Globe Telecom plans to sell tower assets

MANILA, Philippines — Globe Telecom Inc. remains keen on selling its tower assets, but is not in a hurry to do so.

“We’ve always continued to look out for opportunities with respect to selling our passive assets, which include our towers, and the recent transaction from our competition has made the environment more friendly with respect to selling the towers,” Globe chief finance officer Rizza Maniego-Eala said.

Globe has been looking into monetizing its tower assets since 2018.

Its rival PLDT Inc., meanwhile, had signed last month a P 77 billion sale and leaseback deal in connection with 5,907 telecom towers and related passive telecom infrastructure, the largest ever acquisition of assets in the country by international investors.

“But at the moment, we are continuing to focus on partnering with the same tower companies in a built-to-suit effort to help us with our continued build,” Maniego-Eala said.

Globe has been aggressively expanding its network through partnerships with several tower companies.

As end-March, Globe has 91 tower company sites on air since the start of the year as it continues to expand coverage to provide the best service to its customers.

The 91 towerco sites have started carrying Globe traffic, nearly 57 percent more than the 58 sites completed in the same period in 2021.

Globe has fired up 252 cell sites in the first quarter, bringing its total cell towers to 12,194 as of end-March.

Its 5G network now covers 93 percent of the population in the National Capital Region and 80 percent of the population in Visayas and Mindanao.

“We want as many Filipinos to enjoy the benefits of mobile technology and have access to the internet, even in far-flung areas.  This way more people can enjoy the digital solutions that are accessible through our network and help uplift the lives of many,” Globe president and CEO Ernest Cu said.

Globe has earmarked P89 billion for its capital expenditures this year to build new cell sites, upgrade existing sites to 4G/LTE, accelerate the rollout of 5G connectivity, and ramp up the fiberization of Filipino homes nationwide.

S&P Global Ratings earlier said it believes that PLDT’s recent tower sale would not be the last of such deals in the Philippines.