KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 29 — Celcom Axiata Bhd’s profit after tax and minority interest (Patami) rose by 65.3 per cent in the third quarter of 2022 (Q3 FY2022) to RM856 million despite higher prosperity taxes.
Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) grew 12.4 per cent to RM2.29 billion in Q3 FY2022, underpinned by on-going cost management resulting in lower operational expenditure (opex) and higher debt recovery, a statement from the company said today.
Celcom’s revenue ex-device grew by 3.9 per cent year-to-date (YTD) to RM4.58 billion, driven by prepaid revenue and contribution from new enterprise subsidiaries.
Chief executive officer Datuk Idham Nawawi said the mobile service provider’s strong performance over the quarter was the result of its strategic transformation programme that has touched every part of the organisation.
“We delivered a great financial performance in all key metrics, whilst gaining market share in a very competitive market and a challenging macro environment,” he said.
Idham noted that addressing the surging data traffic growth remained the top priority as Celcom has invested over RM1.8 billion to cater for a significant growth in traffic demand over the past three years.
Celcom’s YTD data traffic increased by 73 per cent to 1.78 terabyte (TB) compared to 1.025 TB three years ago, while the average monthly usage per user rose by 75 per cent to 26.2 gigabyte (GB) in the Q3 FY2022 compared to 14.9GB in the first quarter of 2020.
On prospect over the merger between Celcom with Digi.Com Bhd, Idham said the company will be starting a new chapter and entering the merger on a strong footing.
“Our transformation journey has made the organisation much stronger, leaner, and resilient and it enters the merger with Digi with a positive momentum.
“We look forward to the merged company to continue delivering quality and affordable services, connecting more Malaysians nationwide,” he added. — Bernama
