Producer believes recent court action is ploy to extract money (420 words)

Published: 8/24/2000

Irina Shapovalova, spokesperson for Aviakor, says that the company sees the recent court action by Tyumenaviatrans (TAT) concerning the failure of the producer to deliver aircraft, as no more than an effort to extract money from Aviakor's owners Siberian Aluminum (SibAl). According to Shapovalova, Aviakor tried to agree a rescheduling of the delivery of aircraft, but TAT refused all the proposals offered by Aviakor and filed a claim in the Samara Arbitrage Court for $48m for the Aviakor's failure to deliver four Tu-154Ms. On 1st September 2000, the court will begin hearing on the case. Shapovalova said that the agreement to deliver five Tu-154Ms to TAT was signed in 1995 when the plant was in administration and under temporary management. TAT appeared to accept that the plant could not deliver the aircraft and it was only with the takeover of Aviakor by Siberian Aluminium, that the airline believed that they might get compensation for the undelivered aircraft. According to Aviakor, they received no cash for the TAT aircraft, but TAT paid the advance required by acquiring discounted bills on the plant's debts to the Samarenergo, without providing the plant with the working capital to build the aircraft. TAT has offered $500,000 to finish one of the Tu-154Ms, but the plant argues that the funds are insufficient to finish the half-completed aircraft. When the agreement was signed the cost of an aircraft was $7.5m, but price rises and inflation have increased it to the current cost of $15m. Shapovalova confirmed information that the first Tu-154M Aviakor delivered to TAT in September 1998 was equipped with overhauled engines and not the new engines stipulated in the contract. Shapovalova however, says that the plant's engineers believed that the engines were equivalent to new engines and the plant simply did not have the means to acquire new ones given the lack of cash in the deal. Shapovalova believes that TAT's primary interest is not in bankrupting the plant or becoming its owner, but in extracting funds from its present owner, Siberian Aluminium. She also adds that of the $48m claimed by the Surgut-based carrier, 80% is penalties and fines. The recruitment of Alexander Abalmazov, the plant's former marketing director, to head up their effort to get paid, is seen by Aviakor as a sign that TAT is not prepared to compromise and is determined to fight the case through the courts regardless of offers Aviakor makes to resolve the dispute.

Article ID: 2025