The liquidation of the Tame airline will cost USD $ 412.5 million according to Minister Gabriel Martínez.
President Lenín Moreno announced the liquidation of the public company Tame on May 19, 2020, this is part of a series of economic measures for the crisis in the midst of a covid-19 health emergency.
Moreno also announced the elimination of the State Railways, the Public Media, the Ecuador Post Office and the National Storage Unit, among others, in addition to ordering the reduction of spending on other public companies.
On Wednesday June 10, 2020, Gabriel Martínez, Minister of Transport and Public Works (MTOP), explained in the Commission for Economic Development of the National Assembly the process of liquidation of the airline TAME.
According to Martínez, the airline’s financial situation was exacerbated by the crisis generated by the Covid-19 pandemic. This forced the suspension of most productive and labor activities since March 16, when the Government decreed a state of emergency and massive and mandatory confinement.
Martínez insisted on the situation of the company, and stated that the routes were no longer profitable since before the quarantine was declared, he also said that Tame had an excess of personnel, adding losses that were aggravated by the health emergency.
The Secretary of State in his appearance before the Legislative mentioned that the national government has undertaken several meetings with companies interested in the purchase or association with TAME, which must make investment proposals.
Martínez also pointed out that some residual values from the sale of airplanes for liquidation would not cover the total costs of the process, so he warned of the possibility that it is the Ecuadorian State that has to assume the majority of costs in the plan of elimination of the airline and payment to its creditors.
The minister calculated the total cost of the liquidation in about 412.5 million dollars, of which 297 million correspond to debts of the company with the same State.
After his presentation, the legislators that make up the Economic Development Commission presented the minister with several concerns regarding the actions that will be taken to solve the routes that TAME will stop operating after its liquidation, especially those frequencies of national scope.
Faced with the concern of members of the assembly about the high costs of tickets, he added that the only solution would be to work to generate private competition and “so the costs go down.”
They also asked the minister about the payment of arrears to the employees of the company, among other aspects.
Martínez acknowledged that the company has pending workers’ salaries for March, April and May 2020, so there are approaches with the Ministry of Finance to make those payments, the minister said.
The minister specified that in the liquidation process the order of priority, or payment preference, will have the workers first and that later it is planned to cover the obligations with suppliers and customers.
Regarding the cost of air tickets, Martínez indicated that they are working to guarantee private competition to regulate the value of tickets. (C.D.A.)
SOURCE: Radio La Calle
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