Pelni unlikely to launch 'Palindo' vessel soon
Pelni unlikely to launch 'Palindo' vessel soon
JAKARTA (JP): The state-owned oceanliner PT Pelayaran Indonesia (Pelni) is not likely to operate its passenger vessel Palindo Jaya I during the upcoming Idul Fitri holiday due to unsettled negotiations with the vessel's assembler, PT PAL.
Pelni president Roesman Anwar said at the House of Representatives yesterday that his company and the Surabaya-based PAL had not yet reached an agreement on the procurement of the 500-passenger Palindo.
"We are actually ready to operate the vessel tomorrow. Just ask PAL why the negotiations have not been accomplished yet," he said, adding that one of the major points of contention was pricing.
Roesman, however, refused to give any further details.
Yesterday's hearing with the House commission V for telecommunications, tourism, transportation and public works, also discussed the lake and river crossing transportation firm PT ASDP.
Together with Pelni and ASDP executives, the commission members visited the Tanjung Priok port in North Jakarta and Merak port in West Java to see how the firms were preparing for the Idul Fitri holiday.
Informed sources said yesterday that if the negotiations had been finished early this year, Pelni would have operated the Palindo vessel, which will be renamed Pangrango, on the Jakarta- Semarang route.
Option
Pelni has an option to procure ten Palindos, whose prototype was inaugurated last July by President Soeharto. The President and Vice President Try Sutrisno have also tested the comfort and safety of the prototype.
The sources said that PAL, which is offering the Palindo for about US$32 million, and Pelni were still arguing about the payment plan, which will require the shipping company to pay in cash.
Pelni usually orders vessels from the German Jos L. Meyer GmbH & Co., using Kreditanstalt fur Wiederaufbau as a traditional credit facilitator. A 1,500-passenger ship and a 2,000-passenger ship manufactured by Jos L. Meyer are usually worth $57 million and $100 million respectively.
Roesman said yesterday that due to the tardy negotiations with PAL, his company now operates only 17 passenger vessels, just one less than 18 vessels originally targeted.
"We expect to transport 5,422,000 passengers this year if Pelni can operate the Palindo," he said.
Last year, Pelni transported 5,394,244 passengers, about 2.63 percent less than originally targeted.
Roesman said that in addition to the 17 passenger vessels, Pelni also operated 20 cargo ships in 1995. Three of them will be scrapped this year.
Pelni also operates 20 small vessels to serve "pioneer" routes in the country's remote areas. This year, however, the company will operate only 12 vessels on the routes.
Meanwhile, ASDP's president, Subarkah, said that most of his company's vessels were aging and that no state budget had been allocated for refurbishment.
He said that in the 1994/1995 fiscal year, ASDP suffered losses of Rp 1.19 billion ($821,000) from the operation of its 30 ferries in 37 crossings.
The losses are projected to increase to Rp 3.82 billion this fiscal year -- ending in March -- and to Rp 4.92 billion next fiscal year, he added.
Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto told the commission in a hearing last month that ASDP's losses reached Rp 964 million in 1995.
According to Subarkah, his company plans to set up several joint operation projects, including water treatment development in Merak, West Java, with private firms.
He said that ASDP and PT Berkala Internasional signed a contract last month for the feasibility study of the project.
Other projects to be developed with private firms include ferry port management with PT Spektrum Kencana Mukti and ferry operations linking Merak and Bakauheni in Lampung with PT Jemla Ferry, he added. (icn)