Committed To Digitisation

Talal Said Marhoon Al Mamari, CEO, Omantel shares his thoughts on the company’s performance, investment in infrastructure upgradation and future plans. Mayank Singh reports

- Mayank Singh

Can you give us an overview of Omantel’s performance in 2016 and Q1 2017?

The company’s revenue reached RO132.6mn in Q1 2017, while the net profit reached RO23.8mn compared to RO34.8mn in the same period of 2016. The dip in profits is attributed to the royalty increase from seven per cent to 14.3 per cent effective January 1, 2017. This is evident from our operating expenses which increased by 3.3 per cent from RO93.5mn to RO106.9mn. This is also a result of our continuous investment in modernising our network, despite tremendous pressure on price sensitive telco services in the Sultanate and increased regulatory challenges.

What kind of investments and  measures are being taken to improve infrastructure?

Omantel has built the most robust telecommunications network in Oman, delivering superior coverage, speed and service. Since inception, we have worked relentlessly to connect even the most remote parts of the Sultanate. Despite a challenging economic and political conditions, we continue to make significant investments to improve the quality of our network to better serve our customers and their connectivity needs. For example,

Omantel’s investments in the construction and expansion of its networks exceeded RO143mn in 2016, which has contributed to raising the volume of 3G coverage to 96 per cent and 4G coverage to 86 per cent in inhabited areas. As part of our commitment to lead Omani digitisation, we set a goal to increase the speed and quality of our services to reach 10 megabits per second (Mbps) by 2020. This target will put Oman at the forefront of digital connectivity in the GCC.

Please share details of Omantel’s 3.0 strategy?