Aboitiz InfraCapital, Inc., the infrastructure arm of the Aboitiz Group, on Monday projected spending P24 billion this year on tower acquisition as well as develop and grow its economic interests.
“We have allocated around P24 billion for the expansion of our economic estates. We have an ongoing expansion at the West Cebu Estate as well as in Lima. That one will be finished this year. At the same time, industrial expansion also in Lima will also be finished this year,” Cosette Canilao, AIC president and chief executive, said at the company’s virtual press briefing.
The West Cebu Estate is a 540-hectare mixed-use development in Balamban, Cebu while the LIMA Estate is a 794-hectare Philippine Economic Zone Authority (PEZA) – registered development with over 60,000 employees and considered as one of the largest privately-owned industrial parks in the Philippines.
“For Unity Digital we’re hoping to close the acquisition of the towers from Smart and Globe within the first half of this year. And then we’ve allocated some capex as well for the regional airports,” Canilao said.
“Unity Digital is really focused on completing the turn over of towers from Smart and Globe. But having said that, we’ve always been on the lookout, you know, acquiring towers that are strategic to what we have right now. Strategic in terms of colocation potentials and at the same time strategic with respect to where most of our towers are located,” she added.
In February, Globe transferred 282 of the 447 towers acquired by Unity Digital Infrastructure (Unity), a partnership between Aboitiz InfraCapital (AIC) and the Partners Group .
The AIC previously secured original proponent status for the upgrade, expansion, operations and maintenance of the Laguindingan International Airport now undergoing a Swiss Challenge.
The project is designed to boost connectivity to areas in Northern Mindanao which includes the provinces of Misamis Oriental, Misamis Occidental, Lanao del Norte, Bukidnon and Camiguin, along with the cities of Cagayan de Oro and Iligan.
It seeks to define an aviation strategy for new airlines and connections, including the development of international flights, expand airport capacity according to market demand, introduce sustainable concepts and enhance passenger experience through operational and environmental improvements.
