Ooredoo, which runs fixed and mobile networks in the Middle East, Africa and Asia, saw Q4 net profit slide by a hefty 36 per cent, year-on-year, to QAR510 million (US$140 million). The Qatari operator attributed part of the fall to start-up costs in Myanmar.

Although Ooredoo was officially awarded its mobile licence in Myanmar in January 2014, the operator incurred expenses there during 2013.

Ooredoo said it plans to launch 3G-only services “within six months” of the licence award in the main population areas of Myanmar, reaching 97 per cent coverage for both voice and data.

Other factors weighed heavily on Ooredoo’s Q4 and full-year results.

The operator pointed to a fall in value of the Indonesian currency, group rebranding expenses and investment into “Kuwait’s recovery strategy” (which included the rollout of an LTE network).

Ooredoo is heavily exposed to falls in Indonesia’s rupiah. Its Indosat subsidiary, which runs mobile and fixed services, accounts for around a quarter of group revenue.

While Indosat managed to increase sales in local currency during Q4, helped by mobile data growth, revenues for the 12 months ended 31 December 2013 fell by 4.9 per cent, year-on-year, to QAR8.4 billion.

Strip away currency swings, remove Myanmar start-up costs – and even discounting the one-off Indosat tower sale gain in Q3 – then things look a bit rosier.

Full-year group net profit was QAR3.34 billion, up 16 per cent year-on-year. Q4 profit on this basis, however, was still down 11 per cent (versus Q4 2012) to QAR641 million.

Ooredoo, formerly known as Qtel, said it had had successfully completed re-branding in Algeria, Tunisia and Maldives (following on from the launch of Ooredoo in Qatar earlier in the year).

At a group level, Q4 turnover was down 3.1 per cent, to QAR8.4 billion, year-on-year. Full-year sales were up a modest 1.1 per cent, to QAR33.9 billion.

The operator reported that “strong performances” in Qatar, Algeria and Iraq were partially offset by “competitive dynamics” and a “challenging economic environment” in Kuwait and Tunisia (as well as currency depreciation in Indonesia).

In its domestic market, Ooredoo managed to boost its full-year revenue by 5.9 per cent, year-on-year, to QAR6.6 billion. EBITDA remained flat over the same period – up a slight 0.7 per cent to QAR3.3 billion.

Ooredoo said national re-branding and network modernisation – its Qatari 4G network now covers all major urban areas – generated higher costs.

As well as Qatar, Oeredoo launched 4G services in Kuwait, Oman and Maldives during 2013. It also launched 3G services in Tunisia and Algeria.