Bangladesh Submarine Cables sees revenue decline after 8 years

After fixed progress since the fiscal 2014-15, Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company, a submarine cable-primarily primarily based entirely web bandwidth provider, witnessed a decline in earnings within the closing fiscal year resulting from a indispensable decrease in earnings from its core industry.

As a result, the stutter-owned agency reduced its dividend price for shareholders, recommending a 40% cash dividend for fiscal 2023-24, down from 51% within the old fiscal year.

Following the announcement at the Dhaka Inventory Trade (DSE) nowadays, the firm’s portion value dropped by 4.96% to Tk130.40 every.

In step with its financials, earnings diminished by 22.68% to Tk398.54 crore, and fetch profit fell by 34.41% to Tk182.ninety nine crore when in contrast with the identical duration of the old fiscal year.

Previously, it had posted a outstanding 38-fold progress in profits to Tk279 crore in FY23, up from most productive Tk7 crore in FY18. Furthermore, its earnings had quadrupled to Tk515.49 crore.

The profit and earnings for FY24 were the absolute most realistic in its ancient previous. Company sources attributed this huge jump in profit progress to the authorities’s efforts to make stronger digital connectivity true thru the nation and elevate 4G-primarily primarily based entirely web usage.

Nonetheless, the expansion momentum in earnings and profit of Bangladesh Submarine Cable did no longer sustain in FY24 resulting from a reduction in IPLC hire and IP transit service revenues within the recurring direction of industry, alongside with an surprising cable minimize of SMW5 (the Indonesian sea high-tail damage route to Singapore), fixed with its disclosures.

The disclosures also famed that the decline in profit modified into as soon as resulting from reduced earnings from IPLC hire and IP transit service, apart from elevated operation and upkeep prices and provisions for unsightly and uncertain cash owed.

An legitimate of Bangladesh Submarine Cables, who requested anonymity, steered The Industrial Fashioned that the management has reduced IPLC hire resulting from no longer easy competition from International Terrestrial Cable (ITC) operators.

In step with its closing annual file for FY24, in 2012, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission issued ITC licenses to 6 deepest operators, of which four are now in energetic business operation. The ITC license holders offer IPLC service from neighbouring India thru world terrestrial cables connecting the touchdown stations in India with Bangladesh.

As a result, ITC license holders are the main competitors of Bangladesh Submarine Cable, they customarily most frequently offer lower tariffs to scheme clients. To live competitive, Bangladesh Submarine Cable infrequently wants to revise its IPLC and IP transit service tariffs downward, which impacts the firm’s earnings.

Regardless of the no longer easy competition from ITC operators, Bangladesh Submarine Cable holds round 52% market portion within the nation’s world bandwidth market, fixed with its annual reports.

Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company is the one real real provider of submarine cable bandwidth companies and products within the nation and manages the nation’s submarine cable way. It is also an International Net Gateway (IIG) service provider.

Currently, it provides bandwidth service to world web gateway (IIG) operators thru International Private Leased Circuits (IPLC), IP transit to IIGs, and IPLC companies and products to diverse company and other clients. Bangladesh Submarine Cable Company operates two submarine cable touchdown stations with a combined skill of 1,900 gigabits per 2nd.

The main is SMW-4 (South East Asia-Heart East-Western Europe) in Cox’s Bazar, launched in 2005, and the 2nd is SMW-5 in Kuakata, which started operations in 2017.

The firm has deliberate a third submarine cable in collaboration with a fresh submarine cable consortium titled South East Asia-Heart East-Western Europe-6 (SEA-ME-WE 6 or SMW6).

Following that, it signed a construction and upkeep settlement with SMW6 consortium members and agreements with suppliers in 2021. The third submarine cable is anticipated to be commissioned by the year 2025.

This fresh cable will help the firm originate a further 13,200 Gbps of submarine cable skill in direction of Singapore within the east and in direction of France within the west, as said in its annual reports.