JAKARTA, Feb 24, 2015 – (ACN Newswire) – Garuda Indonesia, the national airline of Indonesia, has signed a US$ 400-million bridge financing facility agreement with two financial institutions, the National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Dubai Islamic Bank, on February 18th, 2015. The facility is intended to bridge financing Garuda’s fund raising plan in 2015, while waiting for the market to build strong momentum for Garuda to utilize and issue a US$ 500-million Global Sukuk as the take-out solution.

The agreement was signed by EVP Finance and Risk Management of Garuda Indonesia I Gusti Ngurah Askhara Danadiputra, Senior Vice President Business Head DCM & Syndication, Structured Finance, and Cash Management of Dubai Islamic Bank Sadiq Raza, and Managing Director and Global Head of Debt Origination & Distribution of National Bank of Abu Dhabi Andy Cairns.

The airline has mandated the two middle-east banks to act as the Initial Mandated Lead Arrangers (“IMLA”), the Bookrunners, and the Underwriters with respect to arrangement, primary syndication, and underwriting of the bridge financing facility. Alongside, both financial institutions had also committed to place this agreement as a backstop facility should the market is not favorable.

EVP Finance and Risk Management of Garuda Indonesia I Gusti Ngurah Askhara Danadiputra, commented on the agreement, "We are delighted to sign this bridge financing facility agreement as it shows the confidence the two banks have in Garuda Indonesia as we are now embarking our company-wide “Quick Wins Program” to increase our overall performance."

Garuda Indonesia carries out the “Quick Wins Program” as part of its further company’s development strategy amidst the turbulent times the global aviation industry is facing nowadays and has tremendously affected the performance of global airlines, including Garuda Indonesia. In light of this condition, Garuda Indonesia carries out the “Quick Wins Program” to carry out the short-term program with the following main strategies:

- Increase “Revenue Generator”, in which all potentials that may increase the company’s revenue are optimized.

- Restructure “Cost Driver”, in which Garuda will manage and restructure costs to increase efficiency,

- “Refinancing”, in which Garuda implements various measures and strategies regarding financial aspects, to secure the company’s financial condition.

About PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk.

Presenting a new level of service excellence in air travel, Garuda Indonesia, the national airline of Indonesia, seamlessly connects more than 70 destinations worldwide to not only one of the largest economies in Southeast Asia, but also an array of exotic locations in the beautiful archipelago of Indonesia all at once. With close to 600 daily flights and a fleet of around 160 aircraft (the average age of which is less than five years old), Garuda Indonesia proudly serves its passengers with the award-winning “Garuda Indonesia Experience” service, which highlights Indonesia’s warm hospitality and rich diverse culture.

The airline continuously strives, through its ongoing transformation program, to provide better and more convenient services with one of the youngest fleets in the sky, which should grow to around 194 aircraft by 2015. The progress of Garuda Indonesia’s transformation program can be seen from achieving a Skytrax airline ranking as the 7th best airline in the world in the 2014, as well as winning the prestigious “The World’s Best Cabin Crew” award in 2014 and “The World’s Best Economy Class” award in 2013, also from Skytrax. Garuda Indonesia is a member of SkyTeam, the global airline alliance with 20 members, providing access to an extensive global network with over 15,700 daily flights to 1,052 destinations in 177 countries.