Qatari Qtel on Track to Meet 09 Profit Target: CEO

Qatar Telecom expects to meet its target of up to 11% profit growth this year as it eyes acquisitions and licences in the Middle East and Asia, the company’s chief executive, said. In March, Qtel, which operates in 17 countries, forecast its net profit in 2009 to grow between 9% and 11% from US$615 million in 2008.
“We believe we are on target,” Nasser Marafih told Zawya Dow Jones on the sidelines of a telecom conference in Dubai. Qtel’s third-quarter net profit rose 9% from the year earlier period, beating most analyst forecasts as an improving global economy and product innovation helped boost earnings.

Qtel, which lost its local monopoly with Vodafone Qatar this year, is eyeing acquisitions and licences in the Middle East, North Africa and Asia regions, including countries such as Libya. “In Libya, we are waiting for the government to make an announcement when they are going to start the process,” Marafih said, without elaborating.
The Persian Gulf telecom operators such as Qtel have been on the hunt for licences and acquisitions outside their home markets, where they are losing market share to rivals and where mobile penetration in some countries tops 100%.

Vodafone Qatar, a unit of Vodafone Group, started operations in 2009 in a bid to tap into one of the world’s fastest-growing economies and the country’s high per capita gross domestic product. Qtel, which currently has over 53mn subscribers, wants to become one of the top 20 telecom operators in the world by 2020. Qtel is still studying opportunities in Iran, Marafih said. “We have not decided on how to move because we still need clearance from the government,” Marafih said. - Gulf Times