Telekom Romania had total revenues of €216.6 million in Q1, down 4.4% on the corresponding period last year.
At the same time, its TV subscriber total fell by 3.7% to 1,4098,947, though the number of FMC customers grew by 40.2% to 770,916. The company’s adjusted EBITDA was 20.8% lower at €26.2 million.
Meanwhile in Greece, Telekom Romania’s parent company OTE saw its revenues increase by 1.7% year-on-year to €697 million, while its TV subscriber total rose by 2.4% to 540,349 over the same period.
OTE Group revenues as a whole were up 0.2% year-on-year to €908.6 million, with adjusted EBITDA before IFRS 14 at €310.6 million (-0.9%) and adjusted net profit €62.9 million (+10.7%).
Commenting on OTE’s Q1 performance, chairman & CEO Michael Tsamaz said: “OTE had a satisfactory start to the year. Trends in Greece are challenging but positive, aligned with what we delivered in 2018—revenues from retail fixed and mobile services were up in all segments, with another strong showing in broadband. In Romania, adjusting for the provisions we took at the end of last year, we are seeing signs of recovery. Group EBITDA was down slightly, as the steady performance in Greece was not enough to offset a decline in Romania, resulting mostly from a high comparison base throughout the first half of last year. While operating metrics remain favorable, new European and local regulations, combined with tough comparisons in the past year, will create some headwinds in coming quarters. This strengthens our resolve to launch a new phase in our transformation, taking advantage of digitalisation opportunities, in order to shrink our fixed cost base, face potential challenges, and continue delivering growth.”
He added: “Two days ago, we completed the sale of our mobile Albanian subsidiary. Together with our strong cash flow generation, confirmed by the first quarter’s on-track delivery, net proceeds from this disposal will ensure a substantial shareholder remuneration.”
