Converge ICT to spend P26-P28B this year

Fixed broadband internet provider Converge ICT Solutions Inc. is investing around P26 billion to P28 billion this year to expand its national fiber backbone.

“Last year we spent P25 billion. This year, we plan to spend (around) P26 billion to P28 billion. Our capital expenditure will be for our national fiber backbone extension," Converge chief financial office advisor Matthias Vukovich told reporters at a virtual press briefing on Thursday.

Vukovich also expressed optimism that the company’s P10-billion maiden bond offering will be well-received by investors as the proceeds of the bond issuance will be used to partially fund its capital outlay requirements for 2021.

For her part, Converge president and Co-Founder Maria Grace Uy said company maintained a strong credit profile as reflected in the PRS AAA credit rating with Stable Outlook given by PhilRatings for its upcoming maiden bond issuance.

As of end-2021, Converge ICT’s fiber backbone reached 103,000 kilometers, passing through 495 cities and municipalities throughout the country.

In 2021, the company more than doubled its net income to P7.2 billion from P3.4 billion the previous year, up 111%.

The company attributed the bottomline growth to its record number of port rollouts, continued expansion of its residential subscriber base, and recovery of the enterprise business as it booked consolidated revenues of P26.5 billion, 69.2%  from P15.7 billion year-on-year.

“Our network has now passed 10.9 million homes and we’re covering around 42.5% of Philippine households. We’re confident of meeting our accelerated goal of reaching 55% of all households by 2023,” Converge CEO and co-Founder Dennis Anthony Uy said. — RSJ, GMA News