AriaWest International stops paying Telkom its revenue share<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): PT AriaWest International, a joint operating
\ncontractor of state telecommunications company PT Telkom, has
\ndecided not to disburse Rp 340 billion (US$32.8 million) in
\nrevenue shares due to the state company, citing the latter's
\nalleged failure to meet its obligation.<\/p>\n
AriaWest's chief financial officer and director Stephen R.
\nDowling said in a statement on Sunday that the company made the
\nmove because Telkom was not able to provide documentation proving
\nit had delivered on its promise to build another 107,536
\ntelephone lines in West Java.<\/p>\n
AriaWest is one of five foreign firms that have signed the so-
\ncalled joint operating contract with Telkom to develop the
\ncountry's telephone networks.<\/p>\n
The contracts, known locally as KSOs, committed the companies
\nto build and operate telephone lines in five designated areas
\nunder a profit-sharing plan. Under the contract, Telkom receives
\na certain amount of revenue, which is called \"minimum Telkom
\nrevenue\" (MTR) under the KSO contract.<\/p>\n
AriaWest, formed in 1995, is partly owned by American telecom
\ngiant AT&T.<\/p>\n
Dowling said in 1995 Telkom promised it would contribute
\n474,000 telephone lines to the partnership and build another
\n107,536 by the end of 1997.<\/p>\n
Based on the promise to build another 107,536 telephone lines,
\nAriaWest paid an additional revenue share to Telkom since
\nFebruary 1996.<\/p>\n
Dowling said AriaWest had paid a total of Rp 340 billion in
\nadditional revenue share to Telkom over the past four years
\ndespite the fact Telkom could not prove that it had built 107,536
\ntelephone lines.<\/p>\n
AriaWest thus decided to recover the overpayments by
\noffsetting the amount on the revenue of the joint operating unit.<\/p>\n
\"Since February 1996, when AriaWest started paying MTR based
\nTelkom's promise to build the additional 107,536 lines, the
\ncompany has asked Telkom for legitimate evidence that the lines
\nwere actually being completed.<\/p>\n
\"At each request, Telkom failed to provide proof of its
\nperformance,\" Dowling said.<\/p>\n
However, Telkom denied Dowling's allegation.<\/p>\n
Telkom investor relations manager, Setiawan Sulistyono,
\nsaid the company had already fulfilled all its obligations under
\nthe 1995 contract to transfer assets to Ariawest, including
\nbuilding the promised new lines.<\/p>\n
\"We have proof but they don't want to recognize it,\" he was
\nquoted by Dow Jones news agency as saying on Monday.<\/p>\n
Dowling however maintained that it had yet to receive any
\ndocuments from Telkom proving that the state company had
\ndelivered on its promise.<\/p>\n
He said the only time Telkom ever provided any document
\noccurred on July 16, 1997, when Telkom hosted a ceremony and
\nhanded AriaWest's executives an Excell spreadsheet claiming the
\ncompany had built some lines.<\/p>\n
Telkom however could not provide further supporting documents
\nto prove the claim, he said. (jsk)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/ariawest-international-stops-paying-telkom-its-revenue-share-1447893297",
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