Rent reduced for riders, early budget items approved by Regina Council
2h ago
Regina's city council covered a lot of ground in a three-hour meeting on Wednesday. With all members in attendance, coun...
Increased Internet usage during the COVID-19 pandemic helped SaskTel post a net income of $130.8 million during the 2020-21 fiscal year — $49 million more than its target for the year.
In its annual report tabled Thursday, SaskTel said its net income rose by roughly $11 million over the previous year. Revenues were up to $1.318 billion, an increase from $1.284 billion in 2019-20.
The Crown corporation paid a dividend of $110.5 million to the Crown Investments Corporation, up $3.3 million from the previous year.
SaskTel said the increase in revenue year over year resulted in part from a growth in wireless revenue as customers sought higher Internet speeds and more services through the fibre network.
The company said it saw during the year “higher-than-anticipated growth in Internet usage when people switched to their home connections to stay safe and connected with the office and classroom.”
SaskTel tried to help its customers during the pandemic by providing unlimited wireless data on a number of its plans from March 17 to June 8, 2020, and again from Dec. 17 to January 11 of this year.
It also waived late payment charges for a six-month period and offered free content for maxTV and maxTV Stream customers.
The company reported subscriber growth of 5.1 per cent in broadband Internet, 2.5 per cent for its maxTV services, 2.4 per cent for its wireless services and 14.0 per cent for fibre services, There was a drop of 6.1 per cent in its wireline voice customers.
It invested $308.2 million in capital through the year, up from $262.9 million in 2019-20. The majority of its investment last year — $283.9 million – was on property, plants and equipment as it seeks to improve coverage, reliability and speed.
Crown Investments Corporation
As a whole, Saskatchewan’s Crown corporations had net earnings of $585.4 million and provided $150 million to the General Revenue Fund in the 2020-21 fiscal year.
They invested $1.2 billion in initiatives to improve safety and integrity of utilities and to upgrade technology and infrastructure.
“While the financial results of the Crown sector are important, equally as important are the economic and social initiatives and programs the Crowns provide,” Crown Investments Corporation Minister Don Morgan said in a release.
“To help residents and businesses cope through the pandemic, the Crowns implemented programs that included a utility interest waiver and deferral program and waived numerous fees and charges for residents such as data overage charges to support remote work and learning.”