PNG Air happy with strategy

Business

By Gedion Timothy
PNG Air directors are confident that its commercial strategy will see the airline achieve a sustainably profitable operation.
They are also confident that the Papua New Guinea economy will rebound next year with the reopening of the Ok Tedi mine and the progresses being made on other resource sectors projects in the economy.
This follows the announcement by chairman Murray Woo last week to shareholders that the airline recorded a K23.36 million loss before abnormal items and tax for the half year in 2016.
This is significantly adverse to the K34,000 profit before abnormal items and tax for the same period last year.
Woo said factors which might have caused the current performance were the cessation of Exxon Mobil PNG charter contract from November 2015, plus the general reduction in charter revenue, temporary shutdown of the Ok Tedi mine, significant increase in overseas currency denominated expenses due to continuous depreciation of the PNG Kina against major overseas currencies and the lack of economic growth in PNG this year.
But Woo said it was important that the airline achieved a higher revenue per available seat kilometre for the ATR operations compared to the budget.
“Increased ATR flying from the induction of additional ATRs into the airline’s fleet and from schedule efficiencies can therefore be expected to generate increased revenue and profitability in the longer term,” he said.
PNG Air was originally established and started operations in 1987 as Milne Bay Air or simply MBA.
It operated as a charter company in the resource development industry.