Bharti Airtel Q3 net up 25 per cent

MUMBAI, INDIA: India's leading telecom player Bharti Airtel, said on Thursday that its net profit for the third quarter ended December 31, 2008 stood at Rs 2159 crore, a growth of 25 per cent over last year's profit of Rs 1,722 crore.

The consolidated total revenue for the quarter under review grew by 38 per cent to Rs. 9633 crore Y-o-Y and EBITDA of Rs 3,945 crore grew by 33 per cent on a year-on-year basis.

"Bharti Airtel continues to lead the telecom growth story adding customer and revenue market share despite intense competition. Bharti's strategy of extensive roll out ahead of competition, especially in new villages, has yielded rich dividends," Bharti Airtel chairman and managing director Sunil Bharti Mittal said. He added that Bharti is well placed to capitalize on the huge telecom opportunity that India offers.

Bharti said that, as on December 31, the total customer base of the company stood at 8.83 crore, an increase of 54 per cent from the same date last year. It has maintained its leadership position through an improved market share of wireless subscribers across India at 24.7 per cent, up from 23.6 percent last year. Airtel also said during this quarter, it had the highest-ever net addition of 82.82 lakh customers in a single quarter.