Airtel Q1 profit plunges 63 pc to Rs 283 crore

Telecom major Bharti Airtel on Tuesday posted 63 per cent dip in its profit for the April to June quarter (Q1 FY22) to Rs 283 crore as compared to Rs 759 crore in the last quarter of previous financial year (Q4 FY21).

In the year-ago June quarter, it had posted a loss of Rs 15,933 crore due to one-time provisioning for adjusted gross revenue (AGR) dues.

Consolidated revenues for Q1 FY22 came at Rs 26,854 crore, up 21 year-on-year on a comparable basis and 15 per cent on a reported basis.

India revenues were up 19 per cent to Rs 18,828 crore on a comparable basis and 11 per cent on a reported basis. Mobile revenues grew by 22 per cent year-on-year on comparable basis due to improved realisations as well as strong 4G customer addition.

Average revenue per user (ARPU) for the quarter came in at Rs 146 as compared to Rs 138 in Q1 FY21 which the company said was an outcome of focus on acquiring quality customers as well as secular upgrading of customers to data.

"While our wireless revenue was impacted by the Covid lockdown induced slowdown in terms of device shipments and a financial squeeze at the lower end of the market, our overall performance reflected the resilience and strength of our portfolio," said Gopal Vittal, Managing Director and CEO for India and South Asia.

"We continue to invest in the best of emerging technologies, including networks and digital capabilities."

The company's consolidated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) during Q1 FY22 totalled Rs 13,189 crore while margins improved to 49.1 per cent.

"We added 5.1 million 4G customers during the quarter and our enterprise business in India continued to deliver strongly. Our Homes business grew by just about 13 per cent over last year and added 285K customers in the quarter, the highest ever," said Vittal.

( With inputs from ANI )