ASEAN-BASED independent telecommunications infrastructure company, EdgePoint Infrastructure, is expanding options for telecommunications service providers in the country via its subsidiary, EdgePoint Towers Inc.
This is in line with the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT)’s Policy on Shared Passive Telecommunications Tower Infrastructure (also known as the Common Towers policy) that aims to strengthen communications services and digitalization in the Philippines.
EdgePoint Philippines officially entered the Philippine market in April this year, through a Sale and Leaseback agreement for 2,934 towers in the Luzon Island group, with Smart Communications Inc. and Digitel Mobile Philippines Inc., both wholly owned wireless communications and digital services subsidiaries of PLDT Inc.
Following the sale, Smart is leasing the towers from EdgePoint Philippines to serve its mobile communications and high-speed internet connectivity needs in the region.
The official handover of all towers is expected to be completed in the first half of 2023. To date, 2,232 tower sites have been handed over to EdgePoint Philippines.
“Our market position as an independent towerco aligns well with the DICT’s Common Towers 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,” said Suresh Sidhu, chief executive of EdgePoint Infrastructure.
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.
“EdgePoint is ready to bring investment, innovation, best practices and expertise into the Philippines to address the nation’s connectivity needs. We are focused on driving the deployment of world-class connectivity solutions in the telecommunications landscapes across our footprint and being the leading 5G enabler for our mobile network operators.”
“Our capacity for building leading-edge telecom structures, providing next-generation solutions as well as introducing green technology and sustainable solutions give us an edge in meeting the needs of mobile network operators in the country,” added Sidhu, that one of EdgePoint’s key strategies is to always bring its regional best practices to local markets in which they operate.
“We are confident that a more comprehensive and modern communications infrastructure will support the Government’s drive to transform the Philippines into a globally competitive, digitally-enabled economy in line with the Digital Cities 2025 plan.”
The Digital Cities 2025 initiative aims to drive inclusive growth in the countryside by transforming high-potential areas into bustling IT and Business Process Management (IT-BPM) hubs to grow the Philippine economy within the next five years.
EdgePoint is focused on building and leasing shareable, fiber-integrated and leading-edge telecom structures as well as providing solutions such as small cells and in-building systems.
The company aims to be an industry leader through scale and innovation, driving operational efficiencies through the adoption of analytics and digital technologies. Its capability beyond towers includes designing, building, operating and maintaining private networks, edge computing, open RAN, small cells and IBC solutions.