Ooredoo, a telecom leader, reported a normalised net profit of QR1.9 billion ($520 million), up by 14%, for the six-month period ended June 30.
The company's revenues increased by 3% to QR11.8 billion and EBITDA was up by 6% to QR5.1 billion. EBITDA margin increased to 43%, up by one percentage point (pp).
Ooredoo's Capec spend was QR1 billion during the period. Its customer base reached 150.6 million (including IOH and excluding Myanmar).
The disposal of Ooredoo Myanmar operation was completed on May 31 and Ooredoo Group financial results for H1 2024 include results for Ooredoo Myanmar until May 31, it said.
Sheikh Faisal Bin Thani Al Thani, Chairman of Ooredoo, said: “Ooredoo Group delivered a solid set of results for the first half of 2024. Revenue grew by 3% to QR11.8 billion with a noteworthy increase in normalised net profit of 14%. The sustained investment in our networks, strong market position and our commitment to customer excellence supported the performance.
"In May, we completed the sale of Ooredoo Myanmar to Nine Communication Pte. This transaction is aligned to the ‘value focused pillar’ of our strategy to maintain leading market positions in the countries that we operate in.
"Ooredoo continued to make good progress in executing its disciplined strategy aiming to unlock value through operational efficiencies and key strategic initiatives while navigating industry complexities.
"Looking ahead as we strategically evolve toward becoming the leading digital infrastructure player in the region, we remain focused on efficiencies and value creation with a forward-thinking approach to navigate industry dynamics with resilience and adaptability,” he said.
Aziz Aluthman Fakhroo, CEO of Ooredoo Group said: “The strong commercial and operational momentum carried into the first half of 2024, resulting in another strong quarter with growth across all key financial metrics.
"In H1 2024, revenue grew by 3% to QR11.8 billion, while EBITDA increased by 6% to QR5.1 billion, resulting in an EBITDA margin of 43%, improving by 1 percentage point YoY. This growth reflects healthy operational performances in Iraq, Algeria, Qatar, Tunisia and Maldives.
"Our clear focus on driving profitability has led to a normalised net profit growth of 14% to QR1.9 billion while normalised free cash flow grew by 6% to QR4.1 billion," he said.
"We continued to deliver on our strategic priorities with tangible progress in the first half of the year. In May, we completed the sale of our Myanmar operation after receiving all required approvals. On the fintech front, OFTI launched ‘walletii’, a mobile money app. Additionally, we established MENA Digital hub, our carrier-neutral data centre company.
"We also strategically positioned Ooredoo at the forefront of AI innovation by collaborating with NVIDIA to become a NVIDIA Cloud Partner. This marks NVIDIA’s first major launch in the region, enabling us to deploy advanced AI technology across our data centres and accelerate digital transformation in the MENA region," he continued.
"Looking ahead, we are on track to meet our full-year targets. We remain committed to boosting profitability across our operations while advancing our strategic priorities as we forge ahead to become the leading digital infrastructure provider in the region.”
Ooredoo remains committed to its strategy based on five fundamental pillars: delivering exceptional customer experience, empowering our people, and nurturing talent, driving innovation as a smart telco, continuously evolving and fortifying our core operations, and maintaining a value-focused portfolio, the company said.