Garuda Indonesia books operating revenue of USD 807.2 million in 1Q 2013

PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk (IDX: GIAA) booked an operating revenue of USD 807,2 million in the first quarter of 2013 (Q1-2013) or an increase of 12,5 percent compared to the USD 717,4 million booked in the same period the previous year.

Throughout Q1-2013, passenger volume rose reaching 5,56 million passengers, which was an increase by 20,7 percent against the total of 4,6 million passengers transported in 2012. In terms of cargo transported, Garuda Indonesia also succeeded in increasing cargo volume by 24,2 percent or 81,3 thousand tons in Q1-2013 compared to the 65,4 thousand tons carried in Q1-2012.

Garuda Indonesia President CEO, Emirsyah Satar said that these improvements in performance are the result of the company’s ongoing corporate expansion program or “Quantum Leap 2011-2015” and various strategic efficiency measures carried out by the company. The “Quantum Leap” program plays a strategic and vital role in ensuring the company’s continued progress in the future, particularly in forming the foundation for Garuda’s transformation into a competitive airline in the face of future business challenges.

During the Q1-2013, Garuda’s domestic and international flight frequency increased by 23,5 percent reaching 44.224 flights, while in the same period the previous year, numbers reached 35.817 flights. Meanwhile, availability seat kilometer/ASK also rose 16,2 percent from 8,56 billion to 9,96 billion.

The company also managed to raise Seat Load Factor/SLF in Q1-2013 to 74,5 percent, which was an increase of 1,7 percent, from 72,8 persen in the same period last year – and aircraft utilization increased to 11:04 from 10:44 hours in the same period last year. The airline’s On-Time Performance/OTP in the Q1-2013 was 87,9 percent, or a rise of 1,5 percent from last year’s performance in the same period.

Furthermore, Garuda Indonesia’s market share in the domestic sector increased by 28,3 percent, compared to the 27,3 percent achieved in the same period last year. Between January – February 2013, Garuda Indonesia’s passenger traffic grew by 6,9 percent, against other airlines which experienced a fall of up to 4,1 percent.

Garuda’s subsidiary in the Low Cost Carrier segment, also enjoyed an increase in market share to 6,9 percent in the January – February 2013 period, from the 3 percent in the same period in 2012. Citilink’s passenger traffic rose by 141% to 530 thousand passengers, compared to the 220 thousand passengers recorded in the same period in 2012.

In the international sector, Garuda Indonesia’s market share rose by 25,8 percent compared to the rise of 23,6 percent in the same period in 2012. Traffic on international routes also grew as much as 11,1 percent, better than most airlines which experienced a fall in numbers as much as 1,3 percent.

Nevertheless, considering the drop in airline performance during the Q1 period, due also to extreme weather and floods that inundated Jakarta and the surrounding regions in January, the consolidated Operating Income experienced a negative growth of 20,7 percent, from USD 16,7 million in Q1-2012 to USD 20,1 million in the first quarter of 2013.

Meanwhile, Citilink continues to record satisfactory growth in the first quarter of this year, both in its operational performance and its domestic market share, although as a relatively new airline in its early stage of development, Citilink has yet to show its maximum performance considering at present the LCC is vigorously carrying out marketing and expansion programs.

Meanwhile, in 2012 Garuda Indonesia’s Comprehensive Income recorded a 100 percent growth, from USD 72.7 million in 2011 to USD 145.4 million in 2012. Garuda Indonesia also booked an Operating Revenue of USD 3,472.5 million, which was an increase of 12.1 percent compared to the USD 3,096.3 million booked in 2011.

Income from Operations also increased by 82 percent, from USD. 92.3 million in 2011 to USD 168.1 million in 2012, and Income Current Period rose by 72,6 percent, from USD. 64.2 million in 2011 to USD. 110.8 million in 2012.

In 2013, Garuda Indonesia is expecting the arrival of 24 new aircraft that consists of 4 Boeing 777-300 ERs, 3 Airbus A330s, 10 Boeing 737-800NGs, and 7 Bombardier CRJ1000 NextGens, as well as Citilink’s 16 new fleet additions, comprising 11 A320-200s and 5 ATR-72s. By the end of 2013, together, Garuda Indonesia and Citilink will operate a total of 139 aircraft (104 for Garuda and 35 for Citilink) aged on average 5 years old. Through the “Quantum Leap” program, Garuda Indonesia will operate as many as 194 aircraft by 2015.

Between January and Maret 2013, Garuda received 6 new airplanes that consist of 4 Airbus A320 for Citilink and 2 Bombardier CRJ-1000 NextGen. Therefore, in the first quarter of this year, Garuda Indonesia already operates 112 aircraft aged on average 6,6 years.

Meanwhile, in an effort to broaden its flight network, after the opening of its Makassar hub in 2011, Garuda will soon open its hub in Medan in May of this year to increase connectivity in Indonesia’s western region.

Through the Medan hub, Garuda Indonesia will be able to serve direct flights from Medan to the surrounding cities, such as Pekanbaru, Batam, Palembang, Padang, Aceh and Penang. Flights from the Medan hub will be served by CRJ1000 aircraft with a seat capacity of 96, consisting of 12 seats in Executive Class and 84 seats in Economy Class.

In line with the growing domestic and international markets, in 2013 Garuda plans to open several domestic routes, such as Bandung – Denpasar, Denpasar – Balikpapan, Batam – Pekanbaru, Balikpapan – Banjarmasin, Balikpapan – Menado, Balikpapan – Berau, Jakarta – Bengkulu, Jakarta – Tanjung Pandan, and Jakarta – Tanjung Pinang. While in the international sector, Garuda plans to introduce new routes: Jakarta – London, Medan – Penang, Surabaya – Singapore, Denpasar – Bangkok, Denpasar – Brisbane and Denpasar – Kuala Lumpur.