Garuda suffers losses of Rp 2.65b

Garuda suffers losses of Rp 2.65b

JAKARTA (JP): Fourteen of the 17 state-owned transport-related
companies recorded a total profit of Rp 298.08 billion (US$127.7
million) in the first half of the year, while the other three,
including Garuda Indonesia, suffered a combined deficit of Rp
14.78 billion.

Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto told House
Commission V, for transportation, tourism and telecommunications,
in a hearing yesterday that Garuda, the national air carrier,
suffered losses of Rp 2.65 billion in the first six months of
this year.

PT Pengerukan Indonesia, a dredging company, suffered a
deficit of Rp 7.8 billion, while Perum PPD, a Jakarta public
transportation company, suffered losses of Rp 4.33 billion in the
January-June period, he said.

Haryanto said that PT Pelabuhan Indonesia II, the company
which manages the Tanjung Priok seaport in Jakarta. recorded the
biggest profit -- Rp 92.63 billion -- in the first half of the
year, followed by PT Angkasa Pura II, the company managing
several airports in the western half of the country, with a
profit of Rp 55 billion.

Haryanto refused to disclose why Garuda, Pengerukan and Perum
PPD failed to make a profit.

Last year, Garuda's profit was Rp 135.79 billion and
Pengerukan's Rp 10.12 billion, while PPD broke even.

He said that Garuda's revenues in the January-June period
totaled Rp 2.36 trillion, while its expenses were recorded at Rp
2.37 trillion.

Garuda, which is expected to list its shares on the capital
market in 1998 following a private placement scheduled for
next year, has been burdened with hundreds of millions of dollars
in liabilities since the late 1980s.

The airline is currently restructuring its marketing,
operations and organization in order to revitalize its business.
In June the government agreed to inject Rp 754 million to improve
the company's financial position.

Haryanto told the commission yesterday that the government had
approved the proposal of Merpati Nusantara Airlines, a subsidiary
of Garuda, to reduce services on unprofitable routes.

"If there were four flights per week on a route with a load
factor of about 20 percent per service, Merpati can cut the
services to just one flight," he said. "We can no longer tolerate
unprofitable routes. It's wasting money."

He also said that his office is now working on 29 cooperation
proposals, including proposals on investments in infrastructure
projects worth Rp 1.8 trillion.

He said the Ministry of Finance has approved 32 other
proposals worth Rp 5.67 trillion and is expected to approve seven
others worth Rp 615.31 billion. (icn)