Airtel Africa's net in Q3 down on higher tax outgo

Bharti Airtel’s Africa arm posted profit after tax of $103 million in the December quarter, down 21% year-on-year from of $133 million in the corresponding quarter of the previous year, due to higher tax outgo in the period.These are the company’s third quarterly financial results since raising $750 million through its initial public offering (IPO) in June last year. The shares were priced at 80 pence apiece, giving it a market capitalization of around $3.9 billion.

Airtel Africa posted revenue of $883 million, up 14.2% year-on-year from $783 million, largely driven by improved performance in the ‘Rest of Africa’ region, supported by solid results in Nigeria and East Africa, the company said.The revenue increase is significant for the African arm of Bharti Airtel, which battles a bruising tariff war with rival Reliance Jio Infocomm Ltd at home turf.
It also comes at a time when Bharti Airtel and other operators are emerging from an adverse court verdict which mandates telecom companies to pay dues totalling over ₹1 trillion to the Indian government.

The 24 October Supreme Court order that ended the 14-year legal battle between telcos and the department of telecommunication (DoT) has asked Bharti Airtel to cough up ₹35,586 crore in dues, straining its already precarious financial situation in India.The telecom company currently awaits Supreme Court’s hearing on its modification plea filed earlier this month which seeks that the operators be allowed to negotiate a sustainable payment schedule with the department.
Bharti Airtel will declare its December quarter earnings for India operations on 4 February.
Africa has proved to be a beacon of hope for the company, which is faced with a struggling India business.