http://www.batelcogroup.comThe Batelco Group comprises of a number of leading telecommunications companies across the Middle East, Africa and South Asia regions.Copyright 2012. all rights reserved.Batelco Group Announces the Sale of its stake in STel India   Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Group (Ticker: BATELCO), the Middle Eastern regional telecommunications operator of reference with operations across seven countries, today announced its agreement for the sale of its shareholding in STel Private Limited (STel), a mobile operator in India. This is a part of an earlier understanding with its Indian Partner to exit, given the circumstances surrounding the 2G probe in India over the past twelve months.   Batelco’s Group Chief Executive, Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa, stated that “BMIC Limited, a 100% Batelco owned subsidiary company, entered into an agreement, in the fourth quarter of 2011 to sell its 42.7% equity in STel for BD 65.8M (US $174.5M) to its Indian partner, Sky City Foundation Limited.” The agreed time frame for completion of the sale is the end of October 2012.   As stated in previous press statements, BMIC Limited (BMIC) had decided, as early as April 2011 to actively pursue the sale of this investment.  Batelco Group had disclosed in its Financial Accounts for the period ending 30 June 2011, that BMIC’s investment in STel was presented as an asset held-for-sale.   BMIC acquired 42.7% equity in STel via two transactions in May and June 2009 for a total of $174.5M.   “As Batelco continues to grow and diversify its operations, we remain interested in other investment opportunities for the Batelco Group that will enable us to participate in the Indian telecom market. We are actively exploring all options in this respect over the coming months,” concluded Shaikh Mohamed. http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=65Batelco Clarification re Indian Supreme Court Cancels Telecom Licences Manama. Bahrain: Batelco in conjunction with STel Management, other STel shareholders and legal advisers are carefully studying the detailed judgement handed down by the Supreme Court of India on Friday 3 February 2012, which cancelled all 122 2G licences issued in 2008 and allocated spectrum granted to 8 operators, including STel. Whilst the immediate focus is on STel's customers, employees and suppliers, STel shareholders will also review the sustainability of its business operations under the revised conditions imposed by the Indian Supreme Court's recent judgement impacting the telecoms industry. Batelco was not involved in the STel licence application process nor had any knowledge of any of the events surrounding the granting of the 2G licences in January 2008. Batelco holds 42.7% equity in STel since May 2009. As at 31 December 2011, Batelco's carrying value of its equity in STel is $123.3M. Batelco invested in STel following a diligence exercise with the support of financial and commercial advisers. It also received certain representations and warranties from STel's promoter regarding the validity of the licence. Batelco respects and abides by all legal and regulatory rulings and determinations in every market it operates. Batelco will review, together with other STel shareholders, all legal options following the handing down of the Indian Supreme Court judgement. As Batelco continues to grow and diversify its operations, it intends to explore all options to remain involved in the Indian telecommunications market.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=63Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Group (Ticker: BATELCO), the regional telecommunications operator of reference with operations across seven countries, today announced its results for the twelve-months ended 31 December 2011 (“the year”), which were marked by sound financial results and operating performance across its markets of operation in the MENA region and India. Financial and Subscriber Highlights Ø     Gross Revenues of BD327.0M (US$867.4M) for the year; Ø     EBITDA of BD126.0M (US$334.2M) representing a 39% margin for the full year; with the highest quarterly EBITDA for the year recorded in Q4 2011; Ø     Consolidated Net Profit of BD80.0M (US$212.2M) for the year, with net profit for Q4 representing the second highest quarterly net profit in the last eight quarters; Ø     Record subscriber base that now surpasses 11 million, an increase of 20% YoY; including 21% growth in mobile customers and 8% growth of the broadband subscriber base; Ø     Continued diversification of Group revenues with 37% of revenues and 30% of operating profit now sourced from markets outside Bahrain; Ø     Significant cash and bank balances totaling BD107.9M (US$286.2M) at year end; Ø     Recommended dividends of BD57.6M (US$152.8M) for the full year, equivalent to 40 fils per share, marking the Group’s ongoing ability to deliver strong value and returns to shareholders; and Ø     An overall solid financial position to support future growth and results as underscored by the Group’s Investment Grade Credit Ratings – its first public credit ratings- received from Fitch and Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services in Q4 2011. For the full year 2011, the Group reported Net Profits of BD80.M (US$212.2M) versus BD86.8.M (US$230.2M) for 2010, representing a decline of 8%. EBITDA for the year was BD126.0M (US$334.2M), representing a 39% margin, versus EBITDA of BD146.2M (US$387.8M) for 2010. The Group’s Gross Revenues stood at BD327.0M (US$ 867.4M) for the year, down 4% from BD340.3M (US$902.7M) in the previous year. In line with the Group’s continued diversification, 37% of revenues and 30% of Operating Profit are now generated from markets outside of Bahrain where the Group continues to focus on building its presence and strengthening the performance of its operations. The Group ended the year with a strong balance sheet. As of 31 December 2011 Batelco Group was free of debt and had significant cash and bank balances of BD107.9M (US$286.2M) an increase of 24% year on year. The Group also reported that the Board of Directors would recommend a full year cash dividend of BD57.6M (US$152.8M) to the General Assembly of Shareholders, which represents a 72% payout at a value of 40 fils per share of which 20 fils per share was already paid during the third quarter of the year. Supporting the Group’s sound financial results was continued growth of its subscriber base. At year end 2011, the Group reported a record 11 million customers, an increase of 20% year on year, underscoring the success of ongoing efforts to add scale to its operations and maximise performance across its regional network. Batelco Group Chairman, Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, announcing the 2011 financial results following a meeting of the Board of Directors at the Group’s Bahrain Headquarters, said: “Throughout 2011 Batelco Group successfully managed its operations balancing our performance in mature markets such as Bahrain, where we have effectively maintained market leadership despite strong competitive pressures, with opportunities to pursue and achieve further growth across our regional markets of operation. Whilst our financial results showed expected declines for the year in line with market guidance, we are nevertheless pleased to have ended the year on a strong note with the fourth quarter accounting for the highest EBITDA reported in 2011. We are also proud of our ongoing ability to deliver value to shareholders. In recommending to the General Assembly a substantial dividend of BD57.6M (US$152.8M) for the full year, equivalent to 40 fils per share, we see the Group continue to top the ranks of regional telecommunications companies in terms of dividend yields and comparative shareholder returns. Operationally, we are also pleased with our ongoing ability to make progress in building scale, a cornerstone of our growth strategy. In 2011, we successfully expanded our customer base by 20%, bringing our subscriber numbers to a record 11 million users. We will continue to focus on executing the strategy we outlined to our shareholders during last year’s AGM, investing in both strengthening our existing network and further expanding our operations and subscriber base for the benefit of customers and shareholders alike.” “Our strategic imperatives are supported by the Group’s solid financial position, which we have maintained through strong cash flow generation in 2011, exceeding guidance, and strengthening our balance sheet. Further growth will also be supported by the Group’s Investment Grade Credit Ratings received during the fourth quarter of the year from leading global credit ratings agencies Fitch and Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services. These were the first public credit ratings issued to the Group and affirm our strong operating and financial results and prospects as well as the Group’s overall positive credit quality.” Operational Highlights Commenting on the Group’s operational performance across the network, Group CEO, Shaikh Mohamed Bin Isa Al Khalifa, noted the continued focus on market leadership at home and abroad. “While 2011 was a challenging year for the MENA markets and, in particular, a number of countries in which the Group is active, we are pleased to have effectively executed our strategy and made progress in growing our network and customer base. In Bahrain, despite intense competition, we worked diligently to remain the leading telecommunications provider in the Kingdom across the full spectrum of services whilst also working hard to drive performance in our overseas operations and key operating segments where we see significant potential. “ A Year of Strong Growth in Mobile and Broadband The year saw strong growth in the Group’s mobile and broadband customer base, two segments which figure prominently in its growth strategy. By year-end 2011, the Group had successfully grown its total mobile customer base by 21% whilst broadband subscriber figures across the network increased by 8%. The Group continues to focus efforts on further bolstering growth in these segments through innovation, excellence and added value both in Bahrain where it remains the market leader in mobile and broadband and across its subsidiaries where it is witnessing solid growth and continues to see room for even higher levels of penetration. Further Diversification and Growing Overseas Operations In 2011, the Group saw the further growth and diversification of its operations geographically, which remains a critical part of its strategy and ability to deliver sound financial results. By year end 2011, the Group reported growth in its overseas operations both in terms of customer numbers as well as levels of contribution to revenues and the bottom line. For the year, 37% of revenues and 30% of operating profit were sourced from markets outside Bahrain. Year on year, this accounts for a 6% and 9% increase in revenues and operating profits, respectively, from operations in Jordan and Kuwait, where growth helped to partially offset some of the effects of intense competition in Bahrain.   Jordan: The Group’s 96% owned subsidiary in Jordan, Umniah, delivered growth of 8% in its mobile subscriber base for the year, which now stands at some 2.3 million customers and further consolidates its strong position in the market. In the year ahead, the Group anticipates even stronger mobile customer growth at Umniah with the company planning to launch its 3G network within the next 6 months. Overall, the significant investments made by the Group in Umniah this year serve to underscore its commitment to the Jordanian market and opportunities there. This included decisions taken in 2011 to invest JD50.0 M (US$70.0M) for the purchase of the 3G licence, which was paid in early Q1 2012. Kuwait: Batelco’s subsidiary Qualitynet, which delivers total ICT solutions, remains the market leader in Kuwait’s Data Communications and Internet Services industry. In 2011, it continued to deliver steady growth registering a 4% increase in its broadband customer numbers, which now stand at more than 40,000. Other JVs: Solid customer and revenue growth was also delivered by Sabafon, STel and Atheeb, companies in which Batelco owns minority stakes. Sabafon (Yemen) registered 12% growth in its mobile customer base for 2011, which now stands at more than 4 million. STel’s (India) mobile customer base grew by 53% for the year reaching 3.5 million customers and Atheeb (Saudi Arabia), which now delivers voice and data services to approximately 114,000 customers, reported a 10% increase in its consumer subscribers for 2011. Further strengthening of Atheeb’s operations and performance is also expected in 2012. The company is currently in the process of completing a SR 1.2 billion capital increase, which will support plans for future growth and a new strategic focus on the business customer segment. Innovation and Excellence Support Market Leadership in Bahrain In 2011, Batelco retained its market leading position in Bahrain across the full spectrum of telecommunications services. In spite of a 4% decline in its mobile customer base for the year, an expected result of aggressive competition, the dynamics of an already highly penetrated market and the first full year of operations for the third mobile operator, the Group still maintained a strong approximate 44% share of the mobile market including retention of the higher value post-paid individual and business subscribers. And while Batelco only reported a nominal 1% increase in its broadband customer base for 2011, importantly, it registered more than 50% growth in its wireless broadband subscriber numbers, a cornerstone of its strategy in this segment. In terms of fixed line customers, in line with global market trends and expected losses, subscriber numbers in this segment declined by 8% for 2011 as more customers continue to migrate to mobile services. “While market conditions in Bahrain have been challenging over the past year and our results impacted by the significant competitive pressures that continue to define the Kingdom’s telecommunications industry, we are pleased with our ability to maintain our market leadership in mobile and broadband and to retain the high value customers we have focused on keeping loyal to the Batelco brand though the ongoing introduction of new and exciting value added products and services that have been brought to market in 2011,” said Shaikh Mohamed. Throughout the year, Batelco continued to innovate in order to deliver value for customers across the full spectrum of services. New initiatives were introduced for the prepaid customer segment where Batelco was the first to introduce prepaid Blackberry packages and branded phones that are capable of delivering advanced in-demand features. Another significant milestone that positively impacted all mobile customers during the year was continued efforts to provide best prices and connectivity for customers whether they are at home or abroad. In 2011, Batelco signed its 1000th International Roaming Agreement ensuring a wide range of choices for Batelco’s customers while they use their mobile devices overseas. Similarly, innovations also continued in broadband, where Batelco aims to ensure that Bahrain residents and businesses are the best connected in the region. During the year, the company offered enhanced service and packages with higher speeds and higher usage thresholds at no additional price increase. It has also successfully tested 100Mbps fixed broadband speeds as part of the roll out of its Fiber Network, which it intends to make available to residents in fiber covered areas in 2012. Batelco also continued to develop complementary broadband services throughout the year such as CCTV and IPTV, among others. “Our success in maintaining market leadership is wholly routed in initiatives such as these and our ongoing drive to remain competitive. This applies to our approach to the quality and level of choice, price and service we deliver day in and day out to customers as well as our continuous efforts to strengthen and streamline the way we operate our business and manage our costs both on a Group level as well as across each of our individual operations with Bahrain being our largest and most significant,” Shaikh Mohamed added. Batelco and its Commitment to Corporate Social Responsibility The growth and success of the Group is also inextricably linked with the growth, success and wellbeing of the local communities in which it operates. Nowhere is this more true than in the Kingdom of Bahrain, where for the past 30 years, Batelco has become a strong and active member of the community providing ongoing support for initiatives ranging from social causes to projects focused on enhancing levels of education, training and overall development . In 2011, Batelco paid out more than BD2.1 million in financial support to such initiatives. Importantly, the company also put to use the skills, resources and competencies of its staff to support and encourage entrepreneurs from the Kingdom and help them to foster growth of new businesses during Bahrain’s Startup Weekend, organised by Batelco. Batelco will continue to work with all segments of the community to support development in line with its Corporate Social Responsibly policies and its position as one of the Kingdom’s largest employers, investors and contributors to the national economy and its growth. Focus on Investing for Further Diversification and Growth In conclusion, Batelco Group CEO Shaikh Mohamed commented that the Group was firmly focused on effectively deploying its resources so as to further diversify, grow and build value across its operations both in the Kingdom of Bahrain and across overseas growth markets in 2012. This includes those markets in which the Group is currently active as well as others where significant opportunities may exist. “We continue to look for ways to build scale across our operations and achieve profitable growth. As we go forward in 2012, we will continue to evaluate opportunities to enhance our position in the mobile and broadband markets and achieve greater synergies for the benefit of our customers and shareholders. With the right strategy and management team and having ended the year in a strong financial position, we are confident we are well placed to make further gains and progress and build our market leadership in the year ahead.”http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=61Batelco Holds Discussions as part of its Efforts to Rebuild Bahrain’s Community Spirit Manama, Bahrain: Batelco, being a publicly listed shareholding company, has announced that in the spirit of building the Bahraini community, its Board of Directors has held discussions to review the status of employees terminated in 2011 for breaching employment contracts and policies. Accordingly, efforts are being taken to employ terminated employees. “Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa said that Batelco would employ terminated employees who agree to abide by Bahrain’s labour law and Batelco internal policies.” “Our decision has been reached in line with Batelco’s efforts in building the Bahraini community in support of the Kingdom’s efforts to maintain stability.” “A number of discussions have taken place with the relevant authorities, assigned by the government of Bahrain, that have been working with all parties to find a solution to a number of issues. We are pleased to support their initiatives and move forward with a positive attitude,” stated Shaikh Hamad. “Batelco, as a Bahraini company with roots that extend over 100 years is considered as one of the pillars of the community and therefore we are committed to do all that we can to maintain stability in our home,” Shaikh Hamad concluded.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=59Batelco Group Receives First Public Investment Grade Credit Ratings Batelco Group (Ticker: BATELCO), the regional telecommunications operator of reference headquartered in Bahrain with operations across seven countries, today announced that it has received its first public credit ratings. Leading global credit ratings agencies Fitch and Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services, both have affirmed the Group’s strong operating performance and financial position issuing it with investment grade ratings. Fitch has assigned Batelco Group with an Issuer Default Rating of “BBB-” and Standard & Poor’s has issued the Group with a “BBB-” long-term and an “A-3” short-term foreign and local currency corporate credit rating. These ratings underpin Batelco Group’s strong credit quality and reflect its market leading position in Bahrain’s telecommunications sector as underscored by its robust position in the mobile market and other segments, as well as the Group’s continued strong profitability and significant cash flow generation, which supports a sound liquidity profile. The ratings are also indicative of the strength of the Group’s strategy and successful efforts in diversifying its revenue and profits via expanding its overseas operations, which have grown in recent years to include a strong and growing presence in seven markets across the MENA region and India, as well as future plans for further geographic diversification and growth in overseas markets. Commenting on the announcement, Group CEO, Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa, stated: “As we continue to pursue profitable growth across the MENA region and India, we are pleased to secure investment grade credit ratings from two of the world’s most reputable ratings agencies after a full review of our operations, strategy and financial position. These ratings affirm the Group’s ongoing success in managing our operations both at home, where we remain the market leader, and across our growing network, where we continue to gain traction and achieve positive growth both in terms of customer numbers and revenues.” He continued: “Importantly, they are also indicative of the Group’s successful financial performance and disciplined fiscal approach. The investment grade ratings issued to us demonstrate confidence in the Group’s profitability levels, strong cash flows and the overall prudent financial management policies that have enabled us to deliver on our commitments to shareholders whilst responsibly funding further growth and expansion in line with our strategy to add scale to our operations and achieve even greater diversification. These ratings will further enhance our ability to diversify our sources of funding should we seek to secure future financing from the debt or capital markets.” For the nine-month period ending 30 September 2011, the Group was free of debt and reported a cash and bank balance of BD 86.8M (US$ 230.2M).http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=57GROUP CEO OF BATELCO TO CHAIR SAMENA COUNCIL ELECTION OF SHAIKH MOHAMED BIN ISA AL KHALIFA BY THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS ANNOUNCED DURING SAMENA’S ‘CONVERGENCE TO DOHA 2011’ Dubai – UAE, November 03, 2011 — SAMENA (South Asia, Middle East, North Africa) Telecommunications Council, the tri-regional telecommunications consortium has announced Shaikh Mohamed Bin Isa Al Khalifa, Group CEO of Bahrain Telecommunications Company (BATELCO) as its new Chairman, unanimously elected by SAMENA’s Board of Directors. Announcing the SAMENA Board’s decision to elect Shaikh Mohamed Bin Isa Al Khalifa as its Chairman during ‘Convergence to Doha 2011’, Thomas Wilson, CEO and Executive Managing Director of SAMENA said, “Shaikh Mohamed, through his experience and knowledge will help realise the vision of SAMENA, as the Council continues to grow its member base and gains recognition throughout the South Asia, Middle East and North Africa regions. “Guided by his leadership, capabilities and excellent knowledge of the region’s telecommunications industry, the different industry players and regulatory agendas, we hope to continue the great work done under our ex-Chairman Eng. Saud Al Daweesh and achieve more success and continue adding value to our members and the industry at large.” Upon his election as Chairman of SAMENA, Shaikh Mohamed Bin Isa Al Khalifa said that he was delighted and honoured to be chosen to chair the SAMENA Council and very much looked forward to collaborating with the Council’s members to push forward their collective goals and aspirations. “Digitisation will be the key driver of sustainable economic growth across the MENA region. All the members of SAMENA look forward to co-operating and accelerating digitisation trends which will enable all industries to deliver benefits to our societies and economies,” the newly appointed SAMENA Chairman elaborated. Prior to his appointment as Group CEO, Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa, was the Deputy Chairman of Batelco Board of Directors from 2002 to 2011.  Also, he was the CEO of the Social Insurance Organization (SIO) which was formed by the merger of the General Organization for Social Insurance and the Pension Fund Commission in 2008.  Prior to this merger, he was the Director General of the General Organization for Social Insurance in Bahrain since 2005. He commenced his work with the General Organization for Social Insurance in Bahrain in 1989 and has held several senior positions such as the Director of the Finance and Investment Department from 2002, Foreign Investment Portfolios Manager and Investment Analyst. In addition, Shaikh Mohamed represented SIO in several portfolio company boards in different capacities such as Chairman at the Securities and Investments Company (SICO), Vice Chairman at Batelco, Bank of Bahrain & Kuwait and Bahrain International Golf Course Company, as well as the post of Director at Bahrain Commercial Facilities Company. Caption: SAMENA Council new Chairman, Shaikh Mohamed Bin Isa Al Khalifa, Group CEO of Batelcohttp://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=55Batelco Group Announces Third Quarter Results Marked By Continued Diversification and Growth of Regional Customer Base Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Group (Ticker: BATELCO), the regional telecommunications operator of reference with operations across seven countries, today announced its results for the nine-month period ended 30 September 2011(“the Period”), which were marked by the continued growth and diversification of its customer and revenue base from across the MENA region and India. Financial and Subscriber Highlights Ø     Gross Revenues of BD 245.5M (US$ 651.2M) for the period; Ø     EBITDA of BD 93.0M (US$ 246.7M) representing a 38% margin; Ø     Consolidated Net Income of BD 56.5M (US$ 149.9M); Ø     Group subscriber base that now surpasses 11 million, an increase of 8% and 41% QonQ and YoY, respectively; Ø     Continued diversification of Group revenues with 37% of revenues and 29% of operating profit now sourced from markets outside Bahrain; and Ø     Cash and bank balance of BD 86.8M (US$ 230.2M). For the period, the Group reported Net Income of BD 56.5M (US$ 149.9M) versus BD 66.0M (US$ 175.1M) for the corresponding period in 2010, down 14%. EBITDA for the period was BD 93.0M (US$ 246.7M), representing a 38% margin, versus EBITDA of BD 110.7M (US$ 293.6M) for the corresponding period. The Group’s Gross Revenues stood at BD 245.5M (US$ 651.2M) for the period, down 4% from BD 256.1M (US$ 679.3M) year over year. In line with the Group’s continued diversification, 37% of revenues and 29% of Operating Profit are now generated from markets outside of Bahrain. Additionally the Group reported Gross Revenues for Q3, 2011 of BD 82.3M (US$ 218.3M) down by 4% against BD 85.3M (US$ 226.3M) in Q3, 2010. For the same time frame, Net Revenues were down by 7% to BD 60.3M (US$ 160.0M) for 2011 in comparison to BD 65.1M (US$ 172.7M) for 2010. The Group additionally reported an operating profit of BD 18.9M (US$ 50.1M) for Q3, 2011 against BD 26.6M (US$ 70.6M) in 2010 and EBITDA of BD 28.3M (US$ 75.1M) in Q3, 2011 versus BD 36.5M (US$ 96.8M) for 2010. The Group continues to strengthen its presence and customer base, which grew overall to more than 11 million subscribers by the end of Q3 up 41% from the corresponding period in 2010. The Group’s balance sheet continues to remain strong. The Group is free of debt and as of 30 September 2011 had substantial cash and bank balances of BD 86.8M (US$ 230.2M) reflecting 65% increase over the same period last year. This includes the impact of interim dividend (20 fils per share) announced and paid during the quarter. Earnings per share for the period stood at 39.2 fils. Batelco Chairman, Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, announced the results at a Board Meeting held at Batelco Headquarters, stating that the Batelco Group had continued to deliver solid financial results and operating performance throughout the first nine months of 2011. “Since the end of Q2, we have added more than 800 thousand new subscribers to our customer base, which now exceeds 11 million across the MENA region and India. This increase underscores the ongoing growth of our business and the strength of our offering despite a year over year decline in the Group’s revenues and profitability, which in line with market guidance have continued to be impacted throughout 2011 by significant and ongoing competitive pressures in Bahrain.” “During Q3, the Group generated strong cash flows, maintained a solid balance sheet and continued to pay substantial dividends to our shareholders. We continue to support the expansion of our network and investments across the region as we seek to add further scale to our operations and deliver even greater value for our shareholders,” Shaikh Hamad added. Operational Highlights Commenting on Batelco’s operational performance, newly appointed Group CEO, Shaikh Mohamed Bin Isa Al Khalifa, said that operationally, Batelco continues to effectively execute its strategy. “Despite the intensely competitive nature of the market in Bahrain and the challenges that have faced the MENA region throughout the period, we have retained both our market leading position at home whilst also successfully continuing to strengthen our competitiveness and the performance of our subsidiaries both geographically and by segment.” Growth in Mobile and Broadband Key to the Group’s strategy is the growth of its mobile and broadband customer base and at the end of the period the Group successfully reported growth in total mobile subscribers of 8% quarter on quarter and 43% over Q3 2010. Whilst broadband subscriber figures across the network remained stable from Q2, they have nevertheless shown strong double-digit growth of 14% when compared to the corresponding period last year. Growing Contributions from Overseas Operations In line with the Group’s diversification strategy, contributions from across its overseas operations, which continue to grow in absolute terms as well as a percentage of revenues and profits, helped to partially offset the effects of intense competition in Bahrain. Jordan: The Group’s 96% owned subsidiary in Jordan, Umniah, delivered solid performance. At the end of Q3 its mobile subscriber base reached over 2.3 million, reflecting a 2% increase since Q2 and an impressive 31% increase year over year.  Kuwait: Batelco’s subsidiary Qualitynet, delivering total ICT solutions remains the market leader in Kuwait’s Data Communications and Internet Services industry with continued steady growth resulting in 6% growth in broadband customer numbers since Q3, 2010. Other JVs: Sabafon, STel and Atheeb, companies in which Batelco owns minority stakes, continue to deliver customer and revenue growth. Most notably Sabafon (Yemen) registered growth in its mobile customer base, which has grown to 4.1 million, STel (India) now delivers mobile services to 3.5 million customers and Atheeb (Saudi Arabia) delivers voice and data services to over 115,000 customers. Maintaining Leadership and Excellence in Bahrain Batelco retains its position as the market leader for mobile services in Bahrain although its total subscriber numbers declined slightly since Q2 and 10% year over year. This is an expected consequence of the third mobile operator’s entrance into the market and subsequent aggressive offers and market competition. It is also a reflection of the Bahrain market itself which is characterized by high levels of penetration for mobile (over 140%) and for fixed broadband (0ver 100% of households and businesses). Wireless broadband services continue on a strong growth trajectory, up 13% quarter-on- quarter with impressive overall gains of 75% when compared with the corresponding period last year. Conversely, fixed line services in the Kingdom, as elsewhere globally, have continued to decline as more and more customers migrate to mobile services. “Batelco’s ability to maintain its market leadership in mobile services and broadband in the face of aggressive competition can be attributed to a sharp focus on delivering greater value, choice and service to our customers,” said Shaikh Mohamed. “We have pursued this strategy by working to enhance our competitiveness through effective cost management and operational efficiency as well as through ongoing product and service innovation to support customer retention and to encourage higher usage per customer.” Towards this end, Batelco introduced a number of attractive new mobile and broadband offers during Q3. These included initiatives such as the launch of B-Lite, the first Batelco branded phone for prepaid customers, which delivers in-demand features such as camera, radio, advanced music player, internet access and Bluetooth. Other key initiatives included the release of further “Nice Numbers” and the launch of weekly BlackBerry® for SimSim service, a first for Batelco and the Kingdom of Bahrain, providing more choice, flexibility and savings for customers and roamers with heavy demand for data usage with an option to pay as they go. Batelco has also added a number of new international operators to its unified local data roaming line-up, extending savings for customers when roaming beyond the Middle East region to new countries including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Czech Republic (O2) and Spain (Moviles Espana). Similarly, innovation in broadband also continued with enhanced service and packages offering higher speeds and higher usage thresholds at no additional price increase. This is in addition to the introduction of complementary broadband services such as the launch of the CCTV and IPTV, one of the most innovative products to be delivered to residents in the Kingdom, which will allow users to access digital television channels via Batelco’s broadband lines as well as gain access to other advanced and interactive services including Video on Demand content. Supporting the Community In addition to working hard to deliver a full range of products and superior customer care in the Kingdom, Batelco also serves Bahrain through its dedication to the community. During Q3, Batelco continued its involvement with and support for local groups and initiatives aimed at enhancing education, training, health services, entrepreneurship and social development across the Kingdom as well as support for underprivileged segments of society. So far in 2011, Batelco has paid out approximately BD 2M as part of its CSR programme, which it continues to grow in line with its position as one of the largest employers and investors in the Kingdom for the past 30 years.  Continued Focus on Scale and Profitable Growth Batelco Group CEO Shaikh Mohamed continued by saying that further to progress being pursued at home and in its existing overseas operations, the Group also continues to explore additional opportunities for expansion. “Acquisitions of mobile and broadband operators in MENA and India are important strategic growth drivers which would allow Batelco Group to grow and diversify its revenues and gain synergies across an increased customer base.” “Similarly, acquisitions and partnerships with other operators to grow our scale and investments in ICT related opportunities are also important priorities for the Batelco Group,” Shaikh Mohamed concluded. http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=53Kingdom Batelco consortium statement regarding Zain KSA deal     Manama, Bahrain: The Kingdom Batelco Consortium announced today that it will not proceed with making a binding offer to acquire Zain Group’s 25% stake in Zain KSA. This follows a period of due diligence and discussions with Zain Group and other stakeholders. The Consortium concluded that the terms and conditions as set out in its non binding offer could not be met to its satisfaction. Kingdom Holding Company and Batelco Group stated that this decision is in the best interests of their respective shareholders.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=51Batelco and Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) announced that its Consortium to purchase Zain Kuwait’s 25% stake in Zain Saudi Arabia anticipates completing due diligence by the end of September 2011. The Consortium intends to move to complete its proposed acquisition of Zain Saudi based on term sheets signed in April and July of 2011 with Zain Group and Zain Saudi Arabia respectively, as soon as all outstanding conditions are satisfactorily negotiated with all parties concerned.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=49Batelco Announces the Appointment of New Group Chief Executive Officer Manama, Bahrain: Batelco’s Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa said that Batelco’s Board of Directors is delighted to announce the appointment of a new Group CEO and the creation of a new executive role, responsible for Batelco’s growth and transformation into one of the most admired communications companies in the Middle East Region. The Chairman announced the appointment of Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa as Batelco’s new Group CEO and Mr. Peter Kaliaropoulos as CEO Strategic Assignments responsible for the Group's Joint Ventures. He also noted that current Batelco Board director Mr. Murad Ali Murad would become the new Deputy Chairman of the Board in place of Shaikh Mohamed. “On behalf of my colleagues on the Board, I extend a warm welcome to Shaikh Mohamed and wish him tremendous success in his career as he takes on the most critical leadership role as Group CEO for Batelco,” stated Shaikh Hamad. “Shaikh Mohamed is already familiar with Batelco’s strategic challenges and opportunities in Bahrain and across the region, due to his tenure as Batelco Board's Deputy Chairman since 2002.  In addition, he is going to be supported by a strong team of experienced Executives from Batelco Bahrain and other regional companies. We firmly believe that he has the people leadership and commercial credentials to lead and expand Batelco Group as our industry is rapidly evolving,” Shaikh Hamad added. The Chairman expressed his further pleasure in that the new Group CEO is an experienced Bahraini business executive and the first National to hold the most senior role at Batelco Group. “Shaikh Mohamed will assume responsibility for Batelco Group on 1 October 2011,” stated Shaikh Hamad. “I feel very honoured by the Board’s decision to appoint me to lead Batelco’s growth and evolution during a turbulent time in the information and communications industry in Bahrain and abroad,” said Shaikh Mohamed. “Our customers demand innovation through the latest technology, great value and customised attention. As we expand, retention of our customers’ loyalty is most critical to our success. I am extremely keen to participate in and lead Batelco’s transformation into an even more important Bahraini company across the region,” he stated. Prior to this appointment, Shaikh Mohamed bin Isa Al Khalifa, was the CEO of the Social Insurance Organization (SIO) which was formed by the merger of the General Organization for Social Insurance and the Pension Fund Commission in 2008.  Prior to this merger, he was the Director General of the General Organization for Social Insurance in Bahrain since 2005. He commenced his work with the General Organization for Social Insurance in Bahrain in 1989 and has held several senior positions such as the Director of the Finance and Investment Department from 2002, Foreign Investment Portfolios Manager and Investment Analyst. In addition, Shaikh Mohamed represented SIO in several portfolio company boards in different capacities such as Chairman at the Securities and Investments Company (SICO), Vice Chairman at Batelco, Bank of Bahrain & Kuwait and Bahrain International Golf Course Company, as well as the post of Director at Bahrain Commercial Facilities Company. The Batelco Chairman continued by saying that he was very pleased to welcome Murad Ali Murad, who is the longest serving member of Batelco Board, in his new role as Deputy Chairman. “I look forward to continuing working alongside him as we build on Batelco’s successes both at home and overseas,” stated Shaikh Hamad. Mr. Murad has an impressive background in Bahrain’s business community and is a long serving executive of BBK having held the position of CEO from 1987 to 2002 and the post of Chairman since 2002. Additionally, Mr. Murad holds directorships in a number of organisations including Mumtalakat Holding Co. and Bahrain Kuwait Insurance Co. Batelco’s Chairman also thanked Peter Kaliaropoulos for his contribution to Batelco’s growth over the last six years in his capacity as Group CEO. “The Board wishes to express its appreciation to Peter for his leadership in growing and transforming Batelco’s operations since June 2005. Batelco not only retains a position of market leadership in the very competitive Bahrain market but has also become a company of reference across the Middle East through its investments. Peter and his team of executives contributed significantly in delivering better value to a combined customer base which has grown to over 10 million, whilst also ensuring significant returns to shareholders,” said Shaikh Hamad. “Peter will continue his involvement with Batelco as CEO Strategic Assignments and will focus on accelerating value creation from new acquisitions,” concluded Batelco’s Chairman. http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=47Batelco Continues to Diversify and Grow its Customer Baseas it Celebrates its 30th Anniversary Year Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced that Batelco Group has exceeded the 10 million customers mark across its operations as the Company celebrates its 30th anniversary serving the Kingdom of Bahrain. Following a Board Meeting on July 20th 2011, Batelco’s Chairman announced for the half year 2011, a net profit of BD38.8 million ($102.9 million) against gross revenues of BD163.2 million ($432.9 million). Earnings per share were 26.9 fils and the Board of Directors approved an interim cash dividend of 20 fils per share. “We are extremely pleased with the continuing growth of our customer numbers, which have increased by nearly 500,000 since Q1 to now reach 10.3 million. Despite the intense competitive nature of the Bahrain market, we are also pleased that we have retained market leadership for mobile services and data network solutions,” said Shaikh Hamad. “We will continue to invest in the Kingdom growing the economy by delivering our best range of products and services, through innovative technology to benefit consumers and businesses in Bahrain,” Shaikh Hamad added. Batelco Group Chief Executive Officer, Peter Kaliaropoulos said that Batelco’s financial results for the half year 2011 remain consistent with market guidance. “Batelco’s consolidated gross revenues of BD163.2 million declined by 4% compared to the same period last year. However, our Q2 versus Q1 results delivered 2% growth in gross revenues, flat operating profit at BD22.7M and growth in net profit,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. The Batelco Group Chief Executive reiterated Batelco’s achievement in growing its customer base. “We continue to focus on executing our business strategy which is underpinned by growth in customer base and diversification of revenues and profits,” stated Mr Kaliaropoulos. “The collective efforts of our people have resulted in a customer base of over 10.3 million. Also 37% of our revenues and 25% of our operating profit are now sourced from markets outside Bahrain delivering sound diversification of our business operations.” “Our Group mobile customer base grew by 12% to 9.89 million since Q4 2010 while our Group Broadband customer base has grown by 8% during the same period.” The Group’s 96% owned subsidiary in Jordan, Umniah, continues to deliver a solid performance and reported an 8% increase in its number of mobile subscribers since the beginning of the year, with their customer base now standing at 2.3 million. STel in India now delivers mobile services to 3.3 million customers, a 43% increase since the beginning of 2011. In Bahrain, Batelco’s total mobile customer base has improved marginally showing an increase of 2% since Q1, 2011. However, while Batelco’s wireless broadband services grew by 14% the fixed line services continued to show decline, as more and more customers migrate to mobile services. “Mobile and broadband operators in Bahrain continue to add new customers; however, revenues per customer are declining whilst costs to acquire and retain customers are growing. In a highly penetrated market for mobiles (150% of population) and broadband (110% of households and businesses) with 3 mobile operators, this is a natural competitive consequence,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos said. “Our priority in Bahrain is to offer better value to our customers and focus on retention and higher usage per customer. Selective cost reductions and cash flow management are also key priorities for our Bahrain Operations whilst ensuring we remain innovative with new services and customer care. Our cash balance of BD87 million grew by 94% since the same period last year and we remain debt free and in a strong position to raise funds for future expansion of our group,” he added. Best Product line up for our 30th Anniversary Year Mr. Kaliaropoulos stated that Batelco continues to meet the dual challenges of competition and market regulation by intensifying its strategy to introduce competitive mobile and broadband offers. “As part of our 30th anniversary year celebrations we have already launched some tremendous offers to benefit our customers including a BD4 Bolt On offer with unlimited National Calls for mobile customers and an unmatched deal for BlackBerry SimSim customers which includes a free handset and 100MB data usage per month, for a year, all for a once off payment of BD100.” “Furthermore, between February and June of this year, we carried out automatic upgrades to benefit our Broadband consumers and business customers by delivering a combination of faster speeds, higher threshold limits and lower prices across all our Broadband packages. Batelco delivers speed of up to 16MB for its range of fixed Broadband packages and up to 21MB for Mobile Broadband.” “This is just the beginning and we look forward to rolling out our best ever line-up that aims to deliver something special for all Batelco’s customers for all services,” he added. Overseas Expansion on Track Batelco Group’s collaboration with Kingdom Holding Company to acquire 25% of Zain KSA continues to make steady progress. “The Batelco-Kingdom Consortium has addressed all key matters of interest to Zain KSA and Zain Group relating to the due diligence exercise. All parties are now working closely to complete this phase of the transaction,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos.  Supporting the Community Shaikh Hamad, Batelco’s Chairman stressed that as well as delivering relevant products and services at competitive prices to enhance residents’ lifestyles, Batelco is also committed to a beneficial CSR programme. “Over our 30 years as a Bahraini shareholding company we have been amongst the leading local companies when it comes to supporting the local community through sponsorships and donations. “In line with our policy to support health, education, sports and cultural initiatives, we have already paid out over BD500,000 in the first six months of this year,” said Shaikh Hamad. Batelco Group CEO Mr. Kaliaropoulos concluded by saying that Batelco is clearly focused on market leadership in Bahrain by providing excellent customer care, a full range of services and better value to its customer base.  The Group is also pursuing the profitable growth of market share in key overseas locations and delivering synergies across operations. “We all are privileged to have the opportunity to serve the public and the industry in the Kingdom of Bahrain over the past 30 years.  We will continue to innovate and offer many reasons to our customers to ensure we enjoy their loyalty over the years ahead,” concluded Mr. Kaliaropoulos.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=44 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Batelco and Kingdom Holding Company Enter into Non-Binding Term Sheet with Zain KSA Manama, Bahrain: Further to previous announcements, Kingdom Holding Company ("KHC") and Bahrain Telecommunications Company BSC ("Batelco") (together, the "Consortium") today announced that on 19th July 2011 they entered into a non-binding term sheet (the "Term Sheet") with Mobile Telecommunications Company Saudi Arabia (“Zain KSA”) in respect of the proposed acquisition by the Consortium of all the shares held by Mobile Telecommunications Company KSC ("Zain") in Zain KSA.  This follows Zain's acceptance of a non-binding offer from the Consortium to acquire such shares, being 25% of the total issued shares of Zain KSA, as previously announced by each of Zain, KHC and Batelco.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=42Batelco & Kingdom Holding Consortium Statement Regarding Due Diligence for the Zain Saudi Deal Manama, Bahrain: The Batelco- Kingdom Holding Consortium, was granted access to Zain Saudi's records thus ensuring the deal can progress to the final stages.    The Board of Directors of Zain Saudi, at a meeting held earlier today, approved a non binding Term Sheet with the Kingdom Holding Company and Batelco Group Consortium, which paves the way for due diligence to be completed for the sale of 25% stake in Zain Saudi .    All companies involved expressed their complete satisfaction with the outcome. On behalf of Kingdom Holding Company, Mr. Ahmed Halawani, Executive Director and member of the Board said “we just cleared a major milestone towards a successful closure. All parties negotiated in a very consultative and professional manner to ensure value is created for Zain KSA and their respective shareholders. We will continue to work as one team to conclude the due diligence stage smoothly and successfully and ensure that Zain KSA rapidly and profitably builds market share” Batelco Group CEO, Peter Kaliaropoulos, commented that "we were always confident that the Consortium would satisfactorily address all matters raised by Zain Saudi. This is a complex transaction involving four different companies. Understandably all issues relating to the Due Diligence exercise and the scope and commercial terms of the Management Agreement required careful consideration and negotiation by all parties. We are all pleased with the agreement reached and remain focused on accelerating Zain’s growth and value to its customers in KSA".    Due Diligence is expected to be completed by end of August and the transaction finalised by the end of Q3.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=40Manama, Bahrain: Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) and Bahrain Telecommunication Company (BATELCO) announce that all news surrounding the acquisition of 25% of the stake of Zain Group in Zain KSA are unsubstantiated and speculative in nature. Negotiations between all concerned parties are still underway and all parties are committed to starting the due diligence process and to concluding this transaction successfully. Both KHC and Batelco will keep their respective shareholders and regulators informed of any material development.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=38 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-priority:99; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif"; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:Arial; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Batelco Extends its Services to 9.8m Customers Focus on Diversification to Offset Challenges in the Home Market   Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced gross revenues of BD80.81 million (USD214.4 million) and net profit of BD17.46 million (USD46.3 million),  for the first quarter of 2011, at a Batelco Group Board Meeting held on April 20 at Batelco’s Hamala Headquarters. “Across the Batelco Group of companies we have grown our customer base to 9.8 million, a further 600,000 customers since Q4 FY10 and a 54% increase since this time last year. However, our Group operation continues to be affected by the expected losses in establishing and growing our Indian joint venture, S Tel, and the intensity of competition in Bahrain,” Shaikh Hamad said. “Supporting the Kingdom of Bahrain’s 2030 vision remains a priority for Batelco and accordingly we continue to invest in infrastructure and in enhancing our mobile and fixed networks. We expect to complete within weeks a major upgrade of our mobile network expansion programme at an investment of BD14.5 million. This will ensure we deliver very fast, up to 21Mbps wireless data services throughout the Kingdom and enhance coverage and quality of service in newly developed or remote areas,” he added. Batelco Group Chief Executive Peter Kaliaropoulos stated: “Batelco’s Q1 results are consistent with market guidance.” “Our gross revenue of BD80.81 million declined 4% against Q4 2010 whilst net revenues of BD63.07 million were flat, quarter-on-quarter. An increase in revenue by Umniah and QualityNet were offset by competition, regulation and the recent events in the Bahrain market. Our Operating Profit of BD23.27 million (USD61.7 million) declined by 9.4% against Q4 2010 due to increases in operating expenses and staff costs. However our share of losses from our Indian joint venture, resulted in a Net Profit of BD17.46 million (USD 46.3 million), a 16% drop versus Q4 FY10,” explained Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “We remain focused on cash management and our cash balance of BD65.88 million grew by 10% year on year. We remain debt free and in sound position to raise funds for future expansion,” he added. Mr. Kaliaropoulos continued by stating that even though Batelco faces tough competition in every market it operates in, the Group has witnessed growth for both mobile and internet services across all their operations with few exceptions. Batelco’s operations outside Bahrain contributed 37% of revenues and 27% of EBITDA in Q1 2011. “Impressive performances from our overseas operations have grown the Group’s customer base to over 9.8 million. We are confident that we will cross the 10 million subscriber figure by the end of April 2011, just four months behind our original goal of end 2010, set out in 2005.” “Thanks to customer confidence and top quality, competitively priced products and services, Batelco in Bahrain maintained 45.6% market share in mobiles with a total of 745,000 customer accounts, a decline  of 3% versus Q4 FY10.” In Yemen, Sabafon’s mobile subscriber base has grown to reach over 3.6 million customers while at S Tel in India, the subscriber base has swelled to 2.82 million at the end of Q1 FY11,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos continued. “Umniah in Jordan has grown its mobile customer base to reach 2.2 million subscribers.” The Group CEO added that the Broadband subscriber base across the Group is also growing steadily with an increase of 21% YoY. “Atheeb’s GO Brand for broadband and voice services in Saudi Arabia continues to make inroads and now delivers to over 116,000 customers, representing a 50% rise in their customer base over the course of the past year.” “In our home market, whilst our Fixed Broadband numbers have declined by 15%, this has been offset with an 89% increase in our Mobile Broadband subscribers, balancing out to a modest 3% growth overall.” “We continue to meet the challenges delivered by competition and by regulatory measures which restrict our delivery of innovative products and services coupled with best prices, in Bahrain. Accordingly, we have enhanced our Broadband package line-up, rolled out new services for mobile customers and continue to launch new campaigns to support all our customers,” he added. In  February Batelco announced a major enhancement  to its Broadband packages, with automatic upgrades which delivered a combination of faster speeds, higher threshold limits and lower prices. This was followed up by the introduction of a completely new Broadband package priced at only BD12 which delivers a speed of up to 1Mbps with 4GB threshold limit. Batelco delivers 8 consumer Broadband packages ranging from the entry level BD10/ 640kb/2GB package up to the 16MB/100GB package. “On the mobile side, our delivery of up to 21MB coupled with a choice of voice & data package options, provides our mobile broadband customers with a first rate service whilst on the go,”   added Mr. Kaliaropoulos. For postpaid customers Batelco introduced ‘My Package’, a totally convenient service which allows postpaid customers to customise their mobile package by adding different bundled services to suit their specific needs and budget. This is a first of its kind service for telecommunications in the Bahrain market. Following on from the successful launch, the Company announced a cash prize winning promotion which will run until June 13, for all My Package subscribers. At the end of the promotional period all My Package subscribers will be entered into a raffle draw to win cash prizes of BD1000, BD300 and BD200 for first, second and third prize respectively. Batelco’s customers can also avail of some excellent ongoing deals such as receiving a FREE O-net device with each new subscription to its BD10 O-net package and interest free installment deals for Laptops and PC’s as part of Batelco’s Broadband packages. Leader in the Field of Marketing As part of its delivery of a wide range of products and services, Batelco’s marketing campaigns are winning accolades internationally. At the MENA Cristal Awards held in February 2011, Batelco was named as Client of the Year and took home a total of 19 awards for its innovative and successful advertising campaigns of 2010, implemented by Bahrain’s FP7, the region’s pre-eminent advertising company. Batelco has also been presented with a huge collection of awards at the Dubai Lynx International Advertising Festival held in March. Batelco took home one Grand Prix, one Gold, 11 Silver and several Bronze awards for its 2010 campaigns, from the prestigious event. Expansion a Priority Mr. Kaliaropoulos stated that the Group’s growth strategy continues to be an area of priority. “We were pleased to receive acceptance of the non-binding offer made in collaboration with Kingdom Holding Company to acquire 25% of Zain KSA, from the Board of Directors of Zain Kuwait and are proceeding with the process of due diligence. We remain optimistic for a positive outcome for the Kingdom-Batelco Consortium in due course,” he said. The Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad provided an update on Batelco’s CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) programme saying that Batelco had entered 2011 focused on several philanthropic initiatives. “As part of our CSR programme to support health, education, sports and cultural initiatives, we have already paid out over BD200,000 in the first quarter in sponsorships and donations,” he said. Shaikh Hamad continued by thanking Batelco’s loyal staff who have continued to exert their best efforts in delivering services for customers during the recent difficult times experienced in Bahrain. “As a complete telecommunications provider, Batelco has a responsibility to maintain its communication links in Bahrain and internationally for the benefit for all. Batelco’s Board of Directors appreciates the collective and continuous efforts of employees in making it possible to provide telecommunications services to all residents in the kingdom,” Shaikh Hamad added. Mr. Kaliaropoulos echoed the Chairman’s sentiments in thanking the dedicated staff who pulled out all the stops to ensure the delivery of crucial communications services for the Kingdom recently. “Batelco has a sound reputation for reliability built up over decades thanks to its comprehensive range of products and services for all segments of the market delivered with the tremendous support of Batelco’s employees. It is this commitment that helps us to maintain our lead in the Bahrain telecoms market and gives our Brand a competitive edge. “We anticipate tough challenges ahead in the Bahrain market. However, we have the experience and knowledge to retain market leadership by providing excellent customer care, a full range of services and better value every day of the year,” he concluded.  http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=34Clarification from Batelco Group regarding the Non-Binding Offer, Jointly submitted with Kingdom Holding to the Board of Directors of Zain Kuwait to Acquire Its Stake In Zain Saudi Bahrain, Manama: Further to announcements on 13 Mar 2011, by both Batelco Group (Batelco) and Kingdom Holding Company (KHC) to Bahrain Bourse, CBB, various Authorities and the general press, Batelco announced today that the Kingdom-Batelco Consortium has received acceptance of its non-binding offer from the Board of Directors of Zain Kuwait. Contrary to unfounded speculation in the press over the last 24 hours, the Consortium's offer is based on (USD) $950 million in cash and is subject to the findings of the due diligence exercise and other approvals which could take at least six weeks. The consortium’s offer does not include undertakings for the assumption of (USD) $3.8 billion of Zain KSA’s debt. Shareholders of Zain Kuwait, Zain KSA, KHC and Batelco will be informed of any further material developments on a timely basis.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=32Batelco Group and Kingdom Holding Company Combine to Bid for 25% of Zain KSA Manama, Bahrain: Following preliminary discussions with Batelco Group (Batelco), and a meeting held between the two companies, Kingdom Holding Company (KHC), chaired by HRH Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Bin Abdulaziz Alsaud, announces that it agreed with Batelco key terms for Batelco to be the telecom operator in a revised bid to acquire 25% of Zain KSA from Zain Kuwait. The meeting was attended by Prince Alwaleed, Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa, Batelco Chairman, Mr. Peter Kaliaropoulos, Group CEO Batelco and Eng. Ahmed Halawani, Executive Director, KHC. Eng. Halawani commented: “We are pleased to announce that we reached agreement with Batelco Group to participate in the Kingdom Holding led consortium to acquire 25% of Zain KSA. Today we submitted a revised non-binding offer to Zain Group for its 25% stake of Zain KSA, valid till 9.00 am on 14 March 2011. Should our offer meet with acceptance from Zain Group Board Directors,  Kingdom Holding looks forward to leading the due diligence phase and negotiating the terms and conditions of the final binding agreement between all parties”. Mr. Kaliaropoulos also stated: “We are delighted to have the opportunity to jointly bid and support KHC in its efforts to acquire 25% of Zain KSA, as their technical partner. Batelco Group, with extensive regional wireless telecom experience across 7 markets, supporting close to 10 million customers, is confident that it will deliver synergies to Zain KSA and accelerate value creation for all the shareholders. We value KHC’s leadership and we look forward to supporting them through an effective technical and business partnership.” Eng. Halawani further added: “We are pleased with Zain KSA’s growth and accomplishments and we look forward to working with its Management under Dr. Saad Al Barrak’s leadership”.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=30Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Group, listed on the Bahrain Bourse (Bahrain Telecommunications Company - BATELCO), the leading telecommunications company in Bahrain and a regional operator with over 9.2 million customers, today announced that it has submitted an offer to acquire all the shares owned by Zain Group in Mobile Telecommunications Company Saudi Arabia (Zain KSA). Peter Kaliaropoulos, Batelco Group Chief Executive stated: “Batelco Group has submitted a confidential, non binding offer to acquire Zain Group’s 25% stake in Zain KSA. Our offer is subject to due diligence and a number of terms and conditions, including approvals from Regulatory Authorities such as Communications & Information Technology Commission (CITC) and Capital Market Authority (CMA), Zain KSA Board Directors, and other relevant parties.” “Our offer remains valid till 16 February 2011,” he added.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=29Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced full year results for the period ending 31 Dec 2010 following a Batelco Group Board Meeting held at Hamala Headquarters on Wednesday 26th January 2011. Gross revenues were steady at BD340.3 million ($902.7 million) and net profit of BD86.8 million ($230.2 million), a 17.4% decline over 2009. The Batelco Chairman said that while the Batelco Group ended 2010 with an impressive customer base of 9.2 million subscribers across its seven operating markets, the Group’s annual financial results were affected by the decline of market share in Bahrain and by its share of expected losses for its start-up operation S Tel (India), which has just completed its first full year of operation. Shaikh Hamad said that the Board of Directors would recommend to the General Assembly of Shareholders a full year cash dividend of BD64.8 million ($171.9 million).  This represents the equivalent of 45% of the paid-up capital – at a value of 45 fils per share, of which 20 fils per share was announced and paid in July 2010. “The remaining 25 fils will be paid after the Annual General Assembly scheduled to take place in February. “In spite of tremendous growth in customer numbers group-wide and strong results from our subsidiary Umniah, we continue to be impacted in Bahrain by increasing competition and regulatory decisions which limited Batelco’s growth in a heavily saturated market,” Shaikh Hamad stated. “The competitive environment in the Kingdom due to the entry of the third mobile operator in early 2010 and ongoing tough regulation has created a highly competitive market place. In contrast to other markets Batelco operates in, Bahrain was the only market where Batelco experienced a reduction of customers for mobile and fixed broadband services in 2010 over 2009. The decreasing numbers of customers and TRA’s non approval of innovative pricing in broadband services limiting Batelco’s ability to effectively compete, contributed to reduced revenues and operating profits,” Shaikh Hamad noted. Batelco Group Chief Executive Officer Peter Kaliaropoulos said that the end-of-year results were in line with forecasted expectations and market guidance as previously communicated throughout 2010. “In February 2010 we offered market guidance that we anticipated a decline in net profits for the full year due to our share of losses for S Tel and due to the market conditions in the highly penetrated, ex-growth market in Bahrain.” Batelco Group consolidates in its financial accounts the results of its operations from Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait. “Our Operating Profit for 2010 of BD106.5 million ($282.5 million) declined by 4.7% compared to the previous year. Whilst Batelco Bahrain’s operating profit was lower, stronger year-on-year results from Umniah reduced the overall decline in operating profit. Batelco’s overseas operations contributed 34% of gross revenues and 25% of EBITDA. Group Free Cashflow of BD109 million ($289 million), representing a 75% EBITDA conversion rate, exceeded guidance,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos stated. “At a Group level, factors which further impacted our net profit included our share of S Tel’s first year losses and the end of Sabafon’s investment tax exemption in Yemen, a total of BD13 million adverse impact,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos explained. Mr. Kaliaropoulos continued by saying that growing customer numbers across the Group was a strategic priority for Batelco. “We are extremely pleased to announce that the total number of customers across all our operations grew by 67.1% over 2009, with numbers now in excess of 9.2 million. ”Batelco Bahrain’s customer base on 31 December 2010 stood at 770,000 mobile customers (6.3% lower than 2009), 88,500 Broadband customers (4.5% growth) and 185,000 fixed lines, a decline of 7.4% compared to 2009,” he said. “Whilst our overall mobile base in Bahrain is lower than 2009, our number of Blackberry customers has doubled and the increase in our wireless Broadband numbers has been buoyed by the success of O-net for which the customer base has also doubled,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos added. Batelco also invested BD22 million ($58 million) in new wireless and fixed infrastructure in Bahrain in 2010. Batelco Group’s total mobile base now stands at over 8.8 million with just under 250,000 Broadband customers. Umniah, Batelco’s 96% owned subsidiary in Jordan, continues to demonstrate its strength and popularity in the Jordanian market with a mobile customer base of 2.1 million and 19,000 Broadband customers, increases of 31.5% and 5.1% YoY respectively. Sabafon, in which the Group holds a 26.94% equity investment, has continued to impress and ended the  year with over 3.6 million customers, an impressive 40.2% increase over the past year. In spite of a difficult regulatory environment in Saudi Arabia, Etihad Atheeb, in which Batelco holds 15% equity, has managed to grow its Broadband customer base by a staggering 100% to 104,000 thanks to the commitment of a strong team and the reliability and popularity of its GO brand. Customer numbers at S Tel India, in which Batelco holds 42.7% equity, have also significantly increased. S Tel now operates in Bihar, Odisha, Himachal Pradesh, Assam and North East and boasts a network of 3,500 base stations. During the first full year of operation the customer base has grown to over 2.3 million, representing quarter of the Group’s customer base. S Tel is now in the process of rolling out services in its final circle Jammu & Kashmir. The Batelco Group CEO said that acquisitions remain high on the Company’s agenda for 2011. “We had hoped to increase our footprint in 2010 but the right opportunity did not materialise. To realise further growth and diversify our revenues, we need to increase our scale and invest in companies that are already established but still offer growth in their markets or in new start ups ready to launch. Looking to acquire now licences is not an option that we are considering.” First for Customer Care Batelco’s strategy in delivering a full range of communication services, world leading products and unmatched customer care are the drivers for maintaining Batelco’s leading position in the Kingdom of Bahrain. “Batelco’s focus will continue to be on delivering quality and innovative services and, offering better value to customers. Such strategy led to a substantial rise in numbers for our Blackberry and O-net services in 2010,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos said.  “Batelco was the first in the Kingdom to offer a prepaid Blackberry package which has been very popular. That offering, coupled with very competitive deals for Blackberry post-paid services, has seen our Blackberry customer base double. We anticipate further success with our Blackberry services as in today’s digital networked economy people find it necessary to be constantly connected to their workplace.” “Similarly, our O-net Mobile Broadband, which provisions for internet ‘on the go’, continues to win new customers and numbers have doubled over the course of the year.” In 2010 Batelco’s range of postpaid packages was extended to include new packages including Super 10, Super 30 and Supersmart which all feature free voice & video minutes and free SMS’s  and the Supersmart even included a free iPhone 4 and 600MB Data bundle, which created rapid uptake by customers. “For our Broadband customers, we recently introduced Batelco Inet Security Suite, a product that can be installed on PCs or Laptops to protect the systems from threats such as viruses, Trojans, internet phishing attacks and also spam. At only BD9 and available to download direct from our e-Services site on batelco.com this is something that we can recommend to all our Broadband customers,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “For our business customers we aim to be unbeatable in the Kingdom with our range of end-to-end solutions and services which includes structured cabling, LAN’s (Local Area Networks), WAN’s (Wide Area Networks) and unified communications designed with business customers in mind.” “We have some exciting new products and services currently in development as well as price reductions and upgrade plans awaiting TRA approval, so we look forward to delivering some very beneficial offerings for our customers in 2011,” added Mr. Kaliaropoulos. Batelco Success Batelco was awarded the Telecoms Company of the Year award across the Middle East Region at the annual Arabian Business Achievements Awards 2010 ceremony, for the 2nd consecutive year. This rounded out 2010 on a high note and followed a number of other achievements throughout the year.  The Company’s successes included being voted as Bahrain’s Leading Quoted Company for Investor Relations (IR) at the Middle East Investor Relations (ME-IR) Awards ceremony held in Beirut, Lebanon.  Batelco was also the most successful organisation at the 2010 GEMAS Effie MENA Awards, taking home 5 awards. Furthermore, Batelco’s E-Services, the Company’s online customer services portal, was awarded ISO 27001 Certification - the International Standard for Information Security Management, following a rigorous auditing process conducted by Bureau Veritas Certification. Batelco is the first telecommunications company in the Kingdom of Bahrain to have its online e-Services certified with ISO 27001. “Such recognition reflects the collective efforts of all our people, across all operations and their dedication to our customers and our company. We operate today in an ever more competitive marketplace and we believe that it is our people that give us the edge and ensure our continued success,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos stated.  Part of the Kingdom’s Community Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al Khalifa said that in committing over BD3 million in 2010 to a diverse range of worthwhile causes, Batelco was upholding its ongoing responsibility to the people of the Kingdom of Bahrain. “Our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) aims to support as many health, education, sports and cultural programmes for the community as possible.”  Among the recipients in Batelco’s well established CSR programme in 2010 were the Shaikh Mohammed Bin Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa Cardiac Centre with a donation of BD600,000 to purchase specialised equipment and Al Manar Centre and Muharraq Social Welfare Centre with contributions of BD10,000 each, to support elderly members of the community. Additionally, Batelco delivered 25,000 Ramadan baskets to the Kingdom’s charitable organisations during the holy month of Ramadan 2010 for distribution to needy families. The Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad concluded his statements by offering a vote of thanks to all Batelco’s employees in Bahrain and overseas for their efforts in carrying out the Company’s aims in 2010. Shaikh Hamad added that he and his colleagues on the Board looked forward to working alongside the new Bahrain CE Rashid Abdulla and wished him every success as he tackles a tough challenge in taking Batelco Bahrain forward, in the face of ongoing competition and stringent regulation. Batelco Group Chief Executive Mr. Kaliaropoulos concluded by welcoming Rashid Abdulla to the role of CEO of Batelco’s Operations in Bahrain and extending a special appreciation to all employees and managers.  “We anticipate that the future will be tougher as a high level of penetration is now the reality in many of the markets we operate in. However, ongoing innovation, and ’focus on the basics – innovation, value, customer care and people‘, will continue to deliver strong operating profit and cashflow in 2011,” concluded Mr. Kaliaropoulos.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=27Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced a net profit of BD66 million ($175 million) for the nine months ended 30 September 2010, following a Board Meeting, held Wednesday October 20th at Hamala HQ.   “Whilst our customer base has grown across all the joint ventures, associated companies and investments in start up operations, we have experienced decline in revenues in our home market. Our year-on-year gross revenues are steady and our results have been affected by reduced market share for mobile and broadband services in Bahrain,” he said.   The Batelco Chairman announced a Q3 net profit of BD19.3 million ($51.1 million) and for the nine months ended 30 September 2010 gross revenues of BD256.1 million ($679.3 million) and a net profit of BD66.0 million ($175 million) a 17% decline compared to the same period in 2009. The 2010 results include Batelco’s operations and its share of losses from S Tel, its start up joint venture in India, and profits from other investments.   “The competitive environment in the Kingdom due to the entry of the third mobile operator and ongoing regulatory reform has created a highly competitive market place. In contrast to other markets Batelco operates in, Bahrain was the only market in Q3 where Batelco experienced an actual reduction of customers for mobile and broadband services. Lower numbers of customers and lower prices in Bahrain have reduced revenues and operating profits,” Shaikh Hamad noted.   “Bahrain is unique in the region for its intense competitive environment characterised by mobile and broadband penetration levels of over 150% and 120% respectively. The size of the overall market, lack of market growth and high number of licensed operators have impacted and will continue to impact Batelco’s financial results. However, the Kingdom’s customers are amongst the best connected in the region as a result and benefit from an abundance of choices for their communication needs,” added Shaikh Hamad.   Batelco Group Chief Executive Officer, Peter Kaliaropoulos, said that whilst Batelco has invested overseas, it will be a number of years before start-up operations in markets such as India and Saudi Arabia compensate for the unrelenting challenges of the home market.   “Managing our operation in Bahrain remains our number one priority. Regulatory reform which has led and will continue to lead to more competition in a market with limited growth potential has been extremely successful. These policies have enabled new operators to establish a presence and offer wider choices to customers. The Kingdom is also benefiting from new infrastructure.”   “Batelco’s focus continues to be one of delivering quality and innovative services and, offering better value to customers. However, significant reduction in operating costs, a smaller workforce and lower overheads, will be key priorities for our operation in Bahrain. This is a necessary strategy for a market which is not growing due to high levels of penetration and intensive competitive pressures,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos explained.   “We are greatly buoyed by a significant rise in the Batelco Group customer base which now stands at just over 7.9 million across all our operations for all products and services. A year ago our mobile subscriber base was 4.9 million but has now reached approximately 7.5 million representing an increase of 53%. We have increased our total Broadband customer base by 35% to 233,000 whilst we now have 188,000 fixed lines.   Umniah, Batelco Group’s 96% owned subsidiary in Jordan, continues to demonstrate its strength and popularity in the Jordanian market with a mobile customer base of 1.8 million customers.   Continuously rising subscriber numbers for Sabafon, in which the Group holds a 26.94% equity investment, is also encouraging. Sabafon’s customer base has reached 3.2 million.   Etihad Atheeb, in which Batelco holds 15% equity, continues to grow in the Saudi market through offering quality broadband and voice services under the brand GO. Etihad now delivers to 92,000 customers an increase of 5% since Q2 of this year.   Subscriber numbers in S Tel India, in which Batelco holds 42.7% equity, have also grown in Q3 to 1.64 million across its operations in Bihar, Orissa and Himachal Pradesh and the recently launched Assam and North East.   Batelco Group delivered for the nine months ending 30 September 2010 an Operating Profit of BD80.8 million ($ 214.3 million), a 3% decline versus the same period in 2009. However, changes to taxation rules in Jordan and Yemen, foreign exchange currency movements and share of profits and losses from Associate companies impacted our Net Profit by BD12.1 million resulting in a Q3 Net Profit of BD 19.3 million and for the first nine months ended 30 September 2010 Group Net Profit of BD66.0 million ($175 million), a 17% decline versus the same period last year.   “We informed the market in February this year that our overall net profit will be lower due to our share of losses in our Indian start-up operation and competitive pressures in Bahrain. Based on the current outlook we are maintaining our guidance that net profit for 2010 is likely to be 15% lower than 2009. Operating profit however, is expected to be 2-3% below 2009,” Mr Kaliaropoulos said.   Tough Challenges – Unmatched Offerings   The Batelco Group Chief continued by saying that loss of profitable market share at home, particularly in the key areas of mobile, broadband and IDD (International Direct Dial), has presented Batelco with tough challenges in the home market.   “Batelco’s transformation into a lower cost organisation is underway. However, delivering quality, innovation, customer care and competitive prices is at the core of our Bahrain operation,” he said.   “Innovative promotion of Blackberry products and services, for example, has led to an impressive take up of Batelco’s Blackberry services for SimSim customers.”   “Batelco was the first in the Kingdom to offer a prepaid Blackberry package and has since enhanced the product based on feedback from our customers,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos elaborated.   “We have also seen an improvement in customer numbers for our wireless broadband services mainly due to the successful marketing of Batelco O-Net products and services.”   Batelco’s mobile customer base in Bahrain has declined by 4% to 836,000, since Q2 of this year. Fixed and wireless broadband services also declined in the last quarter to 86,000 customers, representing a 2% drop. Fixed lines through ’fixed to mobile’ substitution trends also continue to decline and now stand at 188,000 lines compared to 192,000 at the end of Q2 this year,” he added.   Focus on Expansion   “As our home market has reached saturation, in Bahrain we have to continue delivering innovative services as technology and regulations enable us to do so. We have to lower our operating costs and deliver better customer care,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos continued.   “However, sustainable growth can only be realised by careful and selective acquisitions of new companies.”   “The number of acquisition opportunities available in the market which also meet our criteria are limited; our preferred targets include established companies that are still growing or for relatively new operations where we can assist to accelerate their growth,” he elaborated.   Part of the Bahrain Community   Shaikh Hamad, Batelco’s Chairman stressed that the local community could always depend on Batelco’s support to sponsor key initiatives that add benefit to the lives of residents of all ages throughout the Kingdom.   Similarly, Batelco’s donations programme aims to support a wide range of initiatives with the emphasis being on improving quality of life for all recipients.   Among the recipients in Batelco’s well established CSR programme this year are the Shaikh Mohammed Bin Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa Cardiac Centre with a donation of BD600,000 to purchase specialized equipment and Al Manar Centre and Muharraq Social Welfare Centre with contributions of BD10,000 each, to support elderly members of the community.   Additionally, Batelco this year delivered 25,000 Ramadan baskets to the Kingdom’s charitable organizations for distribution to needy families during the holy month of Ramadan.   Batelco Group CEO Mr. Kaliaropoulos concluded by saying that all Batelco employees are aware that the tough challenges, presented by competition and regulation in Bahrain, call for total commitment from all to ensure Batelco’s success going forward.   “We are pleased to have a very dedicated workforce, with over 90% of our teams being Bahraini nationals. These hard working men and women continually rise to the challenges that the telecommunications environment presents and manage to devise new and creative ways to keep Batelco as a market leader.”   “Between now and the end of the year, our priorities are focused on retaining market share and lowering operating costs in Bahrain, pushing for further increases in customer numbers overseas and growing the Group in size and diversification.”http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=25http://comm.ae/2010/08/28/the-boutique-telco/ In the five years that Peter Kaliaropoulos has been CEO of Batelco, he has transformed the incumbent telco from a single country operator with fewer than 400,000 mobile subscribers to a seven-country operation with 7.3 million users. The telco’s ambitions don’t end there: with a strategic aim to operate in 12-15 different territories counting 15-20 million subscribers within five years; Kaliaropoulos is growing the company in a fashion never experienced by a Gulf operator before Peter Kaliaropoulos has been CEO of Batelco since March 2005. A native of Australia, he has around 25 years experience in the telecom sector, most of it spent in the Asia Pacific region   Describing Batelco Group as a ‘boutique’ operator appears to take the weight of expectation off the shoulders of its plain-talking CEO, Peter Kaliaropoulos. Over the past five years the telecom sector in the Gulf region has been characterised by lavish spending that has turned regional operators into multi-territory behemoths overnight. The label ‘boutique’ seems to help Batelco separate itself from the league of operators that have grown explosively in recent years, placing it in a niche that no other player from the region quite occupies. “We do believe in scale, but we need to find it at the right price to acquire it,” Kaliaropoulos told Comm. “Scale and diversification into new geographies is very important. I think some other companies were bolder but they paid a lot of money for licences in other countries. For us it is more steady steps rather than big jumps and US$3-4 billion acquisitions.” Any example of Batelco’s ‘steady steps’ approach to expansion is India where it effectively paid US$175 million for 49 per cent in S-Tel, and mobile operator with licences covering six of India’s 22 telecom circles, with a combined population of 230 million. Batelco’s investment into India came at a time when the UAE’s Etisalat paid US$900 million for a 45 per cent stake in Swan Telecom, Norway’s Telenor paid US$1.07 billion for 60 per cent of Unitech Wireless, and Japan’s NTT DoCoMo acquired a 26 per cent stake of Tata Teleservices for US$2.7 billion. “We spent about 18 months looking for the right opportunities (in India) and from day one, the more opportunities we looked at it reinforced our view, we did not want to be a national operator,” Kaliaropoulos explained. “(Bidding on and rolling out a national network) was an absolute formula to lose money. We wanted to find pockets where the penetration is not very high, try and get some licences in those few circles, and build a business without having to invest a minimum of US$2.5 billion CAPEX on the network before having a single customer.” Kaliaropoulos assumed the same pragmatic approach during the long-delayed auction of 3G licences that occurred in India earlier this year, with Batelco being awarded spectrum in three circles for a little over US$72 million. “There’s a five-year commitment before you have to roll out a 3G network, so we are looking at how to roll it out, and maybe minimise some of (our) 2G CAPEX and go to 3G,” Kaliaropoulos said. “But in some of those circles 3G smartphones, for example, are not widely available so we are not going to rush and introduce a new technology if the customer is not ready for it.” With respect to S-Tel’s 2G operation, in April the operator announced it had added over one million subscribers in its first 90 days of commercial operation, with subscribers numbering 1.33 million as of the end of June. Kaliaropoulos is under no illusions with respect to the amount of investment required in India to make a success of Batelco’s relatively light presence there, despite the pragmatic course the investment has begun on. Kaliaropoulos forecasts that S-Tel will reach break even after four years, and that prior to that time there will need to be a firm commitment from shareholders in supporting the growth and development of the venture. “The challenge with India is that in the short-term, as you’re spending cash to build infrastructure you need to be funding that. The mid-to-long-term prospects are very positive, though in the short-term you are going to have to burn some cash and report losses on your P&L,” Kaliaropoulos commented. One of the biggest challenges faced by operators in India is that the customers entering the market have very low ARPU – US$1.50 – US$2, necessitating operating models to be streamlined and CAPEX to be considered under different business models. Infrastructure sharing initiatives in the country are assisting in the arrest of CAPEX to a degree, making some of the cost variable, though the underlying premise of making money in an extremely competitive market remains. “In terms of customer acquisition in India we are fairly positive and in terms of revenue flows we are fairly positive. But India is marathon; anybody who thinks it’s a sprint sets himself up for disappointment. You really have to believe in the fundamentals of the country,” Kaliaropoulos asserted. The effects of that ‘Indian marathon’ are being felt in Batelco’s financial results, reporting a year-on-year fall in profitability. The telco attributed the 20 per cent decline in net profits in Q210 to increasing competition in its domestic market, as well as growing start-up costs for S-Tel. Net profit for the quarter decreased to BHD 22.3 million (US$59.2 million) from BHD 27.9 million a year earlier, while revenues tightened by 2.4 per cent to stand at BHD 84.8 million. Batelco’s mobile customer base in Bahrain grew by 16 per cent in H110 to 869,000 and its fixed and wireless broadband services grew by eight per cent to 88,000 accounts. Fixed lines continued to decline and stood at 192,000 end-June, a five per cent decline year-on-year “Gross revenues did not grow in the first-half predominantly due to the entry of the third mobile operator in the Bahrain market,” Batelco Group chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa said in a statement, referring to the entry in March of Viva Bahrain, a subsidiary of Saudi’s STC. Zain is the second mobile provider in the country. “Reduced market share for mobile and broadband services and strong price erosion adversely affected our revenues and profits,” he added. Overall active Batelco Group mobile subscribers surged 47 per cent during H110 to reach 6.88 million, while broadband Internet users increased 54 per cent over the period to 230,600. Batelco had informed the market in February that it expected a reduction in profits for 2010 due to the nature of its ongoing operations and despite the impact felt by the launch of Viva on March 3, Kaliaropoulos is generally satisfied by the incumbent’s overall performance in the face of the latest source of domestic competition. “The entry of a third operator, if you look at SIM numbers and if that is how the industry classifies market share, Viva has taken market share because people become second or third SIM carriers,” Kaliaropoulos acknowledged. “The market has grown by the entry of Viva; we estimate by between 250,000 – 300,000 additional SIMS (in the second quarter), so we believe the market will be around about 1.8 million – 1.9 million SIMs at the end of June.” The price erosion being caused by the addition of SIMs and competitors in Bahrain has been one of the fundamental reasons driving the Batelco’s desire to boost its mobile data offering domestically and to seek out new opportunities in other markets, and seems likely to continue. Kaliaropoulos believes that if anything is going to save the telecom industry it is mobile data. Internet access, Internet applications, and consumers downloading content, are the areas in which Batelco is seeing growth and the telco is actively encouraging subscribers to utilise 3G devices, smartphones and basically download mobile data as much as possible. Data roaming and international voice roaming also remain growth areas for Batelco and while the telco is not permitted to bundle products across it various product lines, the marketing message to its customer is that the telco is a full service provider. “We are using customer service to retain and offer a better service to subscribers. Hopefully in the near future we will be able to do bundles like all other companies in the world, but it all comes down to when the regulator decides we are not dominant,” Kaliaropoulos stated. In the next five years Batelco expects to see 80 per cent of its revenues derived from markets outside of its home market. Today around 32 per cent of revenues are generated from its international operations (India, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Kuwait and Egypt) and Batelco is seeking a complete reversal of that. Kaliaropoulos believing there is no other choice for the telco. “That has to happen because all the analysis we have conducted says the market in Bahrain will not grow in any shape or form to compensate for potential market share loss from multiple companies coming in,” he said. “We know this, so for us it is not just growth it is a survival strategy. We are setting ourselves a pretty ambitious target of 80 per cent of our revenues and 50 per cent of profits coming from markets outside Bahrain in five years.” Profits sourced from overseas operations are always likely to be lower than domestic profits as some of the international plays are start-ups that take 4-5 years to break even. In order to organise the effort to generate a greater proportion of turnover and profit from abroad, at the end of last year Batelco underwent a rebranding programme that also incorporated the formalisation of the group structure. However, Kaliaropoulos is adamant that the company does not require a single ‘mother brand’ to roll out across its footprint. “As part of the group strategy we have a very strong view – we do not need a group brand,” he asserted. “I think a uniform brand makes a lot of sense if it is a high value brand or over time if you set up a new company in a new country. However, two things for us; there are not that many new licences around the place, so we tend to be buying into existing companies. They have their own brand and also we tend to be focusing on emerging markets.” Kaliaropoulos’ view is if one takes the Umniah brand in Jordan, or Sabafon in Yemen, he believes they create a strong brand with the customer for the value-conscious users in those markets. Thus Batelco’s strategy is very explicit, not to create a single brand along the lines that Zain did a few years ago. “We also learnt from the Zain experience and the research that we have seen has shown that it is difficult to do this kind of thing successfully; it was an extremely expensive exercise, and customers were lost,” Kaliaropoulos said. Batelco’s operation in India counted 1.33 million subscribers at the end of June. The operator is looking to build an initial network with a capacity of around seven million In Batelco’s case the group is there to reinforce the multi brand, local strength, and local perception of its businesses. Kaliaropoulos describes another strategic priority of Batelco’s as wanting to introduce a “smarter business strategy”, facilitating the in-country operations to focus completely on products, customers, collecting cash, running the operations, and best practice. Matters including procurement, technology, planning, finance, and treasury are organised at the group level. Batelco Group has reiterated that it is interested in acquiring further assets and Kaliaropoulos confirms the company is reviewing some opportunities. “We don’t want too many start-ups because they are dilutive so we need to make sure we find acquisitions that are accreditive, and we are in discussion with various companies. I believe there is pragmatism entering acquisition discussions, which is good,” he said. As Batelco continues to forge ahead it is likely to continue to build on a business model that is not at all common in the telecom sector in the Gulf region whereby an operator looks to expand incrementally and without leveraging the business to a large degree in order to achieve it. Value creation for shareholders remains a large component of Kaliaropoulos’ vision for Batelco, both in the short- as well as the long-term. “In the last five years we have paid out close to US$1 billion in dividends and extra shares. We have invested just over US$800 million in new acquisitions and we have paid down our debt. We have zero debt today; down from about US$500 million a few years ago. So further investment depends on how much you want to leverage the company first of all because you can do more, but we shall move step-by-step, which may take more time,” Kaliaropoulos said.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=24  From left: Peter Kaliaropoulos and Shaikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al Khalifa   Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced that Batelco Group has reached over 7 million customers across its operations at the end of Quarter 2. He added however that intense competition in the Bahrain market contributed to lower Group net profits. Following a Board Meeting on July 21st 2010, Batelco’s Chairman announced for the half year 2010, a net profit of BD46.7 million ($124 million) against gross revenues of BD170.7 million ($453 million). Earnings per share were 32.4 fils and the Board of Directors approved an interim cash dividend of 20 fils per share, as it has done for the last 3 years. “Overall our gross revenues did not grow in the first half of 2010 predominantly due to the entry of the third mobile operator in the Bahrain market. Reduced market share for mobile and broadband services in Bahrain and strong price erosion adversely affected our revenues and profits. We also expected lower profits due to funding the growth of our start-up operation in India,” explained Shaikh Hamad. “The Bahrain telecommunications market today is the most competitive in the region; customers have the widest choice of brands and service providers to choose from for their mobile and broadband services, including international and local calls,” continued Shaikh Hamad. “Government policy through regulatory reform introduced by the TRA has successfully transformed the industry to similar open-competition levels compared to overseas markets which took many more years to transform.” “Customers have real choices; alternative networks in Bahrain allow customers to enjoy innovative solutions from many brands. Batelco will continue to compete for market leadership by offering a full range of products and services at affordable prices,” added the Batelco Chairman.   Batelco Group Chief Executive Officer, Peter Kaliaropoulos, stated that across Batelco’s Operations the customer base grew to a total of 7.3 million customers. Mobiles customers grew by 47% to 6.88 million in H1 2010 compared to 4.68 million in the same period last year. For the same period, broadband services grew by 54% to 230,600 customers and fixed lines declined by 5% in Bahrain to 192,000 lines. “We continue to diversify our operations and customer base,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “We had informed the market in February 2010 that we expected a reduction of profits for 2010 due to the new mobile operator and related competitive activity in Bahrain. Whilst our operating revenues were flat we managed costs effectively and delivered an EBITDA margin of 43.5% and an EBITDA of BD74.3 million, a decline of 4% versus the same period in 2009,” outlined Mr Kaliaropoulos. “Whilst our Operating Profit of BD54.1 million in H1 2010, is 4% below the 2009 figure, our Group Net Profit of BD46.7 million is 14% below H1 2009 results as it includes share of losses for our associated companies and profits from overseas investments.  We have welcomed further competition in Bahrain and increased our mobile customers but the Bahrain market is now ex-growth for revenue and profits,” added Mr. Kaliaropoulos.  “Mobile and broadband operators are adding new customers – however, revenues per customer are declining whilst costs to acquire and retain customers are growing. In a highly penetrated market for mobiles (150% of population) and broadband (110% of households and businesses) with 3 mobile operators, this is a natural competitive consequence.” “We expect some growth from mobile and fixed data in terms of new services but overall price erosion will continue to reduce revenues and profits in Bahrain. Additional operators and investments by Government Organisations in cable systems and other telecommunications infrastructure, as announced recently, will further benefit Bahrain by increasing competition but naturally will reduce growth opportunities for Batelco in Bahrain.” “Strong cost reductions and cash flow management are key priorities for our Bahrain Operations whilst ensuring we remain innovative with new services and customer care,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. The Group’s 96% owned subsidiary in Jordan, Umniah, is on track for another successful year thanks to a 14% increase in the number of mobile subscribers with their customer base now standing at 1.70 million. Sabafon, in which the Group holds a 26.94% equity investment, delivered revenue growth and their mobile subscriber base increased  by 22%, to 2.98 million. Batelco’s partnership with Etihad Atheeb is an evolving success story as the company’s customer base, now 87,000 customers, grows steadily buoyed by the popularity of their GO brand which offers quality and value for money broadband and voice services. STel continues to surge ahead; it has built a customer base of 1.33 million customers using S Tel services across the 3 circles - Bihar, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh. Having won 3G spectrum for the same three areas in the recent 3G auction, S Tel is now in the early stages of planning the introduction of 3G services. Batelco’s mobile customer base in Bahrain grew by 16% to 869,000 and its fixed and wireless broadband services also grew by 8% to 88,000 accounts. Fixed lines continue to decline and now stand at 192,000, a 5% decline. “We continue to explore suitable M&A opportunities in North Africa, India and Asia Pacific regions, with our preference being companies that have recently begun operations or are already established and still growing,” the Batelco Group CEO elaborated. Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad added that Batelco’s expansion strategy is fuelled by the challenging Bahrain telecommunications environment with its saturated market. “We continue to encounter accelerated regulatory reform policies especially in the broadband and data services – we support further competition whilst we understand that these policies will continue to adversely impact our future financial results. As a consequence, in a highly saturated market, cost containment strategies are the priority to allow Batelco to compete favourably with competitors in Bahrain. We understand the impact of regulatory reform and increased competition and consequently we have to adjust the way we operate – it’s necessary,” Batelco’s Chairman stressed. Focus on Customer Service and Infrastructure Investment Batelco, in H1 2010 also entered into contracts to further expand its wireless infrastructure including a BD14.5 million ($38.5 million) Mobile Network Expansion project with Ericsson which will see Batelco’s technological capability further enhanced to tackle a number of needs such as providing or enhancing coverage and quality of service in newly developed or remote areas as well as ensuring readiness for LTE (Long Term Evolution), often branded as 4G. Along with a remit to continue investing to deliver new technologies and innovative product/service offerings, Batelco’s key focus is fixed on its customer service delivery. “As part of our customer services programme, we continually review our fixed and mobile broadband services to align our offerings with international standards. For local and international voice and data services, there is a steady stream of top value promotions,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. To address the heavy demand on the Blackberry service due to the massive growth in subscriber numbers, Batelco completed a major enhancement to its Blackberry platform to deliver up-to 17 times faster connection over Batelco’s Global Network. Furthermore, Batelco has also introduced Blackberry services for its prepaid SimSim customers.  “Additionally, our product and services delivery for business customers is undergoing major enhancements to ensure that Batelco is the brand of choice for businesses in the Kingdom and supports their success in the region and further afield,” he added. Supporting the Community Shaikh Hamad, Batelco’s Chairman stressed Batelco’s commitment to giving back to the local community through its well established sponsorship and donations programme. “The Company continued its annual support for Shaikh Mohammed Bin Khalifa Bin Salman Al Khalifa Cardiac Centre by donating BD600,000 to purchase specialised instruments which aim to enhance the medical care and services for cardiac patients at the Centre,” said Shaikh Hamad. “Additionally, Batelco was the Diamond sponsor of a 4 day Understanding Autism awareness exhibition which was held under the patronage of InJaz executive director Shaikha Hessa bint Khalifa Al Khalifa and organised by Wish Child Welfare, which is part of the Bahrain society for Women’s Development,” he added. Batelco Group CEO Mr. Kaliaropoulos concluded by reiterating Batelco’s key goals going forward. “Our priority is focused on growing profitable market share in all of our overseas markets, adding to our overseas JV portfolio by investing in a suitable M&A opportunity whilst also striving to retain market leadership in Bahrain by providing excellent customer care, a full range of services and better value every day of the year.” “We believe that we have the right people in our team in Bahrain and resources to shape a better business with a better future despite some short term challenges,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos concluded.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=23 Normal.dotm 0 0 1 340 1942 Alisaleh.net 16 3 2384 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Normal.dotm 0 0 1 2 15 Alisaleh.net 1 1 18 12.0 0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0cm 5.4pt 0cm 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0cm; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ascii-font-family:Cambria; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-fareast; mso-hansi-font-family:Cambria; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;} Manama, Bahrain: The Batelco Group has announced that its affiliate company in India, S Tel, has successfully secured 3G spectrum for its operations in Orissa, Bihar and Himachal Pradesh.   S Tel, in which Batelco Group has a 42.7% stake, will pay approximately US $76m for the spectrum. Batelco Group CEO, Peter Kaliaropoulos stated that Batelco is extremely pleased that S Tel has been successful in the recently completed 3G auctions in India. “Having launched its operations in record time, S Tel has achieved a new milestone by being part of the inaugural group of operators to have won 3G spectrum in India. Securing 3G spectrum in these three markets is a critical element of S Tel’s strategy to position itself as a leading company in India’s fastest growing rural sector and meet anticipated strong demand for mobile internet services in the next few years.” “S Tel, which launched services in Orissa, Bihar and Himachal Pradesh in December 2009, is already a success story in rural India having built up a customer base in excess of 1.4million in just four months of operation,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos said. “To build a customer base of this size in such a short period of time is an outstanding achievement by S Tel.” Swaminathan P, the President of Siva Group, Batelco Group’s partner in S Tel, stated that securing 3G spectrum in the three principal circles of Bihar, Orissa and HP in which S Tel's 2G services were launched five months ago, highlights the long term strategic commitment of S Tel and the keenness of the partners Siva Group and Batelco Group to offer the best of services to their customers. Batelco Group CE Mr. Kaliaropoulos continued by saying that the investment in S Tel forms part of the Batelco Group’s growth and expansion strategy in wireless and broadband markets and fits comfortably with the long term plans to diversify Batelco’s geographical footprint and increase its scale. “Together with our partner in India, the Siva Group, we aspire to make S Tel a significant and formidable operator in India, the third largest and fastest growing mobile market in the world,” added Mr. Kaliaropoulos. S Tel has Unified Access Services Licenses to operate in three other Indian circles - North-East, Assam and Jammu & Kashmir and expects to launch services in these regions soon, thus further expanding the Company’s growth opportunities. http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=22Delivering Steady Growth whilst Diversifying Operations Manama, Bahrain: Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa announced net profit for the Group of USD 64.5 million (BD 24.3 m) and gross revenues of USD 227.8 million (BD 85.9 m), at Batelco’s Group Board Meeting held on April 21st at Batelco’s Hamala Headquarters. “Whilst net revenues grew by 4.0% year-on-year across all our operations from data, mobile and fixed services  as expected, funding our start-up operations reduced our net profit by 7% to USD 64.5 million (BD24.3m) resulting in earnings per share of  16.9 fils,” commented Shaikh Hamad. “In Bahrain, our priority remains focused on delivering better service, innovation and best value to our customers. To do so Batelco continues to invest in the Kingdom’s infrastructure, in new technologies and in the development of innovative products and services. We have invested twice as much in Bahrain in Q1 2010 versus Q1 2009 to expand our fixed and mobile infrastructure, and we will continue to invest significantly throughout 2010,” he added. Batelco Group Chief Executive Peter Kaliaropoulos said that Batelco continued to deliver strong operating profits and steady revenue growth whilst managing its costs, ending the quarter with 5% EBITDA growth and 7% growth in its Operating Profit versus the same period in 2009.  “We offered guidance to our shareholders in January 2010 that, whilst we expected growth in revenues and operating profit, funding the growth of our start-up operation in India would reduce our year-on-year net profit. Batelco Group Q1 results are in line with such market guidance,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “Despite increased competitive activities and new companies entering the market in Bahrain and Jordan, we are delighted that overall we have grown our customer base to a total of 6.4 million at the end of Q1 and grown our net revenues by 4% to USD 177.2 million (BD 66.8 m) year-on-year. This 35% growth in our customer base compared to the same period last year resulted from increases in mobile and broadband customers across every market, including over a million customers in India,” explained Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “Furthermore, whilst investing in infrastructure, sales, marketing and customer care initiatives, we have also been implementing efficiency and productivity initiatives and as a result our EBITDA has grown by 5% and Group Operating profit grew by 7% to USD 73.7 million (BD 27.8m).” Batelco’s operations outside Bahrain contributed 32% of revenues and 22% of EBITDA in Q1 2010. “Solid performances from our overseas operations have seen our mobile subscriber base increase to 6.0 million, a figure which has been particularly enhanced by the unprecedented success of S Tel, Batelco’s joint venture operation in India,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos continued. “Atheeb, delivering broadband and voice services in Saudi Arabia under the GO brand, continues to make impressive inroads as a new entrant in Saudi Arabia.” Mr. Kaliaropoulos also stated that Umniah in Jordan now has 1.65 million mobile subscribers, representing 26% share of the mobile market in Jordan. Umniah’s WiMAX and ADSL customer base has also increased to a total of 19,000 customers. "We are also particularly pleased with the success of our current marketing campaigns in Bahrain in view of STC’s launch in the market. We have rolled out new products and services which are offering great value to our mobile and broadband customers,” added Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “Our SimSim customers are now benefitting with discounts of up to 92% on international call rates using our prepaid VoIP service. Prices are as low as only 15 fils per minute, one of the best rates in the market. SimSim customers are also benefitting with up to 25% extra credit and / or extra validity of their service each time they top up their mobile credit. Our postpaid customers have new packages to choose from including the Super 30 which features 3000 free call/video minutes, 100 free SMS/MMS’s, free local calls to all networks on Fridays and reduced rates for any additional local calls in excess of the 3000 minutes.” “Additionally, in Bahrain we are the only company which offers a choice of 8 Broadband packages for consumers and 9 options each for businesses and educational establishments, with speed of up to 16MB and unlimited download capability. On the mobile side, our delivery of up to 21MB coupled with a choice of voice & data package options, provides our mobile broadband customers with a first rate service whilst on the go.”   Mr. Kaliaropoulos further elaborated by saying that Batelco’s business focused communications solutions, delivered in partnership with some of the world’s leading ICT organisations are unmatched in the Kingdom of Bahrain and crucial for companies in adapting to their customers’ changing needs. “Our strategies in the enterprise market directly support the vision of Bahrain’s Economic Development Board in making the Kingdom of Bahrain a centre of ICT excellence in the region.” Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad continued by saying that Batelco had entered 2010 focused also on several philanthropic initiatives. “We have begun 2010 the same as every year, fully committed to reaching out to the people of the Kingdom of Bahrain and supporting them via our Corporate Social Responsibility programmes.  “We have paid out approximately BD200,000 in the first quarter in sponsorships and donations to health, education, sports and cultural initiatives,” he said. Shaikh Hamad continued to say that thanks to the Company’s sound reputation for reliability built up over decades, its comprehensive range of products and services for all segments of the market and with the tremendous support of Batelco’s dedicated employees, Batelco is strongly positioned to maintain its lead in the Bahrain telecoms market. “In a market with some of the highest penetration in the world for mobile and broadband services and facing new competitors, Batelco remains focused on serving customers’ needs, on innovation and on operational excellence. Our customer focus and lower operating costs will create a sustainable competitive edge for our brand in the future,” concluded Mr. Kaliaropoulos.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=20 Manama, Bahrain: Batelco’s Annual General Meeting took place 24th February, at Batelco Headquarters in Hamala, with shareholders, company directors, senior management, employees and members of the press in attendance. The minutes of the previous General Assembly, held on 25th February 2009 and the Board of Directors’ report on the Company’s operations for the financial year ending 31st December 2009, were read and approved. The Batelco Group last year delivered the Group’s highest ever gross revenues, totalling BD346.9 million ($920.2 m) a solid 9% growth year-on-year, and its highest ever net profit of BD105 million ($278.5 m). Net revenues grew by 8% to BD268.7 million ($712.7 m) and earnings per share remained steady at 72.9 fils compared to 72.4 fils in 2008. The Board of Directors’ recommendation of a total cash dividend of 50 fils per share for 2009 amounting to BD72 million ($191 m), representing 50% of the paid-up capital, was approved at the AGM.  Batelco paid 20 fils per share as the interim dividend in July 2009 and the remaining 30 fils per share will be paid in March 2010. “Batelco’s delivery of its best ever financial results in 2009 is attributed to its comprehensive and innovative range of communications services that offer the widest choices for customers in Bahrain, and to growth in customer numbers from its regional operations,” said Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad bin Abdulla Al Khalifa. “Key factors in our success were the acquisition of more mobile and broadband customers and the successful uptake of world-class products and services, coupled with competitive offers and a diligent approach to cost containment across all our operations,” he said. The Batelco Chairman also announced to the gathered assembly a proposed change in structure for the Batelco Group, subject to shareholders approval later in 2010. “In 2009, we embarked on creating a Group operating organizational structure to deliver Batelco’s geographic expansion and business diversification. This initiative includes the creation of a closed stock company, 100% owned subsidiary of Bahrain Telecommunications Company BSC. This company will manage all our telecommunications operations within Bahrain and will be formally established in 2010,” stated Shaikh Hamad. Contributing to Bahrain Batelco Group Chief Executive Peter Kaliaropoulos said that within the growing Batelco Group, Bahrain remains the most important market whilst complemented by growth in customer numbers from all international operations. “We are proud that the market leader in Bahrain’s telecom market is also transforming into a telecommunications company of reference amongst its peers in the region.” “Our customers benefited in Bahrain from many new services and offers throughout 2009 and in turn allowed us to remain market leaders in a market with over 75 operators holding 185 licenses, and with over 140% mobile and 105% broadband penetration. Despite the intense competitive environment, our financial results, product innovation and quality of customer care have improved,” said Mr. Kaliaropoulos. “Our shareholders in Bahrain have also benefited from Batelco’s growth at home and abroad. In the last 3 years, we have paid out BD192 million ($509 m) in cash dividends and also issued extra shares. We have injected billions of dinars worth of value into the economy when taking into account all our expenditure in services and infrastructure. Whilst we offer greater choice and better value to customers and we contribute to the economy, we also help in making Bahrain a location of choice for new businesses setting up operation in the Middle East,” he elaborated. “Our shareholders also value the fact that we have grown our operations overseas and our collective customer base to greater than 5.3m customers, a 19% year on year increase, without any net debt on our balance sheet. This allows Batelco the opportunity to raise future debt and equity for worthwhile investments as we continue to diversify our operations to complement the competitive activity in our home market.” Looking forward, Mr. Kaliaropoulos commented that whilst accelerated deregulation in Bahrain continues to challenge Batelco’s growth prospects since their key operations overseas are start-ups, the Company’s focus remains on delivering a better customer experience at all times. “We are also implementing cost leadership and productivity improvement initiatives, benchmarking and leveraging best practice know-how across the Group of companies. We have offered guidance to the market for 2010 and we expect our results to be comparable to 2009 from a Revenue and Operating Profit perspective,” Mr. Kaliaropoulos added. In Praise of Employees and Customers Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad concluded the proceedings by thanking Batelco’s shareholders for their unwavering support and their continued confidence in the Board of Directors and Senior Executives. The Chairman also extended his gratitude on behalf of the Board and Directors and Senior Management to all Batelco’s employees in Bahrain and abroad. “Congratulations to our employees at all levels who give life to our strategies and go the extra mile to ensure a world class customer experience,” he said. “Much appreciation also goes to our leadership teams across Batelco’s operations for their efforts in exceeding our expectations in 2009 and to our business partners and suppliers who contribute greatly to the success of our operations.” “I am, as always, grateful to our customers for their loyalty that keeps us in our leading position in Bahrain, in spite of extensive competition. We are fully committed to delivering to our customers’ first class products and services throughout 2010,” added Shaikh Hamad. Looking Forward “We have rolled out our new Brand look and feel and now look forward to delivering on our promise to enhance the lives of residents of Bahrain everyday. We also look forward to growing the fine reputation that we are building for the Batelco Group across the Middle East region, Africa and Asia,” concluded Shaikh Hamad.http://www.batelcogroup.com/portal/viewnews.aspx?id=18