Malaysia Airlines’ recovery plan on track

Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) has performed well in 2016 and the momentum is expected to continue in the year ahead, backed by its 12-point MAS Recovery Plan (MRP), said Khazanah Nasional Bhd.

Managing director Tan Sri Azman Mokhtar expressed confidence that the five-year recovery plan, after its 28 months of implementation, was on track and on schedule.

“They (MAB) are making good progress. Insya Allah (God willing), next year or the year after, (even MAB) have come out publicly to say they are on track to break even and be profitable,” he told a press conference on Khazanah’s financial and strategic performance for 2016 and outlook for 2017 in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.

Khazanah is the sole shareholder of MAB.

In August 2014, the Government investment arm unveiled its RM6bil MRP in the quest to return MAB to sustained profitability and revive the flag carrier of Malaysia.

The plan included cutting 30 per cent of its workforce of 20,000 employees and introducing a new restructured entity which is now called MAB.

On July 1, 2016, MAB appointed its chief operating officer, Peter Bellew, to replace Christoph Mueller as chief executive officer.

On the ringgit performance throughout 2016, Azman believes that the currency is “clearly undervalued”.

“Whether (the depreciation rate is) 10%, 8% or 12%, we believe that our ringgit is undervalued,” he said, adding that Khazanah had also undertaken internal research on the currency performance.