Dassault offers lower interest in Mirage bid

Dassault Aviation (DA), offering its Mirage in the tender for a multipurpose combat plane for the Polish army, alongside Lockheed Martin's F-16 and Gripen International, has disclosed details of its proposals. The French company would grant a euro 4 billion loan for the purchase of 48 aircraft. However, the financial conditions of DA are completely different from those of its competitors. DA's vice-president for international affairs, Yves Robins, claims, "The interest on the loan will be in accordance with the EUROLIBOR rate - currently 3.17%. However insurance costs, export guarantees etc., would have to be added. The interest on our loan should not exceed 3.4%." By contrast, Gripen is offering rates of 4.5%, and Lockheed over 5%. (Puls Biznesu, p. 10) A.C.