Abolition of levies slashes port revenues
Abolition of levies slashes port revenues
JAKARTA (JP): The government's plans to cut back levies may slash the revenues of state-owned PT Pelabuhan Indonesia III, which oversees major ports in the eastern part of the country, by up to Rp 600 million (US$256,850) this year.
Pelabuhan III President Frans Masengi said the removal of a number of legal fees starting next month will most likely take place in major ports in South Kalimantan which are overseen by the firm.
Masengi said that to offset the losses, the management of Pelabuhan III has instructed the port's officials at all levels to boost efficiency to reduce expenditures.
The Ministry of Transportation earlier this month abolished four major types of administration fees and reduced the number of permits under its jurisdiction as part of the government's drive to cut the costs of doing businesses in the country.
Among the fees to be abolished are permits related to shipping and port services. Sea transport authorities are required to streamline or cut the licensing procedures for shipping and port services.
Masengi was confident that in spite of the cuts in the firm's revenues, Pelabuhan III will still be able to reap a profit of Rp 93 billion (US$40.43 million) this year, which will be 15.53 percent higher than last year's profit of Rp 80.5 billion.
Pelabuhan III presently manages 40 ports located in Central and East Java, Yogyakarta, South Kalimantan, Bali, West and East Nusa Tenggara and East Timor.
Masengi said 16 of his company's ports currently enjoy a surplus from their services while 11 suffer losses. The rest break even. In 1994, 16 of the ports suffered losses.
Masengi said the management of Pelabuhan III will make major efforts to improve the performance of the ports which are still recording losses, preferably to a break-even point, since it is impossible to close down those ports.
"As a state-owned firm, we are committed to social development, so we cannot only seek maximum profits. Thus, we must continue operating ports that may not be profitable," he said, as quoted by Antara. (pwn)