Interview: High-tech collaboration a "flagship" of Sino-French relations, says Airbus China CFO

The first Airbus A321 aircraft is produced at the Final Assembly Line Asia (FALA) facility in north China's Tianjin on Nov. 9, 2022. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo)

Celebrating the significant milestone of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France, Olivier Malet, CFO of Airbus China, said that bilateral economic and trade cooperation, alongside cultural exchanges, is burgeoning between the two countries.

BEIJING, May 1 (Xinhua) -- Cooperation between China and Airbus serves as a "flagship" of the Sino-French relationship, said the chief financial officer (CFO) of Airbus China.

"(China and Airbus) have found good common ground together ... and this cooperation is really a flagship of the Sino-French relationship. We expect that the Chinese market will keep growing and believe in the huge potential in China," Olivier Malet, CFO of Airbus China, told Xinhua in a recent interview.

"As a partner of China for nearly 40 years, Airbus wants to stay and take part in this growth of aviation," said Malet.

Growth and evolution have defined Airbus's history in China since 1994, when the company first established an official presence in the country. Fourteen years later, in 2008, Airbus opened its first assembly line outside Europe in China's northern city of Tianjin.

Airbus is currently promoting the A320 series aircraft's second final assembly line project. "We recently launched the second assembly line in Tianjin," he said.

"This second assembly line is a sign of the strong relationship between France and China, and it demonstrates that we are quite satisfied with the ecosystem and setup we have established here," emphasized the CFO.

"We believe these aircraft will be very suitable for the Chinese market."

Noting that aerospace manufacturing demands stringent quality and reliability requirements, Malet said that "Airbus produced 'made in China' is the same as one made in Toulouse, in Hamburg, in Mobile of the United States ... And for me, that is very important."

Today, Airbus China has more than 200 local suppliers under an increasingly sophisticated supply chain ecosystem. The inclusion of Chinese elements in Airbus aircraft is growing. This deep cooperation benefits enterprises and contributes to the high-level development of the Chinese aviation industry.

Malet said that addressing climate change and achieving sustainable development are shared global challenges and common goals between China and France, adding that Airbus aims to pioneer sustainable aerospace.

"We want to work with China on flying greener," he said.

With China being Airbus's "largest single market," Malet believes that China's continuous advancement of high-level opening-up and ongoing improvement of the business environment will bring confidence and opportunities to global enterprises, including Airbus China.

Celebrating the significant milestone of the 60th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and France, he said that bilateral economic and trade cooperation, alongside cultural exchanges, is burgeoning between the two countries.

"In recent years, France and China have worked closely on topics like trade, aviation and culture," said Malet. "We feel very honored to be part of it and to contribute to this high-quality relationship."