(Reuters) - Bombardier Inc (TO:BBDb) said on Thursday it received a letter of intent from a European customer to buy up to 61 CSeries jets, while reporting a larger loss for the third quarter.
The Canadian plane and train maker said the letter of intent includes 31 firm orders and options for another 30 jets. Based on list prices, the firm order would be valued at about $2.4 billion (£1.8 billion), Bombardier said.
That amount would increase to nearly $4.8 billion should the options be exercised.
The company did not disclose the customer.
European planemaker Airbus SE (PA:AIR) recently agreed to take a majority stake in the CSeries programme for $1, in a deal expected to help the struggling line of planes that have not made a single sale in over a year.
For the third quarter, Bombardier posted a net loss of $117 million or 5 cents a share, compared to a loss of $94 million or 4 cents per share in the same quarter last year.
Revenue came in at $3.8 billion, slightly up from $3.74 billion last year.