Dhaka, Bangladesh (BBN) - Norway’s Telenor Group revenues reached at NOK33.013 billion (US$3.82 billion) in the first quarter (Q1) of 2016, up from NOK31.446 billion in the same period of 2015.
With revenues increasing by around NOK1.6 billion, the group noted that NOK1.0 billion of that was due to positive currency effects, while it also pointed to ‘significant positive contribution’ from its subsidiaries in Bangladesh and Burma, officially known as Myanmar, reports TeleGeography.
Such positives meanwhile helped to offset ‘tough market conditions’ in Thailand, Denmark and Malaysia, as well as declining fixed revenues and the loss of a wholesale contract in its domestic market last year.
EBITDA before other items increased by 8.2 per cent year-on-year, or NOK900 million, to NOK11.685 billion, with Telenor Group saying that underlying EBITDA improvement had mainly been driven by Myanmar and Bangladesh.
Telenor Group’s EBITDA margin meanwhile improved by one percentage point, standing at 35 per cent in the Q1 of this calendar year, according to the report.
Adjusted for one-time effects, operating profit totalled NOK6 .4 billion, while profit after taxes and non-controlling interests was NOK3.6 billion in the first quarter of 2016.
Based on the company’s first quarter results, Telenor Group has reiterated its financial guidance for 2016, saying it expects an organic revenue growth in the range of 2.0 per cent to 4.0 per cent and an EBITDA margin of 33 per cent to 34 per cent, while the CAPEX to sales ratio is expected to be between 17 per cent to 19 per cent.
In operational terms, at the end of March 2016 Telenor Group’s mobile subscriber base totalled 207.976 million, representing an increase of 5.4 million from the end of 2015.
Notable customer growth was reported in Pakistan (up 2.2 million subscribers quarter-on-quarter), Myanmar (up 1.8 million q-o-q) and India (1.5 million). Such gains helped offset small declines in a number of the group’s other operational areas, including Norway (down 34,000), Hungary (down 13,000) and Bulgaria (down 59,000).
“During the first quarter of 2016, Telenor Group delivered 5.0 per cent EBITDA and 2.0 per cent revenue growth on an organic basis, and achieved a healthy operating cash flow of more than NOK6 billion,” Sigve Brekke, Telenor Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO), explained.
The CEO also said: “We connected more than five million new customers as we continue to improve our network and service quality across our footprint. With intense competition in several markets, driving profitable growth and keeping a close eye on costs continues to be a priority for me and my management across our European and Asian markets.”
BBN/SSR/AD