DOHA: Vodafone Qatar’s total revenue grew by 21 percent to QR1.73bn for the nine months ended December 31, 2014. The company’s mobile customer base expanded to 1.414 million, up 11 percent, compared to December 2013.
Vodafone’s mobile average per user (ARPU) remained at QR125 for the nine-month period. EBITDA achieved QR421m for the period, recording 22 percent year-on-year growth. Distributable profit increased 71 percent year-on-year to reach QR152m. The company’s net loss for the period recorded QR150m, a 30 percent improvement compared to the same period last year. The loss per share is QR0.18 compared with QR0.25 for the same period last year.
Vodafone Qatar’s Chairman Sheikh Dr Khalid bin Thani Al Thani said: “The Qatari telecom market has witnessed some major changes in the period, in particular the prepaid segment due to extremely competitive pressure on prices. Despite this challenging trading environment, Vodafone Qatar maintained strong revenue growth by continuing to grow its customer base”
“We intend to invest heavily in our network over the next few months with significant network enhancements which will result in an improved customer experience and faster Internet speeds to satisfy the burgeoning demand for data,” he said.
Vodafone Qatar successfully refinanced $330m of conventional external borrowings with a Sharia’h-compliant ‘Wakala’ investment agreement. This transaction has a tenure of five years and will be used for working capital and CAPEX. The refinancing is unique, being Vodafone Group’s first Sharia’h-compliant intercompany financing.
Vodafone Qatar will be declared fully compliant with Sharia’h practices throughout its business, including commercial and financial operations with effect from April 1, 2015. Effective January 1, 2015, the company has commenced implementation of Sharia’h rules and practices on all its operations.
