Yahsat 2022 revenue up 6% on growth in managed solutions business

Al Yah Satellite Communications Company (Yahsat) on Tuesday said the group annual revenue rose six per cent to Dh1.6 billion last year due to strong growth of 41 per cent in Managed Solutions and stable performance across the Infrastructure and Mobility Solutions businesses.

In a statement, the UAE’s flagship satellite solutions provider listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) said the group’s adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) also increased seven per cent in 2022, delivering a superior margin of 60 per cent.

The group’s positive performance was primarily driven by the Managed Solutions segment which delivered exceptional results in each quarter of the year and saw revenue increase significantly by 41 per cent year-on-year basis to Dh333 million ($91 million), according to the statement.

In addition, infrastructure — the group’s largest business segment — continued to deliver stable and predictable returns, reporting Dh872 million ($238 million) in revenue for the period, reflecting an increase of one per cent higher than the prior year.

Musabbeh Al Kaabi, chairman of Yahsat, said the group continues to deliver impressive top-line revenue growth, a superior margin and healthy cash flows, positioning it to sustain and grow its dividend and invest in organic and inorganic growth opportunities.

“The true test of a company's performance, however, is its ability to deliver on its promises, and I'm pleased to see Yahsat’s management team firmly meet or exceed the financial targets set out in our first full year as a publicly traded company following the successful IPO in July 2021. This reliable and steady progress bodes well for creating further shareholder value as we work on executing Yahsat’s growth strategy,” Al Kaabi said.

The group’s normalised net income recorded 32 per cent year-on-year increase to Dh390 million ($106 million), generating a strong margin of 25 per cent. However, contracted future revenue of Dh7.3 billion ($2 billion) was equivalent to 4.6 times annual revenue for the year 2022.

The group recommended full-year dividend of 16.12 fils (4.39 cents) per share or Dh393 million ($107 million), showing an increase of two per cent than the prior year.

“About 50 per cent of the dividend was paid as an interim dividend in October 2022 and the remaining amount is expected to be paid as a final dividend in May 2023 subject to shareholder approval at the upcoming annual general meeting, according to the statement.

“We expect to continue growing Yahsat’s dividends by at least two per cent annually underscoring the board’s confidence in Yahsat’s future growth potential and long-term visibility of cash flows,” Al Kaabi said.

Ali Al Hashemi, group chief executive officer of Yahsat, said Yahsat delivered strong growth in 2022, reinforcing and expanding its role as the preferred partner of the UAE government for satellite solutions.

“We now provide complete end-to-end managed solutions to the UAE government under a new, expanded mandate that includes technology management services. The launch of the Thuraya-4 NGS satellite in 2024 followed by two potential new satellites — Al Yah 4 and Al Yah 5 — demonstrates our commitment to sustaining our core government business, presenting unique growth opportunities for the group that are expected to further secure our long-term financial outlook beyond 2026,” he said.

“Looking ahead, we remain confident in the group’s underlying health and resilience, which is supported by a robust balance sheet and a substantial contracted future revenues of approximately Dh7.3 billion ($2 billion). This financial strength will help drive our future ambitions as we pursue a range of promising growth opportunities across IoT, government, maritime and enterprise data solutions, playing to our many strengths and driving sustainable long-term growth,” Al Hashemi said.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com

• Business