MANAMA: Batelco, a regional telecommunications group with operations across 14 countries, has reported a first half net profit of BD28.8 million ($76.4m), an increase of 51 per cent over BD19m ($50m) reported during the same period in 2017.
The second quarter net profit attributable to shareholders was BD15.7m, up 45pc from BD10.8m in 2017 and the second quarter operating profit was BD20.2m, up 29pc from BD15.7m in 2017.
Following on from the promising start to the year reported in the first quarter, the results for the second quarter show strong improvement compared with the second quarter of 2017.
The first half operating profit was BD40.5m, an increase of 35pc from BD29.9m in 2017.
The second quarter EBITDA of BD36.4m was up by 15pc from BD31.7m in 2017 and the first half EBITDA rose to BD73m by 14pc from BD64m in 2017.
The second quarter earnings per share was 9.4 fils compared with 6.5 fils in the second quarter 2017, an increase of 45pc and the first half EPS was 17.3 fils compared with 11.4 fils in 2017, a 51pc increase.
The board of directors has approved an interim cash dividend of 10 fils per share or 10pc of paid up capital, the statement said.
In line with the first quarter of 2018, revenues for the second quarter increased by 10pc over the second quarter 2017 from BD91.4m to BD100.5m. Revenues for the first six months of 2018 were BD200m, an increase of 10pc when compared with BD181.1m for the first six months of 2017.
Revenues have been positively bolstered by strong performance at Batelco Bahrain and Umniah Jordan, the company said.
In Bahrain, revenues were boosted by improvements in mobile and broadband services and in Umniah revenues were up in all revenue streams with notable growth in digital services and fixed broadband (Fixed LTE), it said.
The group’s balance sheet continues to be strong with total assets of BD913.2m as of June 30, 2018 compared with BD932.5m as of December 31, 2017.
Net assets as of June 30, 2018 stood at BD501.1m compared with BD502.5m as of December 31, 2017.
The group’s cash and bank balances are a substantial BD152.6m.
Total equity attributable to equity holders of the company is BD460.7m compared with BD461.9m as of December 31, 2017.
Batelco chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said in the statement that he was pleased to report the improved financial results.
“We got off to a very good start to the year, and similar to the first quarter, there has been a double digit improvement year-on-year.
“Across our group operations, our strategic plans are having a positive impact and our teams continue to work diligently to ensure that the needs of each location, with their specific requirements, are met,” he said.
Batelco Group chief executive Ihab Hinnawi said he was pleased to note that the momentum established in the first quarter of the year has continued with a second quarter of strong performances from a number of the group’s operations, particularly Batelco Bahrain, Umniah in Jordan and Dhiraagu in the Maldives.
“Key priorities for the quarter have been ongoing improvement to the quality of mobile and fixed networks, combined with delivering a superior customer experience.
“Our efforts in this regard and our investment in new and upgraded infrastructure and customer-centric initiatives have been rewarded by growing revenues and customer numbers for key services.”
“In line with growing revenues, the group’s total fixed broadband customer base has grown by 10pc year-on-year, supported by a 21pc increase in subscriber numbers in Bahrain, while in Jordan subscriber numbers are up by 76pc and in the Maldives the customer base for broadband is up by 63pc.”
“We are continuing to strengthen our digital capabilities as part of our transformation strategy and strive to be innovative and responsive in everything we do to support our strategic imperatives,” Mr Hinnawi added.
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