Ooredoo Q.P.S.C.

Doha, Qatar

Ooredoo Q.P.S.C. (“Ooredoo”) – Ticker: ORDS today announced results for the half year ended 30 June 2019.

Financial Highlights:

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Quarterly Analysis
Half Year Analysis
Q2 2019
Q2 2018
% Change
H1 2019
H1 2018
% Change
Consolidated Revenue (QAR m)
7,316
7,439
-2%
14,508
15,122
-4%
EBITDA (QAR m)
3,166
3,162
0%
6,339
6,212
2%
EBITDA Margin (%)
43%
43%
–
44%
41%
–
Net Profit Attributable to Ooredoo Shareholders (QAR m)
421
203
107%
841
689
22%
Customers in million (consolidated)
115
130
-12%
115
130
-12%

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Group EBITDA for H1 2019 increased by 2 percent year-on-year to QAR 6.3 billion with a corresponding EBITDA margin of 44% supported by a positive impact from the new IFRS 16 accounting standards

H1 2019 Revenue stood at QAR 14.5 billion, a decline of 4% compared to the same period last year, impacted by an industry wide shift from voice services to data services, as well as macroeconomic and currency weakness in some of our markets

Group Net Profit attributable to Ooredoo shareholders increased by 22% compared to the same period last year and reached QAR 841 million, partially aided by a favorable FX environment and offset by a negative IFRS16 impact on Net Profit in 1H 2019

Increased monetization of data business, with significant data growth coming from consumer and enterprise customers: saw data revenue increase to 52% of Group revenue. Revenue from data contributed QAR 7.5 billion

Post period on July 3, the Qatar Exchange implemented a successful 10 for 1 stock split for ORDS. This was mandatory for all QE listed companies

Operational highlights:

The Group customer base stood at 115 million and increased sequentially by 2.7 million as Indosat Ooredoo reversed its trend and attracted new customers
Ooredoo continues to lead in 5G adoption. At the 2019 Emir Cup final, Ooredoo Qatar showcased its 5G capabilities, achieving data speeds of up to 1.2 Gbps on 5G handsets and delivered more than 6 TB of mobile traffic during the event. Whilst Ooredoo Kuwait launched 5G commercially with a host of new 5G internet plans.
Network expansion and improvements remain a key driver of growth, Ooredoo Qatar maintained its fibre rollout programme which now covers 423 thousand homes in Qatar and Ooredoo Algeria extended its 4G network to cover 58% of the population, more than doubling the year on year data usage. Ooredoo Oman extended its 4G Supernet network to 25 new areas.
The launch of new digital initiatives continues to support customer acquisition and loyalty. Ooredoo Qatar launched ‘Ooredoo Sports’ – a conversational AI (artificial intelligence) platform that brings a new level of engagement to sports fans. Ooredoo Oman launched new features in its app through its AI powered Chatbot.
Ooredoo continues to be a data leader in its markets with 4G networks now available in 8 of Ooredoo’s 10 markets, while 5G is available in Qatar and Kuwait

Commenting on the results, H.E. Sheikh Abdulla Bin Mohammed Bin Saud Al-Thani, Chairman of Ooredoo, said:

“We are making excellent progress 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 Group reported a solid set of results for the first half of the year with Revenue of QAR 14.5 billion and a 22% increase in Net Profit despite the pressure in the operating environment in our markets and industry challenges associated with the decline in voice revenues.

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. In our home market in Qatar, we now have around 100 live 5G sites as we prepare our network to cater to the future needs of our customers. We are proud to play our role in facilitating a tremendous opportunity that 5G will bring to people and business and have now launched a commercial 5G network in Kuwait as well.”

Also commenting on the results, Sheikh Saud bin Nasser Al Thani, Group Chief Executive Officer of Ooredoo said:
“During the period we invested further into our networks while at the same time improving the profitability of the company.
Indosat Ooredoo, our second biggest market in terms of contribution to revenues, continues to turn around its business delivering robust growth across the board. This was underpinned by our strategic refresh designed to create a more loyal customer base with lower churn rates, following the implementation of regulation for SIM card registration. As a result Indosat Ooredoo reversed the trend and started to add new customers again.
In Oman we grew our customer base by 5% as we launched exciting new features through our AI powered chatbot, whilst in Myanmar our customer base surged 19% despite increased competition from a fourth telecommunications operator. In Kuwait we launched 5G and we substantially grew our EBITDA supported by careful execution of our cost optimisation initiatives and enhanced operational efficiency. In Algeria, our data traffic more than doubled year on year, as we extended our 4G coverage to 58% of the population.

Looking ahead we remain optimistic about the opportunities available to Ooredoo Group, as the telecommunications industry transitions towards a more digital model. We believe that we have made the right investments and strategy to ensure long term value for our shareholders, customers and countries we operate in.”