Telenor has reported solid results for the first half of 2024, driven by strategic investments in technology and cybersecurity. The company has seen significant growth in both the Nordics and Asia, with service revenues in the second quarter reaching NOK 16.3 billion, marking an organic increase of 4.5 percent compared to last year. EBITDA for the same period was NOK 8.8 billion, reflecting an organic growth of 3.8 percent.
The company generated a free cash flow of NOK 2.2 billion during this period. In the second quarter, Telenor Nordics and Telenor Asia delivered organic growth of four percent and six percent in service revenues; organic EBITDA growth for these regions was four percent and two percent, respectively. Telenor’s transformation efforts in the Nordic region have led to cost reductions, resulting in a stable operating expense development.
“Telenor is on track and continues to deliver on a successful strategy. We still have strong and profitable growth and solid cost control in the Nordic region, led by Sweden and Finland in the last quarter. In Asia, we have seen a positive uplift in Thailand, partly due to increased tourism and synergies,” said Telenor CEO Sigve Brekke.
As digital crime becomes more prevalent, Telenor has proactively protected its customers. According to a Norstat survey, one in five Norwegian business leaders experienced cyberattacks in the past year. Telenor has successfully blocked over a billion digital crime attempts in Norway this year, including fraudulent websites, phishing attempts, and malware downloads.
Earnings driven by technology investments
The company has also thwarted numerous fraud attempts via phone calls and SMS. To enhance its security offerings, Telenor established Telenor Cyberdefence in June and acquired Norwegian security company Combitech in July.
Telenor Amp, a subsidiary, will continue developing advanced security products tailored to market demands, aiming to secure Nordic businesses. “We have taken a leading position in security and show that we mean business. We work every day to develop new and better products to protect our customers.
We now continue to attack this market with full force to protect our customers from increasingly sophisticated criminal networks,” added Brekke. Telenor is leveraging technology to combat digital crime, improve customer experience, and drive operational efficiency. This year, the company partnered strategically with Nvidia to advance its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities.
Another significant milestone was the investment in the data center company Skygard. Furthermore, Telenor has expanded its partnership with Amazon Web Services (AWS) to enhance its sovereign cloud offerings and digital transformation initiatives.
“When I took over as CEO nine years ago, we talked about connectivity as a basic necessity for all and about finding new ways to create value in people’s digital lives—we are really doing that now. While I am satisfied with the solid results for the first half of the year, I am even more satisfied with how we reshaped and developed Telenor. We have built a strong foundation for the next 5-10 years to come,” said Brekke.
