Hellenic Telecommunications Swings to Loss on Staff-Reduction Costs

By Stelios Bouras

ATHENS--Greece's dominant phone company, Hellenic Telecommunications Organization SA (OTE), reported Thursday a net loss for the second quarter of the year, hurt by tough international conditions and one-off costs relating to a staff-reduction scheme.

The company posted a net loss of EUR3.6 million ($3.9 million), versus a profit of EUR69.3 million in the same period last year. Second-quarter revenue reached EUR953.5 million, little changed from the previous year, it said in a statement.

Adjusting for charges stemming from its voluntary retirement scheme completed at the end of June, net income was EUR47.2 million, down 34.5% from last year. OTE booked a EUR61.7 million charge related to the staff-reduction plan.

The company, Greece's one-time state-owned monopoly phone company but now a unit of Deutsche Telekom AG (DTE.XE), is also present in Romania and Albania.

In a statement, OTE Chief Executive and Chairman Michael Tsamaz said a solid performance in Greece led to a very resilient first half but the situation "was tougher in our international operations, where competitive pressures are exacerbated.

"Our path toward stabilization in the coming months will be largely dependent on the evolution of the environment in our home country. Higher taxes are likely to have an impact on consumer spending," he said.

Write to Stelios Bouras at [e-mail]

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