RIYADH: Saudi telecom giant “stc” said its net profit for the first nine months of 2021 increased by SR295 million ($78.64 million) or 3.5 percent to SR8.7 billion compared to a year ago. The company said in a filing that this was the result of the increase in revenues by SR3.6 billion and a decrease in operating expenses by SR627 million due to the decrease in general and administration expenses and selling and marketing expenses. Data center The Arabian Internet and Communications Services Co. (Solutions by STC) on Sunday signed several contracts with the Saudi Telecom Company to build a modern data center in NEOM, according to a stock exchange filing. The contracts, valued at SR201.3 million, will contribute to the establishment of the data center’s infrastructure, cloud platform and other applications. The project aims to design and build digital solutions for NEOM Telco Park’s digital platform as well as data center support starting from the concept to project delivery. It also includes data center campus enablement, system integration, infrastructure services, and physical security solutions, a digital platform enabling NEOM to provide private cloud services to its customers, solutions and technology maintenance and support. The project delivery and implementation will be within one year starting from the contract signing date, involving support services for three years.