Aqua remains upbeat despite lagging profit

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The country's largest bottled water producer PT Aqua Golden Mississippi targets a 13 percent increase in net profit this year in spite of the 15 percent decline in profit in the first four months of the year.

Aqua President Director Willy Sidharta said on Tuesday after a shareholders meeting that the company aimed to achieve the target by boosting its net sales revenue from Rp 1.33 trillion in 2004 to Rp 1.5 trillion (US$156 million), betting on an estimated rise in volume.

Sales are expected to reach 4.2 billion liters, from 3.75 billion liters in 2004. With that, Willy said, the company hoped to be able to maintain its market share, which last year reached 45 percent.

He said the company would increase the sales of large bottles -- of five gallon capacity -- of water in Java, while increasing sales of smaller bottles in Sumatra.

The company, which controls 75 percent to 80 percent of the market in the country's five gallon bottled water, had increased its production capacity in Sumatra after it transferred some of its small machines from Java to its factory in Medan.

The factories in the Javanese towns of Bogor and Bekasi had acquired bigger machines to produce water in five gallon bottles, he added.

The company suffered a 15 percent decline in its net profit to Rp 18.17 billion after the first four months of the year from the same period last year, despite a 28 percent increase in net sales to Rp 359.37 billion.

"The profit decline was caused by the increasing prices of raw materials especially plastic," he said.

The company's audited net profit soared by 44.87 percent to Rp 91.64 billion in 2004 from Rp 63.25 billion in 2003.

In the meeting, shareholders also approved a proposal to distribute Rp 15.53 billion, or Rp 1,180 per share, of 2004's profit as dividends.

The remaining profit of Rp 76.1 billion would be set aside to strengthen capital and reinvestment. (001)