KUWAIT CITY, Oct 19: Wataniya Telecom (National Mobile Telecommuni-cations Company K.S.C. — Ticker: NMTC) is pleased to announce its 3rd Quarter 2010 financial results. The Company has posted a consolidated Net Profit of KD 53.7 million (USD 189.7 million) for first nine months of 2010, compared to the KD 97.3 million (USD 343.5 million) in the same period 2009.
Excluding a one-off gain in 2009 for a reversal of provision of KD 52.1 million (USD 183.9 million; net of expenses) which resulted from the positive outcome of the MOC license fee legal case, Net Profit grew by KD 8.5 million (USD 30.0 million). This equates to a consolidated earnings per share of 107 fils (378 cents), compared to the 194 fils (685 cents) per share earned for the same period last year. EBITDA for the year to date Q3 2010 stood at KD 155.7 million (USD 549.5 million), compared to EBITDA of KD 140.0 million (USD 494.3 million) for the same period in 2009.
H.E. Sheikh Abdullah Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al Thani, Chairman of Wataniya Telecom commented: ìThe third quarter of 2010 was another successful period for Wataniya Telecom showing continuous growth in customers, revenue and EBITDA. In our home market of Kuwait we continue to address the competitive pressures and increased our share of the market. Wataniya Telecom Group’s customer base continues to expand and at 30 September 2010 stands at over 16.2 million, an increase of 29.7% over the same period in 2009.”
Wataniya Telecom Group Highlights:
n Total customer base increased to 16.2 million at the close of Q3 2010, versus 12.5 million at the same period in 2009: growth of 29.7%.
n Revenues for the first nine months of 2010 amounted to KD 400.7 million (USD 1.4 billion), compared with KD 351.7 million (USD 1.2 billion) for the same period in 2009: growth of 13.9%
n EBITDA for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 155.7 million (USD 549.5 million), compared to EBITDA of KD 140.0 million (USD 494.3 million) for the same period in 2009: growth of 11.2%.
n Consolidated earnings per share for the first nine months of 2010 was 107 fils (378 cents), compared to 194 fils (685 cents) per share for the same period in 2009.
n Net Profit for the first nine months of 2010 amounted to KD 53.7 million (USD 189.7 million), compared to 2009 Net Profit adjusted for the reversal of provision of KD 45.2 million (USD 159.5 million): growth of 18.8%.
Year to Date Q3 Year to Date Q3 2010 2009
Revenues KD 400.7m KD 351.7m
(USD 1.4b) (USD 1.2b)
Ebitda KD 155.7m KD 140.0m
(USD 549.5m) (USD 494.3m)
Net Profit KD 53.7m KD 97.3m (USD 189.7m) (USD 343.5m)
Kuwait: Wataniya Kuwait’s customer base increased to 1.72 million customers at the end of Q3 2010, an increase of 18.0% on Q3 2009. Revenues for the year to date Q3 2010 were KD 163.5 million (USD 577.3 million), an increase of 8.5% compared to revenues for the same period in 2009 of KD 150.8 million (USD 532.3 million). EBITDA for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 71.8 million (USD 253.3 million) compared to EBITDA for the same period in 2009 of KD 68.9 million (USD 243.3 million). Net profit was at KD 49.4 million (USD 174.5 million), compared to net profit for the same period in 2009 of KD 97.0 million (USD 342.5 million). Note that in Q2 2009, Wataniya Kuwait was successful in a ruling involving the Ministry of Communications regarding network license fees, which enabled the company to reverse the previously recorded accruals of KD 52.1 million (net of related expenses) resulting in an increase in net profits. After excluding the one-off gains in the first nine months of 2009, Net Profit increased by 10.0% for the year to date Q3 2010 compared to the same period in 2009.
Tunisia: The Tunisiana customer base at the end of Q3 2010 stood at 5.80 million customers: an increase of 20.6% on Q3 2009. Revenues for the year to date Q3 2010 were KD 80.0 million (USD 282.4 million), compared to revenues for the same period in 2009 of KD 76.0 million (USD 268.1million): an increase of 5.3%. EBITDA for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 42.0 million (USD 148.4 million) from KD 41.6 million (USD 146.8 million) for the same period last year representing an increase of 1.1%. The net attributable profit to Wataniya Telecom increased in the first nine months of 2010 were KD 18.2 million (USD 64.2 million), an increase of 1.3% compared to KD 18.0 million (USD 63.4 million) for the same period in 2009.
Algeria: The Nedjma customer base at the end of Q3 2010 was 8.08 million customers: an increase of 36.0% on Q3 2009. Nedjma posted year on year revenue growth with revenues for the year to date Q3 2010 standing at KD 127.0 million (USD 448.2 million) an increase of 20.8% compared with revenues of KD 105.1 million (USD 371.0 million) for the same period in 2009. EBITDA for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 47.0 million (USD 166.0 million), an increase of 33.8% on KD 35.2 million (USD 124.1 million) for the same period in 2009. The total net profit for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 0.2 million (USD 0.6 million) compared to the total net loss of KD 6.4 million (USD 22.5 million) for the same period in 2009. The net attributable profit to Wataniya Telecom in the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 0.1 million (USD 0.4 million) compared to a net attributable loss of KD 4.5 million (USD 16.0 million) for the same period in 2009.
Saudi Arabia: Bravo’s customer base stood at 0.20 million at the end of Q3 2010, an increase of 8.0% from Q3 2009. Revenues in the year to date Q3 2010 increased to KD 16.4 million (USD 57.8 million) from KD 14.2 million (USD 50.2 million) for the same period in 2009. The total net loss for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 6.0 million (USD 21.1 million) compared to a total net loss of KD 8.1 million (USD 28.4 million) for the same period in 2009. The net attributable loss to Wataniya Telecom for the year to date Q3 2010 was KD 3.3 million (USD 11.7 million), a 25.8% improvement compared to the loss of KD 4.5 million (USD 15.8 million) for the same period in 2009.
Maldives: Total customers at the end of Q3 2010 were 0.11 million. Revenues were KD 6.7 million (USD 23.7 million) for the year to date Q3 2010 compared to KD 5.6 million (USD 19.8 million) for the same period 2009. EBITDA for the first nine months of 2010 was KD 0.7 million (USD 2.4 million) compared to an EBITDA of 0.1 million (USD 0.4 million) for the same period in 2009. The net attributable loss for the year to date 2010 was KD 3.8 million (USD 13.3 million) compared to the loss of KD 2.7 million (USD 9.5 million) for the same period in 2009.
Palestine: Total customers at the end of Q3 2010 was 0.30 million. Revenues were KD 7.1 million (USD 25.1 million) for the year to date Q3 2010. Total net loss for the first nine months of 2010 was KD 12.5 million (USD 44.2 million), and the net attributable loss was KD 7.1 million (USD 25.2 million) for the same period.