May 4 (SeeNews) - Norwegian telecommunications group Telenor said on Thursday the earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of its Bulgarian unit rose by 3.4% year-on-year to 61 million levs ($34 million/31.16 million euro) in the first quarter of 2017.
Calculated in Norwegian crowns, however, EBITDA, fell to NOK 278 million from NOK 286 million in the first quarter of last year as the Norwegian currency strengthened against the Bulgarian lev, Telenor said in its Q1 2017 financial report.
Total revenues rose by 1.9% year-on-year, reaching 159 million levs in the first quarter of 2017.
Telenor Bulgaria's operating profit fell by 3.6% on the year to 27 million levs in the period under review.
Capital expenditure dropped to 5 million levs from 7 million levs in the corresponding period of last year.
At the end of March, the subscription base of Telenor's Bulgarian unit was 6% lower year-on-year at 3.4 million.
Telenor bought Bulgarian mobile operator Globul from Greece's OTE for 717 million euro in 2013. In November 2014, Globul was rebranded to Telenor Bulgaria.
On the Bulgarian mobile segment, Telenor competes with Mtel, a unit of Telekom Austria, Bulgarian telecommunications group BTC, which operates under the brand name Vivacom, as well as 4G operator Max.
(1 euro = 1.95583 levs)