SLT Group 1H revenue up; profits hit by external factors

Sri Lanka Telecom said yesterday that the Group reported revenue of Rs. 36.69 billion for the first half of 2016 which reflected a growth of 9% year-on-year.  

Whilst the Group operating costs increased to Rs. 26.10 billion to meet the challenges due to taxation requirements and recent natural disasters in Sri Lanka, the Group reported EBITDA of Rs. 10.59 billion and maintained the EBITDA margin of 29%. The Group Profit after Tax of Rs. 2.82 billion was affected by higher depreciation and amortisation costs resulting from investments in new technologies and network requirements, as well as forex losses.    

At the Company level, revenue for the first half of 2016 increased by 7% year-on-year to Rs. 21.33 billion whilst EBITDA and Profit after Tax was Rs. 5.37 billion and Rs. 1.0 billion respectively.  

The Group demonstrated its capability and resilience with the fast restoration of critical telecommunication services throughout the country during the recent natural disasters.   

SLT Group CEO Dileepa Wijesundera, while releasing the financial results, stated that the Group was continuing to expand its infrastructure for both fixed and mobile services to offer new and exciting products and solutions with the objective of maintaining its position as a reliable service provider and meeting the national interest of Sri Lanka. The Group is also focused on providing superior customer service to all its customer segments.