Etisalat revenue, profit up as subscriber base expands to 155.4 million

Etisalat Group on Sunday announced that its third-quarter consolidated revenue and net profit after Federal Royalty rose as its aggregate subscriber base expanded to 155.4 million, reflecting a year-on-year growth of four per cent.

In a statement, the Abu Dhabi-based telecom giant said consolidated revenue for the third quarter of 2021 rose to Dh13.3 billion, representing an increase of two per cent, while consolidated net profit after Federal Royalty inched up one per cent to Dh2.4 billion compared to the same period last year.

The region’s leading telcom company said its consolidated earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) amounted to Dh6.7 billion, and resulting in EBITDA margin of 51 per cent.

“Etisalat Group continued to deliver a steady growth in the third quarter of 2021, demonstrating agility as we address the growing and ever-changing customer needs and market dynamics across our operations. We remain focused on achieving key strategic priorities that would enable a smarter digital tomorrow while opening new opportunities to engage with business and customers alike,” Hatem Dowidar, CEO, Etisalat Group, said in a statement to Khaleej Times.

Etisalat, which was named the world’s fastest mobile network by Ookla for the second consecutive year, said its subscriber base in the UAE reached to 12 million. It further said Etisalat Group and G42 joined hands to establish UAE’s largest data centre provider.

“We look at the future confidently with a positive outlook for our operations despite the various global macro-economic factors that are reshaping the business environment across our footprint,” Dowidar said.

The statement also highlighted that Etisalat Group signed an agreement to acquire additional stake in Maroc Telecom Group, increasing its effective ownership from 48.4 per cent to 53 per cent. Etisalat Misr completed the first VoLTE call using virtual IP Multimedia Subsystem, it added.

Dowidar said etisalat mobile network reasserted its leadership as the fastest globally due to “our sincere efforts” in consistently pushing boundaries and delivering added value to our customers, shareholders, and the “communities we serve”.

“We will continue to channel our efforts towards enabling private and public sectors digital transformation journeys while equipping our operations with the next generation of technologies like AI and robotics to drive efficiencies,” he said.

Etisalat Group management improved full year 2021 guidance for all financial indicators due to consistent performance in the first first months, according to the statement.

— muzaffarrizvi@khaleejtimes.com