Lao Telecom eyes strong 2013 revenue
Lao Telecom eyes strong 2013 revenue
Lao Telecommunications Company (LTC) reports that earnings are ahead of expectations for the first six months of this year.
LTC Director General, Mr Thongsay Sanexay a, said that the company is anticipating about 1 trillion kip in earnings this year.
“So far we have pushed 9 percent ahead of target for the first six months which we estimated to be 500 billion kip,” Mr Thongsay said yesterday in Vientiane.
The company expects the 1 trillion kip figure to include a net profit of about 148.6 billion kip after contributing around 275.4 billion kip to the national revenue.
“If these earnings are underestimated, the net profit and contribution to the national coffers will also get larger,” Mr Thongsay reported.
The company believes that income will match the annual financial plan by the end of this year.
“If the earnings cannot meet our plan, they must be at least within 10 percent of it,”he said.
“To meet expectations, we are now focusing on the enlargement of e-services, including e-banking, e-payment and e-commerce.”
The co mpany also intends to invest about 217.6 billion kip (US$27.2 million) in service improvements and network expansion this year, and it hopes to gain an additional 100,000 subscribers.
“In February, LTC had about 1.2 million customers but since then we have attracted about 30,000 new subscribers,” he said.
LTC's expansion and development plans include mobile phone base stations, internet, other additional services, and service centres in Vientiane and the provinces.
It has already invested in network expansion and overseas call services in cooperation with more than 50 telecom companies, 3G , voice 2G, and service unit centres.
LTC's revenue for 2012 was 975.9 billion kip, a 7 percent increase on the year's target and 21 percent more than the amount earned in 2011.
Last year returned a net profit of 122.3 billion kip, 86.8 percent more than in 2011. The company also paid 234.97 million kip in taxation and through other means, w hich was 6.5 percent above the target.
LTC was established as a joint venture in 1996, with the Lao government holding a 51 percent share and Shenington Investments Private Company of Thailand securing 49 percent, for a predetermined 25-year term. The company has grown rapidly in recent years, after having just 100,000 subscribers in 2002.
LTC aims to improve its customer service centres and dealer operations to ensure services are up to speed, especially in rural areas.
Laos' other four telecom operators are Enterprise Telecommunications Lao, Star Telecom, VimpelCom Lao Co Ltd and Sky Telecom.
vientiane times
