Continued growth, outlook maintained

In the second quarter of 2015, Telenor Group reported revenues of NOK 30.2 billion and organic revenue growth of 6%. EBITDA before other items was NOK 10.6 billion, the EBITDA margin 35% and operating cash flow NOK 4 billion. Net income rose 57 per cent to NOK 3.6 billion kroner in the quarter, implying earnings per share of NOK 2.42. During the first six months of the year the company reported record-high revenues and an all-time high EBITDA compared with the same period in previous years.

Published: 22 July 2015

“Telenor continued to deliver encouraging results for the second quarter. We reported more than NOK 30 billion in revenues and organic revenue growth of 6 per cent. Profitability remained solid, with EBITDA before other items of NOK 10.6 billion and an EBITDA margin of 35 per cent,’’ said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO of Telenor Group.

“In Norway, the mobile trends seen over the last quarters persisted during the three months through June. Customers more than doubled their data usage in the period, which resulted in mobile service revenue growth of 6 per cent. The increasing mobile data consumption is supported by strong growth in 4G coverage and 4G devices. We are continuing to expand our 4G network across the country targeting 95 per cent population coverage by the end of this year,” said Baksaas.

“In Thailand, competition remained intense in the second quarter. dtac is going through a comprehensive turnaround process, which on the network side has already resulted in a significantly improved network position on both 3G and 4G. The ongoing transformation of dtac’s sales and distribution model is key for future success in this competitive market,” said Baksaas.

“In Myanmar, performance continues to exceed our expectations. In July we passed 10 million subscribers. Customers’ strong demand for voice and data services keeps driving revenues and profitability. During the quarter we further expanded the network, reaching 213 of a total of 330 townships at the end of June. The speed of our network expansion is the key challenge in a nation where approximately 70 per cent of the population lives in rural areas,’’ said Baksaas.

“We are pleased to see solid performance in Pakistan during an eventful quarter. Traffic revenues in Pakistan are fairly stable despite the mandatory biometric verification of the subscriber base that ended in May, resulting in a customer base of 31.6 million at the end of the quarter. Sales and market activities have picked up significantly during the second quarter, and consumption trends are encouraging,” said Telenor Group’s CEO Baksaas.

“We retain our focus on Internet for All as well as operational efficiency as stated in our strategy. We have made significant investments in data networks and data usage is growing rapidly. Successfully monetising this exponential growth in data will be a key priority for us going forward. This also includes developing our current digital positions within Internet of Things, online classifieds and financial services. As of the end of June, one third of our total customer base was mobile internet users. This highlights the appetite for data and the opportunities that lie ahead. Mobile internet access enables digital inclusion and opens opportunities for all. From this strategy platform I am happy to see Mr Sigve Brekke coming in as the new CEO from 17 August, continuing to develop Telenor Group,” said Baksaas.

“Based on the performance in the first half of the year and our expectations for the rest of the year, we maintain our guidance for 2015,” concluded Baksaas.