Trafindo's profit declines by 81.3%

JAKARTA (JP): The cancellation of a purchasing order by State Electricity Company (PLN) and losses incurred by its subsidiaries slashed PT Trafindo Perkasa's profit by 81.3 percent to Rp 1.5 billion (US$614,250) in 1996, an executive said.

A company commissioner, F.X. Boyke Gozali, said after the company's extraordinary shareholders meeting here yesterday that the firm, listed on the Jakarta and Surabaya Stock Exchanges, made a Rp 8 billion profit in 1995.

Boyke said Trafindo made a profit of Rp 4 billion last year but it was reduced by Rp 18 billion due to the losses of its subsidiary PT Putera Ometraco Electric and Rp 779 million due to the losses of another subsidiary, PT Siemens Kabel Optik.

Trafindo manufactures distribution transformers in Tangerang, West Java, while Putera Ometraco Electric manufactures telephone and power cables in Tangerang and Siemens Kabel Optik manufactures fiber optic cables in Cilegon, West Java.

Boyke said PLN played an important role in Trafindo's business because it used to contribute 35 percent to his company's annual sale revenue and 50 percent to its profit.

"In the future we will focus on selling to the private sector to reduce our dependence on PLN to about 20 percent in terms of sales," Boyke said.

Yesterday's meeting approved Trafindo management's proposal to distribute dividends of Rp 480 million to its shareholders. (13)