PT Telkom posts Rp 1.47t net income through September

JAKARTA (JP): Publicly listed PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia (Telkom) announced on Thursday an unaudited net income of Rp 1.47 trillion (US$210 million) for the first nine months of the year ending Sept. 30.

The state telecommunications monopoly said the net profit figure represented a 352 percent increase over the corresponding period in 1998.

It attributed the increase to a growth in total operating revenue, a decrease in loss on foreign exchange and the turnaround of investment income from a net loss to a net gain.

During the first nine months, Telkom's operating revenues grew by 18.7 percent to Rp 5.74 trillion from Rp 4.83 trillion in the corresponding period last year.

Telkom's operating revenue is derived from its telephone service, joint operation (KSO) scheme partners, interconnection fees and other services.

Telkom said all of its operating revenue sources showed a considerable increase with telephone service, the company's core business, contributing the most with Rp 3.34 trillion. This figure reflected a 20.5 percent increase from Rp 2.77 trillion gained in the first nine months last year.

Revenue from telephone service was not necessarily affected by the considerable amount of subscription cancellations -- 135,083 residential subscribers (73 percent of the total canceled), 49,272 business subscribers (26.2 percent) and 659 social subscribers (0.4 percent) -- made during the period.

Telkom said yields from interconnection revenue -- an obligatory fee paid by other telecommunications operators for connecting their network to Telkom's during domestic or international calls -- rose 54.27 percent to Rp 631 billion in the first nine months this year from Rp 409 billion in the same period last year.

Revenue from KSO partners rose slightly by 5.9 percent to Rp 1.25 trillion from Rp 1.18 trillion paid in the same period last year, the company said.

The KSOs are a consortium of local and foreign firms that hold 15-year concessions to build and operate local fixed-line telecommunications nationwide, except for in Jakarta and East Java, until 2010.

As of Sept. 30 this year, Telkom and its KSO partners had 5.94 million lines in service, consisting of 3.17 million lines in Telkom's Jakarta and East Java regions and 2.76 million lines in KSO regions.

Relationships between Telkom and its partners had eroded due to differences interpreting the terms of their contracts.

The company said discussions were held with KSO investors to rehabilitate deteriorated relationships and settle differences. New agreements resulting from the discussions are expected to commence as of January 2000.

Telkom said the other factor driving positive growth for the first nine-month period was a significant drop in the loss of foreign exchange to Rp 227 billion from Rp 1.56 trillion endured in the same period last year.

Telkom said it used the conversion rate of Rp 6,765 to the U.S. dollar, based on the Dow Jones telerate on Oct. 27, for the calculation of revenue.

Another driving factor in the earning rise was the increase in interest income and a turnaround of investment income into a net gain, the company said.

Telkom has at least eight subsidiaries and 13 affiliates, most of which are local firms operating in telecommunications and related businesses.

Telkom received Rp 568 billion in dividends from its subsidiaries, which is higher than the Rp 358 billion gained in the same period in 1998.

The company also enjoyed a net gain in equity income of Rp 86 billion in the first nine months, compared to a net loss of Rp 27 billion it endured in the same period last year.

Over the period, the company recorded earnings of Rp 154.01 per share, reflecting an increase of 352.1 percent compared to the same period in 1998.

Telkom's shares are listed on the Jakarta, Surabaya, New York and London stock exchanges. (cst)