Vodafone Qatar Q3 Net Loss Widens

Vodafone Qatar, an affiliate of Vodafone Group, reported a widening third-quarter loss on Thursday as competition in the pay-as-you-go mobile sector intensified.

Vodafone, which ended state-controlled Ooredoo’s domestic monopoly in 2009, made a net loss of 68.8 million riyals ($18.9 million) in the three months to Dec. 31, according to Reuters calculations based on company statements.

That compares with a loss of 53.3 million riyals in the prior-year period. The operator’s financial year starts on April 1.

Beltone Financial forecast Vodafone Qatar would make a quarterly loss of 47.2 million riyals.

Vodafone Qatar — 23 per cent owned by parent Vodafone and 22 percent by a Qatar government-linked fund — made a loss of 149.8 mln riyals in the nine months to Dec. 31, versus a loss of 213.2 million riyals in the prior-year period, according to a statement to Doha’s bourse.

“The Qatari telecom market has witnessed some major changes in the period, in particular the prepaid (pay-as-you-go) segment due to extremely competitive pressure on prices,” chairman Khalid bin Thani al-Thani said in the statement.

“We intend to invest heavily in our network over the next few months.”