European aircraft manufacturer Airbus anticipates delivering its new model A330neo to a Chinese airline company in the first half of 2025 after going through certification.

The A330 series of Airbus accounts for more than half of the wide-body aircraft in operation in China, Li Min, senior marketing director of Airbus China, recently told media in Guangzhou, Guangdong province.

China's demand for new passenger and cargo planes is expected to top 9,440 by 2042, taking up 23 percent of the global total during the period, Li said.

They would include 8,020 single-aisle planes and 1,420 wide-body models.

China's annual air passenger throughput growth is forecast at average 5.2 percent in the coming two decades, he said.

liwenfang@chinadaily.com.cn