PRESS RELEASE                                                                                      

Zain KSA Reports Positive Results for the First Half of 2014

- EBTIDA reaches SAR 564 million in H1 2014, with a 22% increase compared to last year’s results
- Internet service users increased by 107% in Q2 2014 compared to the second quarter of 2013
- Net loss drops 16% compared to the first half of 2013, and operational loss narrows by 40% in the same period

Riyadh – 16 July, 2014

Zain KSA recorded a significant increase in EBTIDA during the first half of 2014, with 22% growth reaching SAR 564 million up from SAR 464 million in the first half of 2013. The company succeeded in raising the EBTIDA margin to 18%, up from 14% during the same period of last year. These numbers were released during the company’s financial result announcement for the 2nd quarter of 2014.

The company narrowed net loss by 11%, reaching to SAR 329 million from SAR 370 million during the second quarter of 2013. A 16% drop in net loss was achieved during the first half of this year compared to the same period last year.
Gross margin increased to reach 51% in this half up from 47% in the same period of 2013.

Commenting on these results, Farhan bin Naif Alfaisal Aljarbaa, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Zain KSA, Said “The company’s improvement in financial results is due to the comprehensive developmental plan adopted by the executive management since the beginning of 2014, a plan that focuses on improving service quality and promoting user experience”

“The board of directors has complete trust in the executive management’s ability to reach the Company’s goals within the plan” Aljarbaa added.

Meanwhile, Hassan Kabbani, Chief Executive Officer of Zain KSA, said “We are on our way to fully implementing the transformation plan, which aims to enhance service quality by investing in the development of Zain network performance and reaching financial and commercial goals, armed with the full support and trust of the Zain group and key contributors and the combined efforts of the company work teams.”

Moreover, Mr. Kabbani revealed a 107% increase in Internet service subscribers during this quarter compared to the same quarter of last year, and a 31% increase compared to the first quarter of 2014. Data traffic on the network increased significantly during this quarter by 564% compared to the same quarter of last year and 64% compared to the last quarter.

This increase contributed to a growth in Internet service revenues during this quarter of 94% compared to the second quarter of the previous year, and a 6% growth compared to the first quarter of this year. Zain KSA’s 4G network coverage has expanded to cover 52% of domesticated areas, due to the increase in network locations that reached 6,113 by the end of the quarter.
 
“The new network development agreement, which Zain KSA recently signed with 5 major international telecommunications companies for a total cost of SAR 4.5 billion, will drastically improve network operations in terms of coverage, capacity, speed and providing the best services to subscribers.” said Zain KSA CEO.
He assured “The Company is committed to providing a strong competitive network in data services to support the increase of Internet use in the Saudi market, and this is a result of company’s ability to develop its potential and strengthen its position in the market.”
 
-End-