In 2023, Vega, a telecom provider of PJSC VF Ukraine (Vodafone Ukraine), increased its revenue by 15% compared to 2022 to UAH 491.2 million, the company’s press service said on Tuesday.
“In 2023, the national telecom operator Vega’s revenue amounted to UAH 491.2 million, up 15% compared to 2022. The main sources of the company’s revenue are broadband high-speed Internet access services, IP telephony for business segment customers and revenue from sales of telecom services to other operators/providers,” the press service said.
It is noted that revenue from services provided to B2B and B2C customers using modern fiber-optic technologies amounted to UAH 261 million in 2023.
With the support of Vodafone Ukraine, the provider increased its capital investments by 173% compared to 2022 to UAH 281 million, investing mainly in the modernization and development of networks and energy efficiency, the statement said.
“Capital investments increased by 173% compared to 2022 and amounted to UAH 281 million. This mainly includes the construction of new GPON (Gigabit Passive Optical Network) Internet zones, modernization of networks from FTTx to PON technology, purchase of batteries and generators to provide technical sites with alternative power sources in case of power outages,” said Vega CEO Serhii Skrypnikov.
According to him, in 2024, Vega will continue to expand its GPON coverage and will also work on the full completion of the project to modernize the network from outdated FTTx to GPON technologies.
As part of the integration of the national broadband Internet access operator Frinet into Vodafone Ukraine, the company continues to modernize its network to improve the energy efficiency of the company’s network, Vega’s press service said.
“In 2024, the company plans to make record investments to provide backup power to sites and ZIP equipment to restore the network,” the statement said.
Earlier, PJSC VF Ukraine reported that in 2023 the company increased investments in the development of new fiber-optic lines based on Vega, and also acquired a 90.6% stake in Frinet LLC in August last year. Last year, the company actively expanded its coverage in the cities where it operates and started building GPON networks in Mykolaiv and Ivano-Frankivsk. In 2023, the company built a network in 3.125 thousand apartment buildings with access to modern high-speed Internet for 411.426 thousand households. In total, Vodafone Gigabit Net (the service is provided via a fiber-optic network designed using GPON technology) is available in more than 6 thousand homes in Ukraine. The number of energy-efficient Internet users using GPON technology has tripled.
Revenues of telecom provider Vega, which is operationally managed by PJSC Farlep Invest, decreased by 14% in 2022 compared with 2021 to UAH 428.4 million, the operator’s press service said Monday.
Revenue from services provided to B2B and B2C clients over modern fiber-optic networks in 2022 was 252 million UAH. More than half of that amount (51 percent) came from retail revenue from Internet and data services, the company said.
The net loss, according to the company’s unaudited figures in the information disclosure system of the National Commission on Securities and Stock Market (NKTSBFR), amounted to 89.32 million UAH against a profit of 184.2 million UAH in 2021. At the meeting of the company shareholders on April 28, it was decided to cover the losses at the expense of future profits.
According to the company, the main source of its income remain broadband Internet access services by optical technology, IP-telephony for customers in the business segment and income from the sale of telecom services to other operators / providers.
In 2022 more than 16 thousand subscribers were connected by optical technologies, which is 60% more than in 2021 and 15% more than it was stipulated by the pre-war plans. The main driver of the base growth was connections to high-quality GPON (gigabit passive optic network), the demand for which increased in the conditions of prolonged power cuts. The number of new customers by the end of last year had increased sevenfold compared to the beginning of the year, the press service said.
“After the Russian invasion Vega was one of the first to resume GPON construction in Kiev, Odessa, Dnepr, Lvov, Kharkov and it is this reliable and high-quality technology that proved to be a lifesaver during the war, as it not only enables uninterrupted end-use communication without power supply, but is also more resistant to disruptions. Last year a total of 1.072 thousand new zones were built, which opened access to energy-efficient Internet for 150 thousand households,” – the press service quotes CEO of the national telecom operator Vega Sergei Skrypnikov.
The company stressed that thanks to the support of Vodafone Ukraine continued to invest in the expansion and modernization of networks, despite the challenges of the ongoing Russian aggression. Last year the capital investments of Vega increased by 32 % in comparison with the previous year and made up 103,1 million hrn.
Last year Farlep Invest PJSC transferred 105,7 million UAH of taxes and fees to the budgets of all levels.
The press release states that according to the initial assessment, the amount of direct losses incurred as a result of the armed aggression of the Russian Federation, excluding damage in the territories that are still occupied, amounted to 40 million UAH.
Since the beginning of the full-scale aggression, Vega has been developing and restoring the network, connecting new subscribers, maintaining stable operation of services and helping to provide critical infrastructure of the state and units of the AFU with communication. During the first war months the operator installed WI-FI in 102 shelters and bomb shelters in most regions of Ukraine, in which Ukrainians have the possibility to use free internet access during the air-raid response. On the whole, the company rendered assistance for 1.9 mln hryvnias. The company estimates additional costs for the purchase and operation of alternative energy sources at 8.6 million UAH, the report says.
Earlier it was reported that the telecom provider Vega in 2023 will continue to invest in the expansion of energy-efficient Internet network technology GPON and will begin replacing the FTTB networks (fiber to the building) in all locations.
The national telecom operator Vega is part of the Vodafone Ukraine group. The operator offers integrated solutions in fixed telephony, broadband Internet access and data transmission. The company is present in 22 regions of Ukraine. It provides Internet services on GPON technology in Kiev, Odessa, Dnipro, Lviv, Kharkiv. Operational management of Vega telecommunications group is carried out by Farlep-Invest PJSC.
Vodafone Ukraine Group has closed a deal to purchase 99.99% of shares in PrJSC Farlep-Invest, which operates under the Vega brand, as well as at least 95% of the charter capital of Cable TV-Finance LLC, the press service of the mobile operator reported on Wednesday. “Vodafone Ukraine plans to continue to carry out the same types of economic activities, which are now carried out by PrJSC Farlep-Invest and Cable TV-Finance LLC. For Vodafone Ukraine, the purpose of the purchase of these companies is the further development of business in the field of telecommunications, in particular, fixed-line services,” the report says.
The company said that PrJSC Farlep-Invest and Cable TV-Finance LLC own a frequency resource in the 2.3 GHz range (15 MHz in six regions), as well as in the 2.5-2.7 GHz range.
As reported, the Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine on August 19 allowed PrJSC VF Ukraine to buy the telecom operator Vega (Farlep-Invest).
Vodafone Ukraine is the second largest mobile network operator in Ukraine.
The national telecom operator Vega is part of the telecommunications division of Rinat Akhmetov’s SCM group. The operator offers comprehensive solutions in the field of fixed-line telephony, broadband Internet access and data transmission. The company is present in 22 regions of Ukraine.
The Antimonopoly Committee of Ukraine has allowed PrJSC Vodafone Ukraine to concentrate more than 50% of the telecom operator Vega (Farlep-Invest).
According to a statement released on the AMCU website, the committee made such a decision following the meeting on Thursday.
“The aggregate shares of concentration participants in the involved regional markets do not exceed 11%. In all commodity markets involved in the concentration, except for the voice traffic termination services market, there are a large number of business entities, they are competitors of the concentration participants and offer consumers similar services,” the AMCU said.
According to the AMCU, the seller within the planned concentration is SCM Group, which also includes PrJSC Ukrtelecom.
Both of these companies own a frequency resource in the 2.3 GHz range (15 MHz in six regions), as well as in the 2.5-2.7 GHz range.
Vodafone Ukraine is the second largest mobile operator in Ukraine.
The national telecom operator Vega is part of the telecommunications division of Rinat Akhmetov’s SCM group. The operator offers complex solutions in the field of fixed telephony, broadband Internet access and data transmission. The company is present in 22 regions of Ukraine.
Vega, a large Ukrainian telecoms operator, in January-September 2019 received UAH 503 million of net income, which is 7% more than in the same period in 2018.
According to the company’s website, EBITDA for the specified period reached UAH 153.5 million, which is 21% more than last year. At the same time, the company managed to increase ARPU (average revenue per user) by 10%.
The amount of capital investment in January-September 2019 compared to the same period in 2018 rose to UAH 59.3 million. Basically, as Vega notes, funds were invested in upgrading networks and equipment.
“The priority of the company as a national telecoms operator is the continuous improvement of services in all regions of our presence. One of the main tasks in this direction is to transfer all customers who receive services via copper networks to optical ones. We have been working on this since last year and have positive results. Over 40,000 telephony and Internet subscribers have already appreciated the benefits of new technologies,” the press service of the company said citing its CEO Murat Chinar.
Vega transferred UAH 99.8 million in taxes and fees to the budgets of Ukraine.
The national telecoms operator Vega offers solutions in the field of fixed telephony, broadband Internet access and data transfer. It is part of the telecommunications sector of SCM Group belonging to Rinat Akhmetov.
Currently, Vega is present in 22 regions of Ukraine.
The European light launch vehicle (LV) Vega with a Ukrainian engine has successfully placed in orbit Italy’s Earth remote sensing satellite PRISMA.
According to the press release of the Pivdenne (Yuzhnoye) Design Bureau, the satellite aboard Vega LV lifted off the European spaceport of Kourou (French Guiana) at 0350 on March 22, 2019. This was the fourteenth launch under the Vega program and the first in 2019.
PRISMA spacecraft with 879 kg weight is a small satellite of the Italian Space Agency (ASI). PRISMA is equipped with an innovative electro-optical instrumentation. The instrument is able to work in numerous, narrow and contiguous bands arranged from the visible to the near infrared (VNIR, Visible and Near InfraRed) and up to the infrared shortwave (SWIR, Short Wave InfraRed). The mission will help in monitoring agricultural activities, water resources and studying main environmental processes. PRISMA began a five-year operational mission.
The Vega was developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) in cooperation with the Italian Space Agency (ASI). It is intended for launching into a solar-synchronous orbit with a height of 1,200 km satellites weighing up to 1,200 kg or into a polar orbit with a height of 700 km satellites weighing up to 1,500 kg.
The propulsion engine for the 4th stage of the PH RD-868P was developed by the Yuzhnoye Design Bureau and manufactured the Yuzhmash PO (both from Dnipro, Ukraine). According to the developer, the new liquid engine is based on the intercontinental ballistic missile carrier (ICBM) RS-20.
A successful test run of the Vega rocket was carried out in February 2012. Since May 2013, ESA has begun commercial operation of the new launch vehicle. Some 30 satellites have been launched into orbit for customers.
In July 2017, Ukrainian participants in the Vega program cooperation extended the contract signed in 2012 with a European contractor – Italian Avio SpA – for the supply of production engines for the Vega rocket until 2020.
The government of Ukraine and the ESA signed an agreement on cooperation in the peaceful uses of outer space in 2008.
The structure of the ESA includes 17 European countries.
Ukraine is currently preparing the creation of an information hub for the implementation of the cooperation agreement with the EU signed in May 2018 in the European space monitoring program Copernicus.
