Ooredoo Q2 Net Profit Soars 44% To $253.5m

Second-quarter profit at Qatari telecom Ooredoo soared 44 per cent on Tuesday, beating analysts’ estimates on increased revenue from the group’s units in Iraq and Indonesia.

The former monopoly, which operates in about 16 countries across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, made a net profit of QAR923 million ($253.5 million) in the three months to June 30, up from QAR641 million in the year-earlier period.

Analysts polled by Reuters had on average forecast a quarterly profit of QAR845.31 million.

Second-quarter revenue totalled QAR8.7 billion, compared with 8.3 billion a year ago, a company statement said.

Revenue from Indonesia in the first half grew 6.8 per cent year-on-year to QAR4.38 billion, it said. Iraq first-half revenue grew 5.3 per cent year-on-year to QAR3.5 billion.

Earlier this month Kuwaiti telecom Wataniya, an Ooredoo subsidiary, posted a 20 per cent rise in second-quarter profit, reversing a five consecutive quarter profit decline.

Ooredoo’s consolidated customer base grew 10 per cent year-on-year, the statement said.

Ooredoo has spent about $3.9 billion since the start of 2012, increasing its stakes in some foreign units, taking majority control of Iraq’s Asiacell, while it now owns 90 percent or more of Kuwait’s Wataniya and Tunisia’s Tunisiana.

The firm also plans to invest $15 billion in Myanmar after winning a telecom licence in the Asian country in June.

Ooredoo announced in June it had withdrawn its bid for Vivendi’s 53 per cent stake in Maroc Telecom. Last week Vivendi said it was in exclusive talks to sell the stake for 4.2 billion euros ($5.6 billion) to Etisalat.