Omantel Group's profit rises 13.1% to Ro315mn in 2023
Oman Telecommunications Company Group (Omantel Group) announced on Monday that its net profit grew 13.1% to Ro315.5mn for the full year 2023 compared to Ro278.9mn reported for 2022.
Omantel Group's net profit attributable to shareholders of the company (after excluding the non-controlling interest) came in at Ro74.8mn for the year 2023 compared to Ro91.3mn in 2022, the company said in a press statement.
The group reported remarkable growth in total revenue (including Zain Group's operations), which rose by 9.7% to Ro2.942bn in 2023 from Ro2.682bn in the previous year.
Omantel's board of directors recommended to the company’s annual general meeting (AGM), which will be held on March 30, 2024, to distribute a cash dividend of 55bz per share for the year ended December 31, 2023.
Group’s revenue (including Zain Group's operations) grew 9.7% to Ro2.942bn in 2023 compared to Ro2.682bn in the previous year
Domestic operations
At the level of domestic operations, Omantel's revenues grew by 7.3% to reach Ro606.5mn in 2023 compared to Ro565.5mn reported in 2022, driven by growth in wholesale transit voice revenue which increased by Ro17.2mn and device revenue which increased by Ro19.3mn.
Growth in domestic retail revenue is contributed by mobile postpaid revenue, which increased by 10.2%, and fixed broadband revenues, which increased by 4.2%, Omantel said.
Omantel's net profit from domestic operations for the year 2023 declined by 26.1% to Ro63.3mn last year from Ro85.7mn reported in 2022.
The company's net profit for the year 2022 included capital gain on the sale of towers for Ro28mn. Excluding this capital gain from the profit for the year 2022, the net profit from domestic operations for the year 2023 shows an increase of 9.7% compared to the previous year. This increase was on account of stable EBITDA and a decrease in finance costs.
Zain Group performance
Omantel subsidiary Zain Group's revenues for the year ended December 31, 2023, reached Ro2.361bn compared to Ro2.129bn of the corresponding period of the previous year, an increase of 10.9%.
Zain Group's EBITDA stands at Ro871.3mn, compared to the corresponding period EBITDA of Ro828.6mn, recording an increase of 5.2%. Zain Group's net profit stands at Ro359.7mn compared to Ro276.5mn of the previous period, an increase of 30.1% over the last year.
Zain's key operations in Kuwait, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan delivered impressive profit growth for the group. The completion of tower sales during the year in Saudi Arabia and Iraq helped in creating value and efficiencies for Zain Group.