Mubadala's Strata in talks to build global jet-engine parts for first time

Strata, Mubadala Investment Company’s aerospace manufacturing unit, is in talks to manufacture aircraft engine parts for the first time, capitalising on opportunities arising from a global shortage.

The Al Ain-based company is close to finalising a deal to start the process early next year, acting chief executive Sara Al Memari told The National during the Dubai Airshow.

“This is something really exciting and is one of the, let's say, hot cakes within the market,” she said. “We are actively looking into it and hopefully we will be closing something. We're pushing to Q1.”

Ms Al Memari did not disclose which entity the deal in discussion is with.

The global aviation industry is currently experiencing a severe shortage of jet engines and spare parts. The industrywide supply chain crisis, rooted in the pandemic, geopolitical tension and labour shortages, is costing airlines billions and forcing them to ground aircraft and continue operating with older, less efficient planes.

Together, these factors reduce aircraft availability, lengthen maintenance turnaround times and raise costs across the industry, according to the International Air Transport Association (Iata).

The global aviation body says aviation’s supply chain is under intense pressure. Aircraft deliveries fell to just 1,254 in 2024 – about 30 per cent below the pre-Covid peak – while the backlog swelled to a record 17,000 jets, according to Iata’s estimate last month.

Supply chain challenges are projected to cost the airline industry more than $11 billion this year, driven by delayed fuel savings and higher maintenance costs, as well as excess engine leasing and spares inventory, Iata said in an October report.

Engine issues alone have grounded hundreds of aircraft, leaving airlines short of capacity, it said.

Strata says carbon-fibre will be one of the materials used to build the Boeing 777X, according to Ms Al Memari. “It is not yet quantified in terms of which part of the aircraft [it will be used for]. We are still in the negotiating phase,” she said.

Strata’s high-tech facility in Al Ain is capable of providing carbon-fibre prepreg materials – fibre and resin combinations cured under heat and pressure – for the primary structure applications in Boeing’s 777X programme, added Ms Al Memari.

The Strata Syensqo Advanced Material (SSAM) facility in Al Ain, which is in partnership with the Belgian company Syensco, will be manufacturing the raw material specifically for the 777X aircraft.

The facility is ready and currently, in the qualification phase. “We should start manufacturing by the end of the first quarter of 2026,” Ms Al Memari said,

Asked about the capacity that SSAM will have, Ms Al Memari did not specify how much they will be able to produce annually, but said they are “fully sold out for the next 10 years” to manufacture components for the 777X. She also did not disclose the value of the contract with Boeing.

Seeking contracts for single-aisle planes

Strata is also seeking contracts for single-aisle planes. “We are talking to multiple [OEMs]. It is one of the things that we are currently looking at,” said Ms Al Memari.

Asked why it was taking so long to strike any deal for the manufacturing of single-aisle parts, Ms Al Memari said: “This is a new thing. Anything new you want to start, you start slow and you build up to it.”

In talks with Comac

In reference to partnerships with manufacturers beyond Airbus and Boeing, Ms Al Memari said Strata is also in talks with Chinese state-owned aerospace manufacturer Comac about “any potential collaboration, but there’s nothing yet”.

Ms Al Memari added: “Joining the aerospace industry is not as simple as onboarding a new customer.”

Strata employees at its Al Ain plant.