The Board of Investments (BOI) endorsed the P150-billion telecommunications infrastructure project of EDOTCO Towers Inc., a subsidiary of a Malaysian conglomerate, for green lane certification through the One-Stop Action Center for Strategic Investments (OSACSI).
Trade Undersecretary and BOI managing head Ceferino Rodolfo said EDOTCO would roll out 25,000 common telecommunications infrastructures in urban and rural areas to address the needs of mobile network operators (MNO) and align with the government’s efforts to enhance mobile network access and internet penetration in underserved and unserved regions.
The BOI underscored EDOTCO Towers’ capability to form the base and platform for future mobile broadband networks in the country.
It said the project would play a huge role in introducing new technologies such as 5th generation (5G) mobile broadband networks and large-scale Internet of Things (IoT) applications through its shared infrastructure offered to services providers and government agencies on an open access and a non-discriminatory basis.
EDOTCO aims to operate sustainably using non-conventional energy resources such as photovoltaic systems, wind, biomass, fuel cells, energy storage systems or hybrid solutions, provided that site conditions are optimal for its use.
It will also utilize different analytics software to ensure continuous improvement in the operations of the network and avoid or minimize outages at sites. EDOTCO’s project will strengthen the telecommunications infrastructure in the country and is expected to attract more investors as connectivity is critical in supporting business operations.
The project will open new jobs for Filipinos during the construction phase and when the towers are commercially operating, according to the BOI.
Registered as a domestic stock corporation in 2018, EDOTCO, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Malaysian EDOTCO Group Sdn. Bhd. focuses on constructing, owning, operating, maintaining, and leasing out telecommunication towers to telecommunication operators.
It was the first foreign investor in common towers in the Philippines and was recognized as a government-linked company in Malaysia.
EDOTCO builds passive telecommunications tower infrastructure (PTTI) nationwide and leases out tower and ground space and other associated services to mobile network operators in the country.
The green lanes for strategic investments were established through Executive Order 18 to hasten, simplify and automate the permit and license application processes for strategic investments in the Philippines.