Uninor widens quarterly loss... but makes first full-year profit

Telecom operator Uninor on Wednesday reported widening of operating loss to about Rs 276 crore in the fourth quarter ended December 31. However, it posted first ever annual operating profit at about Rs 855 crore.

The company, which is now fully owned by Norwegian telecom operator Telenor, had reported operating loss of about Rs 132 crore in the October-December quarter of 2013.

Uninor, however, did not share the net earnings figure. Telenor President and CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas attributed the widening of loss to increase in operational expenditure, mainly to meeting the target of installing 5,000 mobile sites last year which was delayed due to the rains in the country.

Uninor currently has permits for mobile services in seven out of 22 telecom service areas 

of the country.  Currently, it is operating in six areas — Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Uttar Prdesh East and West.