Eircom today reported EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation and Amortization) earnings for the year ending June 2009 were €692m, down 1% compared to 2008. The company does not publish net income. In a separate development today, Australia's Eircom Holdings said talks are continuing on a sale, with Singapore telco Singapore Technologies Telemedia (STT).  Eircom Holdings reported a loss of A$1.9bn.

Revenues at €1.9 billion, were 3% lower for the 12 month period, and its operating loss amounted to €486m.

Eircom said that earnings at its mobile operator Meteor's grew by 11% to €124m, while the fixed line business was 3% lower at €568m.

The company said mobile customers of 1,026,000 as of 30 June 2009, were up 38,000 in the year. Post-paid customers stood at 138,000, 13.5% of the total. Mobile broadband customers were 9,000 at 30 June 2009, following the  launch of the new 3G service in March 2009.

Broadband DSL customers increased to 665,000 at 30 June 2009, up 72,000 compared with 30 June 2008. Retail DSL customers at 30 June 2009 stood at 477,000, up 54,000.

Fixed line revenue was down 6% but new data on the customer numbers was provided.

Net debt stood at €3.3 billion at 30 June 2009 and cash on hand was €333 million.

Eircom Holdings Ltd, the majority shareholder of Eircom, said in Sydney, that talks on a sale transaction with Singapore Technologies Telemedia (STT) were continuing with a view to agreeing a recommended deal.

STT, is a unit of Singapore's sovereign fund investor Temasek Holdings and earlier this month made a revised bid for Eircom Holdings worth a total of A$230 million ($190 million).

Australia-listed Eircom Holdings, which was frmerly known as Babcock & Brown Capital, an offshoot of the collapsed investment bank Babcock & Brown, said in a statement that it could give no assurance that the talks would result in a recommended transaction.

Eircom Holdings has reported a loss of A$1.9bn for the year to June 2009.

In Dublin, Eircom's CEO Paul Donovan, commented on today's results: “The group has delivered a robust set of results against the background of a challenging operating environment.

Adjusted EBITDA for the group was €173 million in the quarter, down 2% compared to last year, against a 6% drop in revenues. Group EBITDA for the full year was €692 million, down 1% on last year, against a drop of 3% in revenues. The Group’s EBITDA was supported by a continued increase in contribution from Meteor, which grew EBITDA by 11% for the year to €124 million, while EBITDA in the Fixed Line business was €568 million for the year, down 3%.

We have made good progress in reducing costs to offset steep revenue declines. In the quarter to June 2009 the Group’s operating costs, before exceptional items and non-cash pension credit, were 9% better than last year.

Our ‘Stage 1 Accord’ with the unions, announced in May, marked an important first step in an essential transformation of the cost base of the Group. We have implemented a pay freeze until June 2011 and are rolling out voluntary pay cuts of between 5% and 10%. Having made significant progress in headcount reduction in the past two years, we are working now to reduce our labour resources – including contractors – by 1,200 in the coming two years to June 2011; over 270 people had already left by 30 June."