A Norwegian plans to withdraw from Argentina

The low cost company A Norwegian plans to withdraw from Argentina. This was noticed by Geir Kalsen, chief financial officer of the company, who badured that his goal was to be able to clean it.

"If our project in Argentina does not match what was expected, we are ready to retire."he said.

For its part, the CEO, Bjorn Kjos, said that he was maintaining his commitment to Argentina, but few believe that the second, knowing the situation of the company and the few possibilities that are offered to him to maintain his losses in Argentina.

The CFO did not consider the following explanation: He said that the project in Argentina today is not going well. That it is the low season and that the Argentine economy is going through a bad patch, but that they will leave the months of June and July to see how things evolve, but if in August it is n & # 39; There is no sign of improvement, they will close.

The month of August is the worst month of the year in Argentina because it is mid-winter and it is difficult for an airline to surviveAlthough the problem does not come from Norway, FlyBondi, the first airline established in the country to benefit from the openness proposed by the Macri government, had planned to finish this year with 10 planes, although it should reduce its forecasts.

FlyBondi strictly applies the Ryanair model, serving only cheap, little used airports, and looking for pbadengers who have never flown as far as those already initiated.

Things do not seem particularly bad, but it only operates with 5 planes and does not currently plan to increase its fleet in 2019. The problem, according to FlyBondi, is that the Argentinian economy is not so luxurious.

Norwegian, as in Europe, was born in a segment that is not strictly the cheapest: its planes, its models, even the airports from which it operates are of a higher level than those of FlyBondi.

Norwegian had announced a net loss of 155 million euros in the first quarter of 2019, slightly higher than that of the 2018 group, which were 150 million, while from January to March this year also, the occupation of its aircraft fell by 81%, or 3.5 points lower than 84.5% of the first quarter of 2018.

As confirmed by REPORTUR.com.ar, these record losses in the first quarter multiply by 31 the negative result of 5 million euros recorded the same period a year ago, according to the balance published by the airline.

Net operating loss (ebit) it was reduced by 34% over one year to 152 million euros. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (ebitdar) amounted to 9 million euros, compared with a loss of 92 million euros last year.

In the first quarter of 2019, the Norwegian charged 830 million euros, or 14% more than the previous year, thanks to the strengthening of intercontinental links and increased traffic in the Nordic countries.

The Norwegian "low cost" has calculated at 52 million euros the cost of the Boeing 737 Max crisis, which he has 18 units. A Norwegian "badesses the financial impact of the Boeing 737 Max 8's immobilization," said the airline, which had "fruitful meetings" with the US giant during which it was discussed "of how to handle the difficulties of the situation causing. "

Discover the latest news in the digital economy, startups, fintech, business innovation and blockchain. CLICK HERE