Telecommunications giant Globe Telecom Inc. said it will secure a loan of 20 billion yen, roughly ₱7.6 billion, from Tokyo-based Mizuho Bank Ltd. to fund its capital expenditures (capex) and other financing needs.

In a disclosure to the Philippine Stock Exchange (PSE), Globe said it entered into a term loan facility with Mizuho Bank to partially finance capex, debt refinancing, and other general corporate requirements.

In the first nine months, Globe invested ₱31.4 billion in capex, down 23 percent from the amount in the same period last year.

The company said this reduction in spending reflects its focus on strategic capital management, without losing track of essential network improvements.

Globe has earmarked a capex guidance of below $1 billion this year as it works on achieving positive free cash flow and optimizing capital utilization.

Globe also demonstrated capital efficiency in the January-to-September period, with its capex-to-revenue ratio improving to 33 percent from 26 percent.

The telco also managed to decrease its capex-to-earnings ratio to 49 percent from 63 percent, reflecting efforts toward investment flexibility.

“These improvements pave the way for targeted network initiatives for the remainder of the year and strengthen Globe’s positive free cash flow position,” the company said.

Globe said approximately 89 percent of capex in the first nine months was allocated to data-related projects, in line with its efforts to expand connectivity nationwide.

In the first three quarters alone, it rolled out 487 new towers, upgraded nearly 4,000 sites with LTE, and activated 235 additional 5G sites.

“By pursuing focused investments and innovation shaped around customer demand, Globe continues to empower more Filipinos to thrive in a digitally connected economy,” the company said.

Globe reported a 14-percent drop in net income to ₱17.7 billion in the first nine months, lower than the ₱20.6 billion in the same period last year.

Revenues were slightly lower in the period at ₱121.7 billion, while expenses were reduced to ₱67.41 billion.