Ghana Airways, the nation’s distressed airline, paid almost $20m last year to its creditors. The payment has reduced its debt portfolio from about $167 million to $146 million.
The Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana Airways, Mr William Panford Bray, who disclosed this in Accra on Friday, was answering questions on the viability of the airline, its debt position and the way forward. He said since July last year, the airline has consistently been recording net profits, adding that this has enabled the management of the airline to settle its creditors, hence the end to the seizure of its aircrafts at some airports.
Mr Bray said, for instance, that in July, 2002, the airline, which made a net profit of $482,654, was able to settle debts of up to $2.45 million, while it also recorded a net profit $1.37 million in August and reduced its debt further by another $3.7 million. He said the airline again made net profits of $895,999 in September and $462,825 in October and settled debts of $4 million and $.62 million respectively during the same period.
This, he said is in contrast to the losses it made consistently from February to June last year. He said the airline made net losses of $1,000,862, $1,790,744, $918,566, $1,885,587 and $1,463,410 in February, March, April, May and June respectively. The acting CEO, who was the former managing director of the Ghana Commercial Bank, said the net losses recorded were not actuals but estimates, adding that after a forensic audit of the airline, it was discovered that the figures were inflated by 30 per cent.
He said in the first half of last year, the airline was faced with a number of problems as far as debt settlement was concerned. This compelled some of its creditors to seize its aircrafts whenever they flew outside the country and this created a lot of inconvenience for passengers. On what the airline is doing to ensure that such a situation does not arise again, Mr Bray said the management is in constant touch with its creditors, adding that “they need to see some evidence of your ability to pay and that is what we are doing”. On whether it is still necessary for the government to look for a partner for the airline, he said the idea is not a bad one.
Mr Bray said although the airline will be able to settle all its debts and make profit, it is not in the position to acquire a new fleet of aircraft to enhance its operations. He said currently, the airline’s fleet is old and consumes more fuel, making the cost of running very high.
