Japan’s IPS, InfiniVAN investing $150M to expand PH’s undersea cable network —DICT

Japanese telecommunications giant IPS Inc. and its local affiliate InfiniVAN Inc. are pouring in $150 million worth of investment to expand the Philippines’ undersea cable network and speed up the country’s digital transformation, the Department of Information and Communication Technology (DICT) said Friday.

In a statement, the DICT said it signed a partnership with IPS and InfiniVan, covering both companies’ investment of $150 million or approximately P8.5 billion for 2023 to 2024 for the expansion of the Philippine Domestic Submarine Cable Network —a 2,500-kilometer undersea cable network linking key cities and tourist hubs from Luzon to Mindanao.

The ICT Department said the plan involves the expansion of the undersea cable network to span 2,700 kilometers, encompassing 26 hops or landing stations, namely:

• Batangas-Mindoro
• Mindoro-Boracay
• Lucena-Marinduque
• Marinduque-Tablas
• Capiz-Tablas
• Masbate1-Capiz
• Iloilo-Bacolod
• Negros Occidental-Western Cebu
• Zamboanga Del Norte1-Negros Oriental
• Surigao Del Norte-Southern Leyte
• Western Leyte-Cebu1
• Samar-Masbate2
• Masbate2-Sorsogon
• Boracay-Aklan
• Siargao-Surigao Del Sur
• Camiguin-Misamis Oriental
• Masbate1-Western Leyte
• Cebu2-Bohol
• Bohol-CDO
• CDO-Zamboanga Del Norte1
• Zamboanga Del Norte2-Zamboanga Del Norte1
• Zamboanga Del Norte2-Zamboanga Del Sur
• Camarines Sur-Tablas
• Southern Leyte-Cebu1
• Masbate1-Masbate2 UG Terrestrial
• Cebu1-Cebu2 UG Terrestrial

The DICT said the expansion project will help build resilient infrastructure by laying optical fiber lines and developing inter-regional submarine cables.

“This agreement shows how we  collaborate with the private sector with the objective of establishing a contemporary and efficient network. This network is poised to play a role in enhancing the overall stability of infrastructure in the Philippines. This network is poised to play a role in enhancing the overall stability of infrastructure in the Philippines,” said DICT Secretary Ivan John Uy.

“With the improvement of connectivity, we are providing more Filipinos the opportunity to participate in the digital transformation and digital journey that we all must share in this fourth industrial revolution,” said Uy.

The DIC said InfiniVAN, together with IPS  are actively helping the agency in  establishing a secure network connecting more than 7,000 islands.

“This support comes in the form of proposing a Public-Private Partnership (PPP), which aims to expedite the implementation of the National Broadband Plan, also referred to as the Broadband ng Masa Program (BBMP),” the ICT Department said.

The agency said InfiniVAN is a Congressionally-franchised Philippine Telecom Company (R.A. 10898) and an affiliate of Tokyo Stock Exchange-listed IPS Inc. — RSJ, GMA Integrated News