Brazilian telecoms operator Oi has reported total net revenues of BRL5.1 billion (USD1.3 billion) for the three months ended 31 March 2019, representing a decrease of 9.5% year-on-year. Routine EBITDA for the period under review slumped 20.4%, to BRL1.3 billion, while the telco recorded net income of BRL568 million for the first quarter. Oi’s net debt at the end of 1Q19 was BRL10.1 billion, compared to BRL7.3 billion in the year-ago period.
In operational terms, Oi’s mobile customer base totalled 37.659 million at the end of 1Q19, of which 34.894 million were ‘personal mobility’ accounts, with the remaining 2.765 million attributed to the B2B segment. As of March 2019, 4G LTE coverage reached 907 municipalities, or 74% of Brazil’s urban population.
Fixed line RGUs for the residential sector dropped 8.1% to 14.336 million in 1Q19, but the uptake of Oi’s fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) service offered a bright spot: the telco ended the quarter with 145,000 fibre customers. The network – which was launched in September 2018 – reached 38 municipalities as of end-March, with 1.7 million homes passed.