Slovenska Plavba a Prístavy (SPaP-Slovak shipping company), based in Bratislava, reported a slight profit for the first four months of this year, a result which was expected in the firm's 1999 business plan. According to the plan, the company should end this year 45 million Slovak crowns in the red after a loss last year of 185 million crowns.
However, SPaP general director Pavel Šesták told a news conference on June 24 that the recent Kosovo conflict could have a negative impact on the firm's 1999 performance. NATO bombing left several bridges destroyed and blocking the Danube River, the main artery for SPaP's transport services.
SPaP's monthly losses from interrupted transport links on the Danube River now stand at 21 million crowns, while compensation will not be forthcoming from the government due to lack of finances. Šesták does not expect transport links on the Danube River to be reopened soon.
SPaP provides river and ocean transport of goods and passengers and the reloading and storage of goods. It is also engaged in the building and the service and maintenance of vessels, and in the provision of tourist services. The company operates ports in Bratislava and Komárno.
