Italy and Malaysia have sealed an agreement to create a joint venture company to provide MRO (Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul) services for turboprop commercial aircraft.

The agreement was signed by representative of Alenia Aeronautica, a company in the Italian aerospace and defence engineering group and MAS Aerospace Engineering (MAE), a subsidiary of Malaysia Airlines (MAS).

The new company, MAS-Alenia Aeronautica Aerospace Engineering (MAAE) is 51 percent owned by MAE and 49 percent by Alenia Aeronautica. The company's headquarters will be in Malaysia.

MAAE aims to offer Aircraft Maintenance Repair and Overhaul (MRO) services for ATR aircraft within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region and in the Indian sub-continent with plans to offer these services to other countries in the near future.

"The sealing of the agreement confirms and strengthens our relationship with Malaysia. It also underlines our ability to seize the opportunities available in the high-technology and innovation sectors in Malaysia," Alenia Aeronautica's chief executive officer, Giovanni Bertolone was quoted by Bernama news agency as saying./.