Fuel supply to Kingfisher on cash & carry basis: IndianOil
New Delhi   13-Feb-2009
Contradicting Kingfisher Airlines' chief Vijay Mallya's recent statement that his airline is not getting ATF supply on a 'cash-and-carry-basis,1 state-run oil firm, IndianOil on Thursday said the company is currently getting its supply on cash-and-carry basis. "Kingfisher is (presently), on a cash-and-carry basis," IndianOil, Director (Marketing) Mr. G C Daga said. The private airline owes Rs 175 crore to IndianOil, Daga said, adding that, "it is not all overdue." IndianOil has not stopped the supply of jet fuel to the private airline, headed. "After the government intervention (in October 2008), all airlines were allowed to pay their dues in six equal installments. However, Kingfisher Airlines has not been able to meet its commitment (on payment)," Daga said. IndianOil Chairman Sarthak Behuria said, much like the oil sector, the aviation industry is also going through bad times and that they (Oil PSUs) were trying to help the oil companies. Mallya's Kingfisher has posted a loss of Rs 626 crore in the third quarter of this fiscal on the back of falling yields and load-factor. With losses of private air-carriers mounting, Kingfisher and its peer, Jet Airways, recently formed a strategic alliance, aimed at reducing costs through rationalization of routes and sharing of costs in some other operational spheres. Kingfisher had also recently slashed its pilots' salaries by Rs 80,000 (from the earlier Rs 4.30 lakh to Rs 3.50 lakh), a move which is understood to have induced its pilots to think of forming an association to take up issues of their interest with the management. The air-carrier's dues to oil marketing companies are estimated to be around Rs 840-crore. In addition, it also owes around Rs 300 crore to the Airports Authority of India as parking and landing fee.