Rostec Talks on Plane Construction With Canada’s Bombardier Halted

Talks between Russia’s state technology corporation Rostec and Canada’s aerospace and transportation company Bombardier on the construction of Bombardier Dash8/Q-Series Q400 turboprop planes have been halted because of the devaluation of the ruble, Rostec CEO Sergey Chemezov has told the Vedomosti newspaper.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – Chemezov told Vedomosti that the political situation had nothing to do with the halt of talks with Bombardier.

"We stopped talks with Bombardier that we wanted to collaborate with in building the planes in Russia," Chemezov said, explaining that the component parts needed for the construction of Q400 planes are imported from abroad and are currently too expensive because of the ruble exchange rate.

"[As a result] the machines would not be able to withstand cost competition with the Russian aircraft," the Rostec CEO said.

The Russian economy has come under increased pressure over the past year due to plummeting oil prices and Western economic sanctions. The first restrictions were imposed by Western powers over Crimea's reunification with Russia.

According to the European Commission's estimates released in early May, 2015, the economic situation in Russia is expected to stabilize in 2016.