KAI’s Net Profit Slumps 74%, Dragged Down by KCIC Losses

JAKARTA, Jakartaweekly.com—KAI’s net profit slumped 74% year-on-year (yoy), with net profit attributable to the parent entity declining from Rp1.18 trillion to Rp305.37 billion. The decline was mainly caused by significant losses from associates and joint ventures, which surged by more than 200% on an annual basis.

The company recorded net losses from associates and joint ventures of Rp2.99 trillion in the first half of 2026, up from Rp948.2 billion in the same period last year.

Based on KAI’s financial statements, the losses from associates and joint ventures were primarily driven by PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia, which recorded a loss of Rp3 trillion, and KSI B Kalog, which posted a loss of Rp738.93 million.

The significant decline in KAI’s net profit indicates that the main issue was not related to the company’s core operations. In the first half of 2026, KAI’s operating profit actually increased by 25.61% yoy, rising from Rp3.71 trillion to Rp4.66 trillion.

KAI Vice President of Corporate Communication Anne Purba said the achievement reflected the continued strengthening of KAI Group’s core business activities, supported by service growth, higher productivity, cost management, and synergy across the company’s entities.

“Revenue and operating profit growth serve as an important foundation for KAI to maintain travel safety, infrastructure readiness, and service quality for the public, while supporting the sustainable development of passenger and freight services,” Anne said.

The increase in operating profit was driven by KAI’s revenue growth, which rose 6.59% from Rp16.85 trillion to Rp17.96 trillion.

KCIC Losses

According to KAI’s financial statements, PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia recorded a net loss of Rp5.13 trillion in the first half of 2026 and did not record any revenue. PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia operates the Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) high-speed rail service, with KAI holding a 60% stake.

The loss increased by 3% from the Rp4.99 trillion recorded at the end of December 2025.

KAI recognized a loss of Rp3 trillion from PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia in the first half of 2026, up from Rp948.2 billion in the first half of 2025, reflecting its 58.53% ownership interest in the company.

“Despite these losses, KAI Group’s core business activities continued to deliver growth in revenue, gross profit, and operating profit,” Anne said in a press release issued on Aug. 2.

KAI’s Operating Revenue

KAI’s transportation and other operating revenue in the first half of 2026 reached Rp17.96 trillion. During the period, KAI did not record any construction revenue, unlike in the first half of 2025, when the company booked Rp8.3 billion in construction revenue out of total revenue of Rp16.85 trillion.

KAI managed to limit the increase in its cost of revenue. Cost of revenue rose only 0.27%, from Rp11.13 trillion to Rp11.16 trillion, mainly due to an increase in rolling stock maintenance expenses from Rp1.6 trillion to Rp1.75 trillion.

As a result, gross profit increased by 18.7%, from Rp5.72 trillion to Rp6.79 trillion. KAI also kept operating expenses under control, with operating expenses rising only 5.97%, from Rp2.01 trillion to Rp2.13 trillion. The increase was mainly driven by higher marketing expenses, which rose from Rp128.9 billion to Rp175.23 billion.

Operating profit consequently increased from Rp3.71 trillion to Rp4.66 trillion.

KAI’s revenue was mainly supported by passenger transportation, which generated Rp7.11 trillion, accounting for 39.59% of total revenue. Other major contributors included freight transportation revenue of Rp5.69 trillion and government compensation revenue of Rp3.45 trillion.

The strengthening of freight services was also supported by additional rolling stock capacity. By the first half of 2026, a total of 1,080 flat wagons had arrived to strengthen freight transportation capacity in Sumatra. KAI also developed the Brumbung Cargo train service with a capacity of up to 800 tons per trainset. During the first half of 2026, KAI transported approximately 2.62 million tons of containerized cargo. These developments are intended to provide high-capacity, scheduled, rail-based distribution services connected to industrial and logistics centers.

Economy Class Tickets Remain the Best-Selling Segment

Throughout the first half of 2026, economy-class ticket sales reached Rp3.84 trillion, equivalent to 54.01% of KAI’s total passenger transportation revenue. Economy-class ticket sales increased 7.56% yoy from Rp3.57 trillion.

However, the strongest growth came from executive-class ticket sales, which rose 22.43%, from Rp2.63 trillion to Rp3.22 trillion.

Meanwhile, freight transportation revenue continued to be supported by coal transportation, which contributed Rp4.84 trillion. Of that amount, PT Bukit Asam accounted for Rp3.74 trillion.

During the first half of 2026, KAI transported 32.5 million tons of freight, comprising 26.53 million tons of coal and 5.96 million tons of non-coal commodities. These services supported the distribution of strategic commodities, including energy, industrial products, plantation products, containers, cement, fuel, and other logistics needs. Rail transportation provides large-capacity, scheduled services that help improve the efficiency of the national supply chain.

Meanwhile, government compensation revenue increased from Rp2.76 trillion to Rp3.45 trillion. Public service obligation (PSO) revenue remained the largest contributor, reaching Rp2.88 trillion, up from Rp2.32 trillion.

Throughout the first half of 2026, KAI Group served 258,993,359 customers, an increase of 7.55% compared with more than 240 million customers in the same period of 2025. These services included PSO schemes, pioneer train services, government assignments, and commercial services.

Based on customer volumes across entities and services operating under PSO schemes, pioneer train services, or government assignments, KAI served more than 235.13 million customers in the first half of 2026, representing approximately 90.79% of KAI Group’s total customer volume.

Anne said the figures underscored KAI Group’s significant role in providing public transportation services across Indonesia.

“Government support through PSO schemes, pioneer services, and various assignment programs enables people to access affordable railway services across different regions. These programs also allow KAI to expand its public service role while ensuring railway operations remain safe, reliable, orderly, and aligned with customer needs,” she said.