EdgePoint keen on buying more towers
TELECOMMUNICATIONS infrastructure company EdgePoint Infrastructure on Thursday said it is keen on buying more telecom towers that PLDT, Inc. and Globe Telecom, Inc. may sell in the future.
“I think we are always open to acquiring more,” EdgePoint Chief Executive Officer Suresh Sidhu said during a briefing when asked to comment on the two companies’ plan to sell more of their tower assets.
He said the company also focuses on building its own towers in the Philippines.
“We are in discussion with operators. We expect to build some by middle of next year.”
EdgePoint is headquartered in Singapore with operations in Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines.
In April, Smart Communications, Inc. and Digitel Mobile Philippines, Inc. announced that they had signed sale and purchase deals in connection with the sale 5,907 telecom towers and related passive telecom infrastructure for P77 billion to the subsidiaries of edotco Group and EdgePoint.
Ayala-led Globe has sold 7,059 towers. It recently signed a sale and leaseback deal with Phil-Tower Consortium, Inc. for the telco’s 1,350 towers.
Both Globe and PLDT plan to sell additional telecom towers.
“Our market position as an independent tower company aligns well with the Department of Information and Communications Technology’s common tower policy that seeks to enhance connectivity while easing mobile network operators from the heavy capital expenditure required for building communications towers, allowing them to focus on improving services and reaching more underserved areas,” Mr. Sidhu said.
“The number of internet users in the Philippines has more than tripled in the past decade from 23 million in 2010 to 76 million in 2022, and significant investments are needed to meet the demands of this growth. The Philippines has a dense number of users per tower which affects overall user experience, and the country needs a large number of new towers built to fill this gap,” he added.
Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has a stake in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls. — Arjay L. Balinbin
