Sheikh Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, Chairman of Ooredoo
Ooredoo Group’s (Ooredoo) total revenue for the first quarter of this financial year (Q1 2019) stood at QR7.2bn, witnessing a decline of 6 percent compared to the same period last year. The decline in revenues was largely driven by a reduction in handset sales, an industry wide shift from voice services to data services, as well as macroeconomic and currency weakness in some of our markets.
The Group’s net profit for the period (attributable to Ooredoo shareholders) was QR420m, down 13 percent compared to the same period last year. This decrease was primarily due to lower foreign exchange (FX) gains in Myanmar compared to the previous year. Excluding the FX impact, net profit attributable to Ooredoo shareholders increased by 8 percent.
Commenting on the results, Sheikh Abdulla bin Mohammed bin Saud Al Thani, Chairman of Ooredoo, said: “Traditional telecom services remain under pressure, in line with regional and global trends for our industry. The Ooredoo Group reported a solid set of results for the first quarter of the year.”
Sheikh Abdulla added: “Consolidated Group Revenue was QR 7.2bn down from QR 7.7 billion in 2018, due to a reduction in handset sales, currency depreciation and economic weakness in some of our emerging markets that have adversely affected our reported revenue in Qatari riyals.”
Group EBITDA was QR3.2bn, up 4 percent compared to the same period last year. Our EBITDA margin improved from 40 percent to 44 percent, driven by comprehensive cost management programmes and the positive impact of the new IFRS 16 accounting standards.
“We remain focused on providing reliable connectivity and innovative products to our customers and are proud to be at the forefront of the global 5G revolution,” he said.
Also commenting on the results, Sheikh Saud bin Nasser Al Thani, Group Chief Executive Officer of Ooredoo said:“ A major highlight for the quarter is the recovery in Indonesia, our second biggest market in terms of contribution to revenues, from the negative impact of the SIM card registration regulation in 2018. In Q1 2019, Indosat Ooredoo saw the return of both top and bottom line growth, with revenues up 2 percent and EBITDA up 10 percent, a clear indication that our refreshed strategy and our new leadership team are able to navigate the changing market landscape in the country.”
Sheikh Saud added: “In Kuwait, we were able to increase our EBITDA margin to 31 percent, supported by a healthy 13 percent increase in our customer base, further improved efficiencies and increased service revenue.
In Myanmar, our customer base increased by 20 percent despite the entrance of a new player in the market. In Tunisia, we strengthened our position as the Number 1 customer market share telecom player and in Algeria, we remain on track with our 4G strategy with increasing data usage. Looking forward towards the remainder of the year, we will push ahead with our digital strategy, whilst effectively managing our costs and overheads to support the growth of our business and long-term shareholder value generation.”
Ooredoo Qatar reported revenue of QR1.83bn for Q1 2019 against QR1.97bn for the same period last year, with stable service revenue compensating for a drop in the sale of devices. EBITDA stood at QR1.03bn (Q1 2018: QR955m), supported by on-going digitization of internal processes and other cost optimization initiatives. Customer numbers remained stable at 3.3 million.
