Vodafone New Zealand Lifts Fiscal Year Net Profit, Will Reinvest In Network"

WELLINGTON -(Dow Jones)- Vodafone New Zealand said Wednesday its full year net profit was 18% higher than a year ago and added that the increase will allow it to continue investing in its network as it battles rival Telecom Corp. of New Zealand Ltd. (TEL.NZ) for customers.

Vodafone New Zealand, a unit of Vodafone Group PLC (VOD), said in a statement its net profit in the 12 months to March 31 was NZ$182 million, up from NZ$154 million a year ago.

The company's final accounts were filed with the New Zealand Companies Office earlier Wednesday.

Vodafone said its profit came from revenue of NZ$1.2 billion, up from NZ$1.07 billion the previous year, while the company had a net subscriber gain of 284,187 customers during the year.

Vodafone, which competes fiercely with rival Telecom, said it held a 55.4% market share of the New Zealand mobile market at the end of its fiscal year.

David Sullivan, Vodafone's finance director, noted the company had "steady" growth in customer numbers and market share despite the competitive environment.

"Over the 2005-06 year we'll continue to invest in our network and develop new services for customers," Sullivan added.

However, since the end of its 2005 fiscal year, Vodafone has reported first-quarter subscriber growth below that of Telecom.

In the three months to June 30 Vodafone added a net 38,000 subscribers, below the 60,000 it gained in the fiscal fourth quarter, and down from 68,000 in the fiscal first quarter of 2004.

In contrast, Telecom's results showed it added a net 74,000 new mobile subscribers in the three months to the end of June, almost double Vodafone's growth.

Vodafone launched a high-speed third generation mobile network in New Zealand in August and said it's hopeful the new technology will stanch its recent loss of market share. Telecom started its own 3G network almost a year before Vodafone and has credited its recent strong performance to demand for some of its 3G services.

-By Paula Oliver, Dow Jones Newswires; 64-4-471-5990; paula.oliver@dowjones.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires"

Posted to the site on 5th October 2005