“Our performance during the first quarter reflects a promising start to the year. We reported all-time high revenues and strong organic sales growth of 8 per cent. EBITDA grew by 5 per cent organically despite start-up costs in Myanmar and continued high handset sales. We added 5.9 million mobile customers during the period and more than one third of our total 190 million subscribers are now active internet users,’’ said Jon Fredrik Baksaas, President and CEO of Telenor Group.
“In Norway, we continue to invest in fixed and mobile network infrastructure to meet our customers’ high demands and expectations for data capacity as well as premium network coverage. Combined with user-friendly services and good execution, this has enabled us to capture data growth and increase revenues. Telenor Norway delivered once again solid results, with revenue growth of 6 per cent in the period. This was supported by mobile data consumption that more than doubled over the last year and stronger demand for high-speed fixed internet,’’ said Baksaas.
“The turnaround plan in Thailand continues with some early signs of improvement. dtac continues to implement its cluster-based business model and strengthen its network position. dtac plans to accelerate its investment in 3G and 4G network coverage aiming to take a strong market position. Still, the company is facing intense competition with heavy handset subsidies in the prepaid customer segment,’’ said Baksaas.
“In Myanmar, we continue to face strong demand and reported positive EBITDA only a few months after service launch. We expanded into new areas during the first quarter, added 3 million customers and brought the total number of network sites to more than 1,700. In the coming quarters, we plan to ramp up network investments to cater for the strong demand for digital services in this connectivity hungry nation. While we are encouraged by the promising start in Myanmar, it is has to be noted that it is still early days,’’ said Baksaas.
“Telenor is committed to operate responsibly in all aspects of our business. We focus on sustainable initiatives that create long-term shared value for Telenor, our customers and society at large. Sound corporate governance, including the implementation and realisation of a solid compliance system in all our operations, is critical to Telenor’s business integrity and to maintaining confidence in our brand and company,’’ said Baksaas.
“An encouraging start to the year makes us confident that Telenor will see another good year in which more customers will benefit from mobile internet access and quality services. We are raising our organic revenue growth expectations to 5-7%, combined with a stronger EBITDA margin of 34-36%. The expected capex to sales ratio is now seen at 17-19% reflecting higher investments in Thailand and Myanmar in addition to the recently launched satellite,” said Baksaas.
Key figures
The table below contains key figures for the first quarter, compared to the previous year.
| 1Q | 1Q | Year | |
| (NOK in millions except earnings per share) | 2015 | 2014 | 2014 |
| Revenues | 30 210 | 25 319 | 106 540 |
| EBITDA before other income and other expenses | 10 587 | 9 074 | 37 681 |
| EBITDA margin before other income and other expenses (%) | 35.0 | 35.8 | 35.4 |
| Adjusted operating profit[1] | 6 608 | 5 570 | 22 926 |
| Adjusted operating profit/Revenues (%) | 21.9 | 22.0 | 21.5 |
| Profit after taxes and non-controlling interests | 4 053 | 3 676 | 9 077 |
| Earnings per share from total operations, basic, in NOK | 2,70 | 2,43 | 6,03 |
| Capex | 4 588 | 6 451 | 22 527 |
| Capex excl. licences and spectrum | 4 523 | 3 550 | 16 870 |
| Capex excl. licences and spectrum/Revenues (%) | 15.0 | 14.0 | 15.8 |
| Operating cash flow [2] | 6 063 | 5 524 | 20 811 |
| Equity ratio including non-controlling interests (%) | 37.0 | 43.5 | 35.4 |
| Net interest-bearing liabilities [3] | 44 348 | 37 237 | 47 126 |
1) Adjusted operating profit is defined as Operating profit less other income and other expenses and impairment losses.
2) Operating cash flow is defined as EBITDA before other income and other expenses – Capex, excluding licences and spectrum.
3) Net interest-bearing liabilities are defined as net interest-bearing debt excluding net present value of licence liabilities.
Media Contact:
Meera Bhatia, Tel: (+47) 4684 4959, E-mail: meera.bhatia@telenor.com
Press and analyst conference
In connection with the publication of the financial results, a press and analyst conference will be held on Wednesday 6 May at 09:00 hrs Norwegian time/CET. The presentation, which will also be broadcast live over the Internet, will be held in Auditorium Voice, Telenor Expo Visitor Centre at Fornebu near Oslo. CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas and CFO Richard Olav Aa will present the results. The presentation will be held in English.
Internet and mobile broadcast
The press and analysts conference will be broadcast live over the Internet, and will also be available as a recording after the conference. The live service also allows for written questions to be submitted. In addition, the conference will be available live and as a recording on mobile phones – for access, SMS expo to 2440 or (+47) 2440 from abroad.
Conference Call and Q&A
You may also call in and listen to the presentation over the phone. This service allows you to ask questions at the Q&A session at the end of the presentation. To participate in the conference call, please register before the conference starts by calling +47 23162729 and state the confirmation code: 7609201
Material
The quarterly report and English versions of the presentations will be made available here
https://www.telenor.com/investors/reports/2015/telenors-results-for-the-1st-quarter-2015/