SLT Group 2014 PBT up 12% to Rs. 8.2 b
Sri Lanka Telecom PLC (SLT) said yesterday the Group continued to maintain its overall growth momentum during 2014.
Group revenue for the year was up by 8% to Rs. 65 b. All the segments of the Group comprising Fixed, Mobile and Others positively contributed to this increase.
Owing largely to price escalations coupled with the impact of an out of court settlement on civil litigation in relation to the import of the IPTV system in 2007/2008, operating cost of the Group increased by 12% to Rs. 46.3 b during 2014, compared to the year before.
The Group profit before tax of 2014 increased by 12% year on year to Rs. 8.2 b. Refund received from the Telecommunication Development Charge (TDC) of Rs. 1.2 b during the year against Rs. 0.6 b of the previous year that has also contributed to this bottom line growth. Group profit after tax of 2014 was Rs. 6 b up by 11% year on year. During the year the Group invested Rs. 20.2 b in its infrastructure.
The holding company, Sri Lanka Telecom PLC reported Rs. 38.9 b revenue during 2014 with 6% year-on-year growth. Despite the threats on voice-related revenue, wholesale, enterprise, data and IPTV related revenues have demonstrated positive upward trends. Continuous investments in new technologies and infrastructure have largely contributed in revenue growth.
During the year under review alone the company has invested Rs. 16.4 b in infrastructure and technologies. Operational costs of the company have increased by 10% during the year, resulting from the same reasons given above to Rs. 29.5 b as compared to the year before. The company profit before tax dipped by 3% to Rs. 4.8 b, from the year before. Impact of the above mentioned litigation, amounting to Rs. 673 m, has largely negated the profits.
SLT Group Chairman P.G. Kumarasinghe Sirisena, while praising the Group results, stated that he, together with other Board members including those who have been appointed recently, would drive the company towards its strategic objectives aimed at supporting digital Sri Lanka by capturing new opportunities and rising above prevailing challenges.
He expressed confidence on the well-educated professional workforce and strong market presence coupled with diversified infrastructure in enhancing the value of stakeholders. He also acknowledged all the individuals who have contributed to bring the company to an outstanding level and emphasised on the fact that the company has achieved this success while also ensuring the highest standards of social responsibility towards Sri Lanka, as the national communication service provider of the country.
SLT Group Chief Executive Officer Lalith De Silva was very optimistic on the company performance, despite the onetime charge of Rs. 673 m for an out-of-court settlement that impacted, negating the results.
“We have taken every effort to fulfil our infrastructure requirements, not only by replacing the existing ones, but also by introducing new broadband technologies such as LTE and carrier grade Wi-Fi and FTTH. Phase 5 of the i-Sri Lanka program was completed enabling the entire network for broadband. The existing IPTV system was replaced by a new system offering the experience of the latest technologies to the customers. The national backbone network was completed not only for the use of SLT but also for the use of all the service providers and enterprises in Sri Lanka. The company itself is transforming to a modern IT environment, to serve the customers efficiently and effectively. Further, our state-of-the-art AKAZA cloud solution will definitely empower the enterprises to focus on strategic directives of their core businesses. Hence, the company is well equipped to take leadership in the nation’s journey towards an ICT-enabled Sri Lanka while enhancing the value of shareholders,” he said.
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