Celcom to expand network with bulk of RM1.5b capex
KUALA LUMPUR: Celcom Axiata Bhd is allocating RM1.5 billion in capital expenditure (capex) this year, with a bulk of it going to network expansion.
Chief financial officer Jennifer Wong said 70 per cent, or RM1.05 billion, would be invested on network expansion, in line with the company’s target to achieve 4G long-term evolution (LTE) population coverage of 85 per cent by year-end from 77 per cent currently.
She said in the first quarter of this year, the group had spent RM167 million.
Last year, Celcom spent RM1.2 billion for capex.
“The 70 per cent of the capex for network expansion is to make sure that the coverage that we have, in terms of LTE, match our competitors’,” she said at a brief- ing on its first-quarter results, here, yesterday.
As of March 31, Maxis Bhd’s 4G LTE population coverage is the widest at 88 per cent, followed by Digi.Com Bhd at 85 per cent.
Celcom chief executive officer Michael Kuehner said the company continued to stabilise despite a competitive and shrinking market.
“We have implemented several initiatives that will position us to recapture some market share by the end of the year.
“In the next few months, we will reveal more changes as we work towards transforming our retail centres to experience centres, and increasing awareness of our online presence,” he said.
In the first quarter ended March 31, Celcom’s net profit dropped 23.3 per cent to RM269 million, from RM351 million a year ago.
Revenue slipped 3.7 per cent year-on-year to RM1.61 billion from RM1.67 billion, in line with an overall industry decline of four per cent last year.
Overall data revenue increased 29.8 per cent year-on-year to RM661 million, contributing 41 per cent to its total revenue.
Celcom’s quarterly service revenue stood at RM1.48 billion, a seasonal dip of 3.1 per cent quarter-on-quarter, amid a highlycompetitive industry with negative growth.
For the quarter under review, Celcom saw a total of 10.2 million customers, down from 10.5 million at the fourth quarter of last year. The contraction was primarily in its prepaid segment.