The State-Owned Enterprises Ministry has clarified a report that put the combined debt of state-owned enterprises (SOEs) at Rp 5.27 quadrillion (US$369 billion) as of the third quarter of 2018.

SOE Ministry business restructuring and development undersecretary Aloysius K Ro said the combined debt figure included the debt that was not subject to interest payments.

“There are debts with certain interest [to be paid] to creditors, and there are also debts that are actually third-party funds.There are debts to the government and to [SOE] employees that do not need to worry us at all,” Aloysius said in Jakarta on Tuesday, as quoted by kontan.co.id.

He further said, if the third-party funds and reserve funds were excluded from the combined figure, the total debt of all SOEs would amount to only Rp 2.49 quadrillion.

Read also: SOEs record Rp 5.27 quadrillion in third-quarter debt

“It could even be less than that, if specified in greater detail,” he said, adding that the other types of SOE debt were premium reserves and the accumulation of pension fees of SOE employees amounting to Rp 335 trillion.

Aloysius had previously explained that the debt figure was no cause for concern. “The debt-equity ratio is relatively secure,” Aloysius said, adding that the ability of any company to repay debt was also reflected in the company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA), and not their annual profit.

If the debt-to-EBITDA ratio ranged between 3 and 4, the company was still capable of repaying its debt, he added. (bbn)