Embraer sees E175 assembly in India in 2028 if it secures 200 orders

Brazilian planemaker Embraer could roll out E175-E1 regional jets from a potential production line in India as early as 2028, but the plan hinges on orders for at ​least 200 aircraft, CEO Francisco Gomes Neto told Reuters on Friday.

Earlier this ​year, Embraer and India's Adani Group had announced a memorandum of understanding to establish a final assembly ‌line for the Brazilian firm's first-generation jetliners in India.

Such a move would mark a significant win for the Indian government, which has urged planemakers to build jets locally, and a geographic shift for Embraer, which currently produces commercial jets only in Brazil.

 

"Of course, we will not start a significant investment without orders. That's the first point, we need the orders. And what we're saying is this: to set up an assembly line, we need at least 200 aircraft to be produced there," Gomes Neto said.

If orders are secured by the end of 2026, the company would be able to start delivering planes in 2028, he added.

"It's roughly 24 months, which we believe is enough to begin making it happen. They know that, it's clear to us," the ‌CEO said.

Gomes Neto said Embraer has identified at least 1,800 Indian routes that could be operated by E1s - jets that seat up to 88 people and are essential to U.S. regional aviation but have lacked demand elsewhere in recent years.

The executive noted that a plant in India would help Embraer boost production while filling its hybrid line in Brazil with orders for the newer E2 family, which has seen strong global demand.

Embraer, which initially targeted reaching 100 commercial aircraft deliveries in a single year in 2028, now sees scope to hit the milestone in 2027, ​the CEO said.

SAUDI ARABIA NO LONGER A C-390 HOTSPOT

In addition to commercial aircraft, Embraer has also partnered in India with ‌Mahindra on the C-390 military cargo jet, calling the country a "strategic market" for its defense unit.

Saudi Arabia, the European Union, and the United States also earned that label in 2024, but Gomes Neto said prospects ​have now dimmed ‌for an order from the Middle Eastern country.

"It continues to be a business front, but it's not in the hotspot ‌for us right now," he said, adding that Embraer is instead focusing on India and the United States.

Embraer had hoped to replace Saudi Arabia's aging fleet of Lockheed Martin's C-130. In 2023, when President Luiz Inacio ‌Lula ​da Silva visited ​the country, it signed a deal with SAMI, which has the backing of Saudi public wealth fund PIF, to explore a potential C-390 assembly line there.

"We have a good product there, but I believe ‌they had the vision ​of having a larger aircraft," Gomes Neto said. "It's still on our radar, but no longer in the hotspot."