Reliance has 10 per cent of offset in Rafael deal: Dassault CEO

TIL Desk/National/Paris/Dassault Aviation’s joint venture with Reliance represents around 10 per cent of the offset investments under the Rafale jet deal, Dassault CEO Eric Trappier has said.  “We’re in talks with about 100 Indian firms, including around 30 with which we’ve already confirmed partnerships,” Trappier said.

Separately on Thursday, speaking at a briefing in Paris, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman reiterated the government’s claim that it had no idea that Dassault Aviation would team up with Reliance Group, run by Anil Ambani.

Several reports say Dassault was forced to choose Reliance by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, despite its having almost no experience in the aviation sector. On the eve of Sitharaman’s visit, French investigative website Mediapart quoted the notes of a meeting between Dassault management and workers’ representatives which described the choice of Reliance as “imperative and compulsory”.

“We are very clear: With the government of France, we agreed to purchase 36 Rafale aircraft in flyaway condition,” Sitharaman said. “And in an intergovernmental agreement, there are no mentions of any individual firms,” she said.