Globe said Thursday it is on track to completing the $150-million Philippine Domestic Submarine Cable Network, the longest of its kind in the country, in April this year to further boost digitalization in the countryside.
“As the Philippines continues to build a digital economy, Globe is steadfast in its efforts to bring fast and reliable connectivity to all,” said Globe president and chief executive Ernest Cu.
“We are committed to supporting the government’s initiatives towards innovation, e-governance, and greater digital adoption among Filipinos through our investments in PDSCN and other network infrastructure,” he said.
Globe teamed up with Eastern Communications and InfiniVAN Inc. for the project to provide equitable and reliable connectivity across the country, including previously unserved and underserved areas across the Philippines.
PDSCN, which has a total cable distance of 2,500 kilometers, will soon kick off landing cables in nine remaining segments that cover 13 sites. These include Calatrava, Romblon; Pasacao, Camarines Sur; Bulan, Sorsogon; Calbayog City, Samar; Palanas, Masbate; Mactan, Cebu; Maasin City, Leyte; Claver, Surigao del Norte; Kinoguitan, Misamis Oriental; Camiguin; Dipolog, Zamboanga del Norte; Liloy, Zamboanga del Norte; and Zamboanga City, Zamboanga del Sur.
The project started in Subic Bay, Zambales in July 2022 and already completed 15 segments across the country, including key cities and tourism destinations.
Globe said that as the PDSCN project neared completion, it would shift focus towards capital efficiency and optimization, with plans to reduce its capital expenditures budget to $1.3 billion in 2023 and $1 billion in 2024 from $1.9 billion in 2022.
This move aims to optimize spending in the next few years by maximizing the utilization of fiber assets and taking advantage of arrangements with tower companies to boost tower construction, it said.
Globe earlier reported a net income of P26.5 billion from January to September 2022, up 48 percent from P18 billion in the same period in 2021.
Core net income, which excludes the impact of non-recurring charges and foreign exchange and mark-to-market charges, ended at P16 billion. Normalized core net income was flat year-on-year.
Consolidated service revenue hit a record P118 billion, up 3 percent year-on-year, led by corporate data and mobile services and supplemented by the sustained growth of non-telco services.
