HAMALA: The shareholders of Batelco Group during its annual general meeting AGM) on Wednesday approved the financials as well as payment of cash dividends of BD41.58 million for the year 2014. The meeting was presided over by Batelco Chairman Shaikh Hamad Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa and attended by board members and executive management.
During its Extra-Ordinary-General Meeting (EGM) the shareholders adopted amendments in relation to proposed changes to the Memorandum and Articles of Association in accordance with the requirements of the Commercial Companies Law Act 50 for the year 2014.
The Group’s 35th AGM saw shareholders approve the recommendation of the Board of Directors for a full year cash dividend of BD41.58 (US$110.29M), at a value of 25 fils per share, of which 10 fils per share was already paid during the third quarter of 2014 with the remaining 15 fils to be paid in March 2015.
“We are pleased to continue to build and return value to our shareholders as demonstrated by the dividend payment, and the progress made throughout the past year in achieving growth and diversification of the Group,” the Chairman said.
“2014 was marked by strong cash generation and growing customer numbers across the Group, with the total subscriber base now standing at over 9.5 million across the 14 geographies of the operation, representing 6% growth year on year.”
“Our strategy and on-going efforts to achieve operational excellence and growth ensures the Group provides shareholders with excellent dividend yields, among the best in our industry region wide. We will continue during 2015 to deliver the best value for shareholders,” Shaikh Hamad added.
Shaikh Hamad extended thanks to the shareholders for their attendance saying that their ongoing support for Batelco’s strategies was much appreciated. The Chairman also extended his sincere thanks to the management teams and employees across the Group for their ongoing efforts.
“We have entered 2015 in a strong financial position; our growth over 2014 positions us as one of the most important organisations in Bahrain and gives us a stable platform to work from. We remain focussed on our customers at home and overseas to ensure our provisioning exceeds their expectations. Furthermore, we also remain focussed on strengthening our performance to better serve all Batelco Group stakeholders,” Shaikh Hamad, added.