Telenor said it recorded mobile subscriber growth in Norway for the first time in three years, as the operator posted an overall revenue increase of 1 per cent in Q3.

“The Telenor team delivered another quarter of solid and consistent performance, with stable revenues and a 6 per cent organic EBITDA growth. The steps we have taken over the past two years have laid the foundation for continued value creation,” CEO Sigve Brekke (pictured) said in a statement.

“In Norway, network quality is key to our customers and we are proud to have the world’s fastest mobile network. Our mobile customer base grew for the first time in three years and, in addition, we continued to expand our fibre network and connected close to 9,000 households during the quarter,” he added.

The total number of mobile subscriptions in the country increased by 2,000 during the quarter.

During the quarter, Telenor reported group revenue of NOK27.6 billion ($3.3 billion) and net income attributable to equity holders was NOK5.8 billion, flat compared with Q3 2017.

Telenor stated it saw continued signs of improvement in Bangladesh and Pakistan in the recent quarter, but this was offset by its performance in Myanmar following the entrance of a fourth operator, a continued decline in fixed legacy revenues in Norway and the effect of a lower subscription base in Thailand.

Having completed the sale of its operations in Central and Eastern Europe Telenor said it now wants to focus on “growth, efficiency and simplification” in the region.