Emirates Integrated Telecommunications Company PJSC (“EITC”) popularly known by its brand name ‘du’ reported a total Revenue of AED 11.08 billion and a Net Income of AED 1.44 billion for the year ended 31 December 2020. The results reaffirm the company’s profitability and the resilience of its model in a difficult operating environment caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The company had reported revenue of Dh12.59 billion and net profit of Dh1.73 billion in 2019.
In 2020, capital expenditure(CAPEX) increased by 24.1% to reach AED 1.87 billion, representing a capital intensity of 16.9%, its highest level over the last five years, which was primarily used to enhance the network and continue 5G roll out.
On the basis of these results, the Board recommended to the shareholders the approval of a dividend distribution, for the year 2020, of 28 fils per share, out of which 13 fils per share were paid in August 2020 as an interim dividend.
The company board has approved foreign ownership of up to 49% of the company’s share capital. Q4 2020 Mobile Revenues were almost stable at AED 1.32 billion, compared to AED 1.33 billion in Q3 2020, impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and changes in population and mobility patterns.
In Q4 2020, EITC reported 1.0% increase (when compared to Q3 2020) in its mobile subscriber base, to 6.66 million subscribers and a 3.4% year-over-year improvement in ARPU reflecting a better postpaid and prepaid subscriber mix.
Q4 2020 Fixed Revenues were at AED 645 million, up by 1.4% from Q3 2020. 2020 fixed revenues increased to AED 2.57 billion, up by 3.0% when compared to the previous year.
Q4 2020 EBITDA was AED 1.03 billion as the company continued to implement cost optimisation initiatives to drive efficiencies across the business and streamline its operations. EBITDA for the year was AED 4.51 billion, representing a solid EBITDA margin of 40.7%.
Commenting on the results, Mohamed Al Hussaini, Chairman of EITC said: “2020 has been a challenging year with the unprecedented pandemic impacting all businesses locally and globally. Our business model proved solid and resilient compared to many other industries.”
Meanwhile commenting on the results, Fahad Al Hassawi, Acting CEO of EITC said: “Our business saw a positive momentum towards a gradual return to normality in the second half of 2020, as economic activity and trade and tourism resumed. We reported two consecutive quarters of positive revenue growth in the third and fourth quarter of 2020, respectively, and reported a healthy net income of AED 1.44 billion for the full year 2020. Our fixed revenues grew by 3.0% year-over-year to AED 2.57 billion in 2020, supported by a 7.4% increase in our fixed subscriber base during the same time period, demonstrating our competitive strength and ability to gain market share during this challenging period.”