Manx Telecom PLC Pre-Close Trading Update (0597T)

TIDMMANX

RNS Number : 0597T

Manx Telecom PLC

15 July 2015

15 July 2015

Manx Telecom Plc

Pre-Close Trading Update

Manx Telecom Plc (AIM:MANX; the "Company"), the leading communication solutions provider on the Isle of Man, is pleased to announce its pre-close trading update ahead of its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2015, due to be announced on 14 September 2015.

The Board confirms that trading during the first six months has been in line with management expectations.

The Company's core domestic business has continued to perform solidly during the period and we have added additional products into the Broadband portfolio, namely "VDSL plus" superfast broadband, offering customers download speeds of up to 80 Mbps and upload speeds of up to 10 Mbps. Take up of VDSL services continues to grow with 25% of households who are able to take the service now taking the faster Broadband service.

Our 4G network, which provides 99% population coverage at speeds of up to 10 times faster than 3G services, is available to all contract and pay as you go customers who have a 4G compatible handset. Launched in July 2014, it continues to achieve high levels of customer satisfaction with adoption rates growing steadily across both our pay as you go and contract bases.

We continue to see good growth in our core Global Solution products in the M2M (machine to machine), critical connection and traveller markets, which has partially offset the anticipated decline in wholesale voice and SMS revenues.

The first phase of the Greenhill Data Centre is now at over 50% capacity. The confirmation of an anchor tenant has resulted in the commencement of work on the second phase of the Greenhill Data Centre, which is expected to be complete in Q4 2015 in readiness for the anchor tenant to move in. Revenue performance from the Data Centre business has been encouraging and in line with expectations, aided by higher levels of equipment revenue as new customers are installed.

The company is pleased to report that it has renegotiated its GBP80m credit facility on improved terms and extended the term to June 2020.

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For further enquiries, please contact:

 
 Manx Telecom plc                                    [phone] 
 Gary Lamb, Chief Executive Officer 
  Paul Tierney, Interim Chief Financial Officer 
 Liberum Capital (Nominated Adviser and Corporate 
  Broker)                                            [phone] 
 Steve Pearce 
  Steve Tredget 
 Oakley Capital (Financial Adviser)                  [phone] 
 Christian Maher 
  Victoria Boxall 
 Powerscourt Group (Public Relations)                [phone] 
 Juliet Callaghan 
  Simon Compton 
  Carmen Murray 
 

About Manx Telecom

-- Manx Telecom is the leading communication solutions provider on the Isle of Man, offering a wide range of fixed line, broadband, mobile, and data centre services to businesses, consumers and the public sector on the Isle of Man as well as a growing portfolio of innovative hosting and "Smart SIM" solutions to off-Island customers.

-- Manx Telecom has a record of innovation, being the first European operator to launch a 3G mobile service and the first in the world to launch a 3.5G mobile service. 4G service launched in the summer of 2014, and it is now available to contract and pre-pay customers with 99% population coverage. The Company's high speed VDSL broadband service (Ultima) is available to 87 per cent of homes on the Island. A VDSL Plus service launched in February 2015.

-- The Company has three data centres (two of which are Tier 3) plus international connectivity and its operations are business-critical to the economic strategy of the Isle of Man.

-- One of the largest employers on the Island, Manx Telecom employs nearly 300 people. The company plays a major role in the wider community through a range of activities, including charitable donations, sponsorships, and corporate social responsibility initiatives.

-- The company is proud to sponsor the Manx Telecom Parish Walk, Tough Mann Adventure Challenge, Manx Telecom End2End Mountain Bike Challenge, Team Manx Telecom (Manx Road Club) and Royal Manx Agricultural Show as well as other smaller events. Manx Telecom also donates annually to local causes through the company's "It's our Community" programme.

-- The Isle of Man has a resilient and growing economy which has experienced 29 years of unbroken GDP growth. Unemployment is low at 2.0 per cent, and there is a zero per cent corporate tax rate which applies to the vast majority of Manx Telecom's business and means that the Group currently pays no corporation tax on its annual profits.

-- Manx Telecom is listed on the Alternative Investment Market of the London Stock Exchange with the ticker MANX.

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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