Fiber broadband and technology provider Converge ICT Solutions Inc. has more than doubled its capital expenditures (capex) this year to up to ₱25 billion amid strong expansion efforts.
Based on its financial report, the company’s capex in 2025 is expected to be within the range of ₱20 billion to ₱25 billion.
This is significantly higher than its capex last year, which only amounted to ₱9.3 billion, following delays in the turnover of turnkey projects.
Converge Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Co-Founder Dennis Uy said the company envisions 2025 to be a “transformative year” on the back of its data centers that will support the growing demand for cloud and enterprise services.
In a press briefing, Uy said the data centers in Caloocan City and Pampanga will be integrated into Converge’s network later this year. These new facilities are expected to cost approximately ₱5 billion.
The Caloocan data center, in particular, is designed to accommodate 300 racks and will be utilized for the telecommunications giant’s own operations.
“The data centers we are creating now are for the digital transformation for the enterprise sector and the public sector, including our expansion for the consumer side,” noted Uy.
The largest portion of the 2025 capex, however, will be allocated to two international subsea cable systems, which are set to be activated in the latter half of the year.
Around ₱12 billion will be utilized for the BiFrost Cable System and the Southeast Asia Hainan-Hong Kong Express Cable System (SEA H2X).
Once operational, Uy said the cable systems would enable Converge to fully support residential customers and large-scale enterprises.
Based on reports, these were initially scheduled to be completed last year. They were then delayed over permitting issues and weather conditions.
Additionally, the capex will also be used for port expansion and redundancy.
Converge is looking to install up to 500,000 fiber ports, the majority of which are in Visayas and Mindanao.
With a strong growth trajectory and an “underserved market” in mind, the company projects a 16-percent increase in revenue this year.
This follows the 14.2-percent growth it notched last year, which totaled ₱40.6 billion.
Likewise, the telco firm’s net income rose by 18.8 percent year-on-year in 2024, fueled by its residential and enterprise segments.
Converge posted ₱10.8 billion in earnings, up from ₱9.1 billion in 2023.
Its residential business grew to ₱34.4 billion during the same period, representing a 13.7-percent year-on-year increase.
Meanwhile, enterprise revenue surged by 21.9 percent year-on-year to ₱6.2 billion. Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) emerged as the fastest-growing subsegment, posting a 30.9-percent revenue growth.
By the end of 2024, the company had a total of 2.56 million residential subscribers, comprising 2.3 million postpaid subscribers and 290,631 prepaid subscribers.