XL Axiata reported a IDR483 billion ($41.3 million) loss in first half of the year, which the company attributed to higher interest on loans related to its March acquisition of Axis as well as higher forex losses.

A year ago the Indonesian company posted a profit of IDR670.43 billion.

H1 revenue increased 12% to IDR11.6 trillion, with data revenue rising 45 per cent year-on-year, voice and SMS up 5 per cent, and total usage revenue expanding 14 per cent.

XL President Director Hasnul Suhaimi said data continued to deliver strong growth and increased its contribution of total usage revenue from 22 per cent last year to 28 per cent in the first half.

Mobile connections increased 16 per cent to 62.9 million during the period, with data subscribers now accounting for half of its total user base. The company said it has 13.3 million smartphone users – representing 21 per cent of its mobile base.

To prepare for surging data traffic, which expanded 158 per cent in H1, Hasnul said XL is reviewing the possibility of using the UMTS900 frequency. The company added 993 Node Bs in the first half and now has almost 48,000 2G and 3G base stations.

He said the network integration process is on track, with more than 60 per cent of the traffic migrated off Axis, and is expected to be completion by the end of the year. He noted that the billing and service migration was completed in Q2.

XL’s CAPEX in H1 fell to IDR3.7 trillion from IDR4 trillion is the first half of 2013.

EBITDA edged up 2 per cent to IDR4.3 trillion, with its EBITDA margin at 37 per cent.