Tuesday, May 14, 2013
(This story was originally published Monday.)
DUBAI (Zawya Dow Jones)--Bahrain Telecommunications Co. (BATELCO.BH), or Batelco, on Monday posted a 17% drop in first-quarter profit as the group's revenues fell and the telco lost mobile subscribers in its fiercely contested home market.
The telco made a first-quarter net profit of 13.4 million Bahraini dinars ($35.5 million), compared with a profit of BHD16.1 million a year earlier, according to an emailed statement from the company.
Analysts at Bahrain-based SICO had forecast first-quarter net profit of BHD12.4 million.
Batelco said revenues fell 9% on year to BHD71 million in the first quarter. Its total subscriber base reached 7.9 million customers, an increase of 15% compared to the previous year.
The telco, which is one of three mobile operators in Bahrain, has been looking to expand into new markets and diversify its revenues and profits away from its home market, where the telco has experienced a high level of competition and posted a 2% decrease in mobile subscribers in the first quarter, compared to the same period last year.
"Results for the period reflect the intensity of the competitive situation in our home market and the need to accelerate the restructuring programme to reduce our operating costs," Shaikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, chairman of Batelco, said in the statement.
Batelco completed the acquisition last month of the Monaco and Islands business division of telco Cable & Wireless Communications PLC (CWC.LN), adding ten new markets, for a total consideration of $570 million, a deal that was first announced in December.
Write to Rory Jones at rory.jones@dowjones.com
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(END) Dow Jones Newswires
14-05-13 0338GMT
