Telenor: “Strong performance in challenging year”
February 2, 2021
Telenor, the Norwegian telco, has reported its full year results Mobile subscriber base grew by 1.5 million and was 182 million at the end of the quarter.
Subscription and traffic revenues decreased by 3 per cent on an organic basis. Total reported revenues were NOK 30.9 billion (€2.98bn), a decrease of NOK 0.8 billion or 2 per cent. For the full year 2020, organic subscription and traffic revenues decreased by 2 per cent.
Reported net income was NOK 7.7 billion. The sale of Tapad contributed with a gain of NOK 2.1 billion and the sale and partial leaseback of the headquarter office building in Norway contributed with NOK 1.2 billion.
Sigve Brekke, President and CEO at Telenor Group, commented: “The year 2020 was marked by the global pandemic. In this unprecedented situation, Telenor accelerated the digitalisation, managed to safeguard employees and maintained critical connectivity to customers. For the full year, Telenor delivered an organic EBITDA growth of 2 per cent and a solid free cash flow of NOK 21 billion.”
“In the fourth quarter, we continue to deliver a strong performance in the Nordics. In Norway growth in mobile and new fixed services more than offset a shortfall of roaming and copper legacy revenues. In Finland revenue and EBITDA are growing as a result of our customers’ demand for higher data speeds, including our new 5G offerings. In Asia, pressure on the top line remains due to intense competition and impact from the pandemic, in particular in Thailand and Malaysia. For the Group, subscription and traffic revenues decreased by 3 per cent, however our flexibility to manage cost and investments levels resulted in stable EBITDA and improved cash flow.”
“Entering 2021, we will maintain focus on our strategic priorities; growth, modernisation and responsible business. In the coming months, all our markets and especially our Asian subsidiaries will still be impacted by the spread of Covid-19 and government responsive measures. For the full year 2021, we expect organic subscription and traffic revenues and Ebitda to remain around 2020 level. We foresee a capex to sales ratio of 15-16 per cent. Based on 2020 performance, the Board of Directors propose a dividend of NOK 9.00 per share in line with our dividend policy.”