Plaza Indonesia posts net profit of Rp 49b

JAKARTA (JP): Publicly listed property company PT Plaza Indonesia Realty reported yesterday a net profit of Rp 49.8 billion (US$21.2 million) for 1996, up 20.7 percent on Rp 41.2 billion for 1995.

The company's profit growth rate was lower in 1996 than its 29.7 percent increase in 1995 and 32.5 percent in 1994.

But the profit margin rose to 27.88 percent last year from 25.9 percent in 1995 and 22.6 percent in 1994.

Plaza Indonesia owns the five-star Grand Hyatt Hotel and Plaza Indonesia shopping center on Jl. Thamrin, Central Jakarta.

The company's general manager of finance, Hendra Hartono, said after the annual shareholders' meeting that the lower profit growth was caused by keener competition among deluxe hotels in the capital.

"We also extended in 1995 contracts with tenants at Plaza Indonesia shopping after the end of their previous five-year lease."

Director Boyke Gozali said the company's total revenue rose to Rp 178.5 billion last year from Rp 158.7 billion in 1995.

He said the hotel division contributed Rp 129.2 billion to last year's revenue and the shopping center Rp 49.3 billion.

Hartono said the 447-room Grand Hyatt, opened in 1991, had a 71.7 percent average occupancy rate last year, down from 73 percent in 1995.

"We expect to have at least a 70 percent occupancy rate this year with unchanged room rates of US$200.75 on average."

Plaza Indonesia was created in 1983 and partially floated on the Jakarta and Surabaya stock markets in 1992.

The company is 27.55 percent owned by PT Bimantara Citra, 17.22 percent by PT Paraga Artamida, 17.11 percent by PT Agung Ometracomuda and 4.59 percent by Danaswara Utama. It's listed shares are owned by PT Taspen (10.46 percent), Seeweel International of Hong Kong (6.26 percent), Pertamina's pension fund (5.8 percent), cooperatives (0.47 percent) and others (10.55 percent).

Expansion

Boyke said Plaza Indonesia's expansion plans had been delayed for a couple of months because of a reevaluation of contractors' bids.

Plaza Indonesia plans to develop a superblock, including a 48- story building containing 98 apartments and a six-storey shopping center.

Boyke said that piling for the superblock was scheduled to begin in June.

Plaza Indonesia bought a 55 percent stake in PT Duta Nusabina Lestari last year for Rp 139 billion.

Duta Nusabina, which is partially owned by Bimantara, owns the two-hectare site of the superblock which once belonged to the Russian embassy. The site is next to the Grand Hyatt Hotel and Plaza Indonesia shopping center.

In 1994, Plaza Indonesia bought a site which had contained the Australian embassy, next to the Grand Hyatt and shopping center.

Plaza Indonesia's general manager for project development, Willy Sidharta, said two firms from South Korea and France were being considered as the main contractor after a Japanese bidder was disqualified.

Boyke said the $225 million superblock project, which would take the company's land holding to 48,891 square meters, would be one-third financed by a syndicated bank loan led by Sumitomo Bank of Japan.

Yesterday's meeting agreed to management's proposal to pay dividends of Rp 40 a share, totaling Rp 13.8 billion. (icn)