Jaba, "options" don't get cancelled, they get sold. Qantas, assuming they were buying these aircraft themselves, have had slots booked on the Boeing and Airbus production lines for years, it's not like you are buying a Holden off the showroom floor.
If the aircraft were due for delivery this year, then a lot of them will be already under construction (or their components). Someone will have to take those aircraft. It might be rather instructive to find out who is taking them and under what terms.