Vodacom CEO Shameel Joosub
Photo by: Duane Daws
JSE-listed telecommunications giant Vodacom on Wednesday reported strong growth in South Africa during the three months to December 31.
In a trading update to shareholders, Vodacom reported group service revenue of R17.4-billion and revenue of R21.2-billion, up 1.3% and 1.2% year-on-year respectively during the third quarter of its 2017 financial year.
“Performance was driven by strong customer growth in South Africa and strong data demand. In our international operations, the effect of customer disconnections in the fourth quarter of the prior year is still impacting its performance,” Vodacom CEO Shameel Joosub said.
South Africa service revenue grew 5.5% to R13.4-billion on the back of strong data revenue growth of 22%, while the international service revenue declined 8.2% to R4.2-billion owing to customer registration processes and currency volatility.
Some 1.6-million active customers were added during the quarter – 690 000 in South Africa and 876 000 in the international operations – reaching 65.2-million active customers across the group.
Data traffic growth of 44.8% was registered in South Africa and 61.7% across the international operations, with data now comprising 40.8% of service revenue in South Africa and 25.2% in the international operations.
In line with the rapid growth, Vodacom injected R2.7-billion into its infrastructure, with the bulk at R2.1-billion used to expand fourth-generation coverage to 70% of the population and third-generation to 99% of the population in South Africa.
Capital expenditure guidance will be maintained at R40.6-billion over a three-year period, with R27.4-billion allocated to South Africa.