UTLC ERA sees RAS net profit jumping to 2.7 bln rbl in 2018

MOSCOW, Dec 18 (PRIME) -- United Transport and Logistics Company – Eurasian Railway Alliance (UTLC ERA), a joint venture of state railways of Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan, will have a net profit of 2.7 billion rubles in 2018 after 1.344 billion rubles in 2017, as calculated under Russian Accounting Standards (RAS), CEO Alexei Grom told reporters on Tuesday.

“We expect the net profit (in 2018 calculated under RAS) to reach 2.7 billion rubles,” he said, adding that it is for the shareholders to decide whether it will pay dividends for the year.

“UTLC ERA has already paid 141 million (rubles in dividends since April 2018) to the three shareholders. The shareholders may make other decisions when they see the results for the whole year.”

The company’s container traffic reached 175,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in 2017, and it expects the traffic to grow to 280,000 TEUs in 2018 and to 350,000 TEUs in 2019, he said.

The company has three options to ensure higher cargo traffic – it can rent platforms, buy them, or sign a financial leasing contract. The company has to raise its rolling stock by 1,000 rail cars to 5,000 rail cars until the end of 2019, and it may buy the platforms from Russian and Belarusian companies, he said.

UTLC ERA also suggested that rail car producers design a 90-foot platform for the company, and it was discussing the project with producers of 80-foot platforms, he added.

(66.6208 rubles – U.S. $1)

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