Rel Comm in the black with Rs 702 cr net

Telecom major Reliance Communications has swung into profitability, riding on 'strong contributions' from all business sectors, with a net profit of Rs 702.34 crore on a consolidated basis for the quarter ended September 30, 2006.

The Anil Ambani group company had posted a net loss of Rs 19 crore during the comparable period of previous financial year.

Total revenues during the quarter under review rose 39.80 per cent to Rs 3,525.98 crore, compared with Rs 2,522 crore recorded during the comparable period a year ago. On a standalone basis, Reliance Communications posted a net profit of Rs 496.52 crore during the reporting quarter, on a total income of Rs 2838.61 crore, the company said in a release here today.

The company's EBITDA rose 216 per cent to Rs 1,353 crore in the quarter,

compared with Rs 427 crore recorded in the comparable period of a year ago. EBITDA margin more than doubled to 38 per cent from the 17 per cent posted earlier, it said.

The company's net debt declined to Rs 2,057 crore, while its total assets stood at Rs 32,281 crore as on September 30, 2006.

Chairman Anil Ambani said, "Reliance Communications growth engine is poised to deliver accelerated profitability and even greater momentum in the years ahead. Our unique fully integrated telecom operations, differentiate us from mainly mobile operators, and will deliver unmatched value to our over 2 million shareholders."

By the end of the quarter, the company had around 26 million wireless customers, garnering a market share of 20.5 per cent of the country's total wireless market. It added a net of 3.5 million wireless customers during the quarter, while its wireless multimedia services subscribers rose to 8.1 million.

Its revenues from wireless business rose 44.7 per cent to Rs 2,574 crore compared with Rs 1,778 crore recorded during the same period of previous financial year. The company's capex rose to Rs 1,499 crore.

Reliance Communications had a 40 per cent market share in its international long distance (ILD) business in the US-to-India retail call segment.

Its national long distance (NLD) business grew 20 per cent in volumes during the second quarter.

On the broadband arena, the number of buildings on-net increased by 49 per cent to 269,676 from 180,759 at the end of the prior quarter, while number of access lines rose to 425,000 from 322,000.