Jakarta (ANTARA News) -President Director of Merpati Airlines Rudy Setropurnomo said the Indonesian government has given the company`s management freedom to build strategic cooperation with various parties to save the ailing company.

"The government will also help with capital to improve its performance," he said here on Sunday.

He said the management was allowed to cooperate with domestic or foreign parties to improve the airline`s performance including through aircraft participation.

Rudy said that the government was serious in its efforts to save the company with its debt reaching around Rp6 trillion.

He said a team had been set up by the government to immediately swap state debts in the company into shares.

The team has also been asked to keep lobbying to get a parliament`s approval for it, he added.

The restructuring and revitalization team meanwhile has also been set up to study Merpati`s future business plan.

"The plan would be the basis for the state funds to be put into the company in the form of capital participation," he said.

State enterprises minister Dahlan Iskan said recently the government would conduct a debt-to-equity swap as the final move to save the company.

"The debt to equity swap will probably be the last option to revive the company. If the program fails the company will possibly be liquidated," he said at a ministry leadership meeting at Pertamina Hospital last Tuesday.

He said the program requires approvals from the finance ministry as the shareholder and the parliament.

reporting by Muhammad Razi Rahman

(M040*R017/H-YH/F001)

Editor: Jafar M Sidik
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