Sriwijaya shelves plans for IPO after tough 2017

Sriwijaya Air Group has suspended plans for an IPO, following a dismal year for Indonesia’s airlines. The privately-owned carrier was previously targeting to have its shares listed on the Indonesian Stock Exchange last May, following three consecutive years of profitability. The airline’s director of corporate planning and business development tells FlightGlobal that conditions deteriorated quickly in 2017, with oversupply and yield pressure, rising fuel prices and the weakening of the rupiah against the US dollar. These caused the carrier to post a loss for the year. “The situation was not good. Initially, we postponed plans for the IPO from May to September, but after entering into the second half, the signals were still not good,” says Jauwena. He adds that most of the work for the IPO has been done and that it is “a matter of timing” on when the listing will happen. The group had previously said that it will use proceeds from the IPO to double its fleet within three years.<br/>