest clients, with contracts for the delivery of at least 45 planes.
At the Paris Air show in June, Sukhoi signed a $283-million contract to supply 10 SuperJet-100 aircraft to Italian carrier ItAli Airlines.
The company said it would hold the first public demonstration of SuperJet-100 on September 26, and build the first nine planes in 2008.
