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Pulkovo Shifts to Foreign Planes
Yesterday state-run Pulkovo Airlines and U.S. International Lease Finance Corp. (ILFC) sealed a lease contract, whereby Pulkovo will take on lease two Boeing-737-500s. Though previously there were no planes of foreign-make in the company’s fleet, Pulkovo intends to get six such planes by late this year. The first two planes will cost above $20 million less customs payments. Pulkovo has reached out to the RF Economic Development Ministry for preference, similar to that of Aeroflot and Transaero, but doesn’t count on a positive reply.
State-run Pulkovo (St. Petersburg) possesses airport facilities and an airline, which was Russia's third in 2004 traffic - 2.6 million of passengers. The fleet comprises 46 planes (Tu-134, Tu-154 and Il-86). The company derived around 10 billion rubles in revenues in January-September of 2004.
It was in the past year, when Pulkovo unveiled its intention to acquire the first foreign planes. But the lease was sealed in St. Petersburg only yesterday. Pulkovo gets two 10-year-old Boeing-737-500s, previously operated by the Irish Aer Lingus. No financial details were disclosed. However, the market players estimated monthly lease payments for the planes of such type at around $140,000-$170,000. According to Sergey Koltovich, head of Aeroflot’s planning and fleet development service, this market is on the rising trend with the lease payments going upward, closer to the max.
So, Pulkovo will have to pay at least $20 million less customs to operate two planes over five years. Pulkovo Acting GD Alexander Golovin said yesterday the company dispatched a letter to the Economic Development Minister German Gref, seeking customs privileges, similar to those of Aeroflot and Transaero. “But we won’t wait for a reply,” he pointed out. “As the new planes are to be in our fleet by summer timetable [by late March].” The Ministry declined to comment on Pulkovo’s initiative. For Pulkovo, the actual costs will rise nearly by half if it is forced to settle in whole the 20 percent customs duty coupled with 18 percent VAT.
Golovin also confirmed yesterday Pulkovo will make one more agreement with ILFC in a span of a month to lease two Boeing-737-500s and is willing to add to the fleet two more foreign planes, something similar to Boeing-767s.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Jan. 27, 2005
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