Etisalat announces results for first nine months of 2005; AED 1.711 billion increase in revenues

Revenues at the end of the period rose by AED 1.711 billion over the corresponding period last year, an increase of 22 per cent. Operating profit increased by 19 per cent from AED 2.550 billion at the end of September 2004 to AED 3.046 billion at the end of September 2005. Other income increased by 146 per cent from AED 75 million to AED 185 million.

Earnings per share increased from AED 0.72 to AED 0.89 during the same period last year.

Revenue, operating profit, earnings per share and capital expenditure all showed positive growth trends, along with the number of lines in operation for mobiles, fixed lines and Internet.

Presenting the results, Mr. Mohammad Hassan Omran, Chairman and CEO, Etisalat, said: "We are pleased that we have been able to show continued growth through the third quarter of this year."

"We are at the threshold of a whole new era in the Corporation's existence, with the advent of competition in our home market, and our significant international expansion, and these results are testament to the success of our new strategy and direction for the company, and the efforts put in by all our employees. Etisalat is also reaping the benefits of our continuous investments in infrastructure, bringing us more and more customers each period," he added.

The Corporation spent AED 843 million on capital expenditure during the first nine months of 2005 ended September 30th 2005. The amount covered Etisalat's expansion of services and the investment in development of telecommunications infrastructure in the UAE.

Customer growth in the period has been strong: Numbers of telephone, mobile and Internet lines grew by 4 per cent, 23 per cent and 20 per cent respectively. At the end of September 2005, there were 1,222,905 telephone lines, 4,305,821 mobile connections, and 469,817 Internet connections, including high-speed access.