Ooredoo Kuwait reports net profit of KD 32 m - Revenue stood at KD 533 million for 9 months ended 30 Sept 2016 | kuwaittimes

KUWAIT: National Mobile Telecommunications Company (Ooredoo), a member of Ooredoo Group, announced yesterday its financial results for the nine months ended September 2016:

Financial Highlights:

* Total customer base increased by 4 percent to 24.9 million at the close of nine months of 2016, versus 23.9 million for the same period in 2015.

* Revenues for nine months of 2016 stood at KD 533.0 million compared with KD 547.9 million for the same period in 2015, a decrease of 3 percent.

* EBITDA for nine months of 2016 was KD 181.1 million compared to EBITDA of KD 192.1 million for the same period in 2015.

* The Net Profit attributable to NMTC in nine months of 2016 was KD 32.2 million compared with a Net Attributable Profit of KD 28.1 million for the same period in 2015. The increase was supported by good performances in Algeria and the Maldives.

* The consolidated Earnings per Share was 64.3 fils compared to 56.1 fils per share earned for the same period last year.

* Ooredoo Kuwait (NMTC) acquisition of "FASTtelco", a Kuwait based ISP, to offer advanced fixed broadband and mobile services finalized in May 2016.

* Ooredoo Maldives is preparing for an IPO at the local Stock Exchange in 2017

Sheikh Saud Bin Nasser Al-Thani

Sheikh Saud Bin Nasser Al-Thani, Chairman of the Board of Directors commented:

"Ooredoo maintained stable profitability levels during the nine months ended 30 September 2016, with net profit increasing by 15 percent to reach KD 32 million. Growth for the period was mainly supported by our performance in Algeria and Maldives, with the latter achieving an impressive EBITDA growth of 65 percent for the period. Our focus remains on delivering value to our customers and shareholders.

Ooredoo Kuwait performed well despite a highly competitive market. Driven by improved efficiencies, EBITDA increased by 4 percent and revenue grew by 7 percent for the period. We have put customer centricity at the heart of what we do and we are proud to have won the title "Speedtest Awards Winner 2016" by Ookla, which measured network speed on hundreds of thousands of users' devices in Kuwait.

Ooredoo Algeria increased its customer base by 4 percent for the nine month period, successfully maintaining its data market leadership position. We have strengthened our management team, with the appointment of Hendrik Kasteel as Chief Executive Officer of Ooredoo Algeria in August 2016. Kasteel brings a wealth of experience from 20 years of working in the telecom sector and will ensure the successful delivery of operations in this key market. Due to the impact of currency depreciation and challenges associated with the slowdown of tourism, Ooredoo Tunisia produced a weaker set of results, with decreases in EBITDA and net profit. Despite these challenges, we maintained our market leadership position and successfully increased our customer base by 5 percent to reach almost 8 million for the period.

Wataniya Palestine became profitable, with positive growth in EBITDA and Net Profit attributable to Ooredoo as well as an increase in its customer base by 9 percent for the nine months period."

Review of Operations

The Group's operational performance can be summarized as follows:

Ooredoo - Kuwait

Ooredoo's customer base in Kuwait was 2.4 million at the end of nine months of 2016, approximately in line with the same period in 2015. Revenues for nine months of 2016 were KD 148.7 million, an increase of 7 percent compared to 2015 of KD 139.1 million. EBITDA was KD 36.0 million versus EBITDA for nine months of 2015 of KD 34.5 million, an increase of 4 percent. Net Profit was at KD 6.7 million compared to KD 8.6 million for the same period in 2015.

Ooredoo - Tunisia

Ooredoo's Tunisia customer base was 7.8 million at the end of nine months of 2016, an increase of 4 percent on the same period in 2015. The Tunisian economy still suffering from slow tourism and the KD results are impacted by the depreciation of the Tunisian Dinar. Revenues for nine months of 2016 were KD 106.8 million compared to revenues for the same period in 2015 of KD 116.6 million. EBITDA was KD 41.8 million compared to KD 51.6 million for the same period in 2015. The Net Attributable Profit to Ooredoo for nine months of 2016 was KD 3.2 million compared to KD 9.3 million for the same period in 2015.

Ooredoo - Algeria

Ooredoo's customer base in Algeria at the end of nine months of 2016 was 13.6 million customers, an increase of 4 percent compared with the same period in 2015. The Algerian dinar depreciated significantly compared with the same period last year, impacting the results reported in KD. Revenues for nine months of 2016 were KD 234.4 million compared to revenues of KD 255.8 million for the same period in 2015. EBITDA for nine months of 2016 was KD 86.0 million, a decrease of 11 percent on KWD 96.2 million for the same period in 2015. The Net Attributable Profit to Ooredoo for nine months of 2016 was KD 15.5 million compared to a Net Attributable Profit of KD 11.1 million for the same period in 2015.

Wataniya - Palestine

The total customer base for Wataniya Mobile Palestine at the end of nine months of 2016 was 0.8 million, an increase of 8 percent from the same period of 2015. Revenues for nine months of 2016 were KD 19.2 million, an increase of 1 percent compared to the revenues of KD 19.1 million for the same period in 2015. EBITDA for nine months of 2016 was KD 5.6 million compared to an EBITDA of KD 3.4 million for the same period in 2015. The Net Attributable Profit to Ooredoo for nine months of 2016 stood at KD 0.2 million compared to a Net Attributable Loss of KD 1.2 million for the same period in 2015.

Ooredoo - Maldives

Maldives total customer base at the end of nine months of 2016 was 0.4 million, an increase of 14 percent from the same period of 2015. Revenues for nine months of 2016 were KD 23.8 million, an increase of 38 percent compared to KD 17.3 million for the same period in 2015. EBITDA for the nine months of 2016 was KD 13.1 million, an increase of 65 percent compared to an EBITDA of KD 8.0 million for the same period in 2015. The Net Attributable Profit to Ooredoo for nine months of 2016 was KD 7.3 million compared to the Net Attributable Profit of KD 3.7 million for the same period in 2015.