PLDT Inc. has completed the cable laying for the Apricot cable system in Baler, Aurora, and Digos, Davao, marking a significant milestone in enhancing the country’s digital infrastructure. The 12,000-kilometer fiber-optic submarine cable is designed to address the growing telecommunications demand in the Asia Pacific region, with a system capacity of over 211 Tbps.
The Apricot cable system, which connects Singapore to Japan with branches to the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Guam, offers alternate routing that avoids the West Philippine Sea. This infrastructure is expected to increase PLDT’s international capacity by up to 33 percent, totaling over 140 Tbps.
The system’s two new cable landing stations in Baler and Davao are part of PLDT’s broader strategy to position the Philippines as a strategic hub for data centers and hyperscalers. The initiative aligns with the country’s digitalization goals and supports next-generation technologies, including 5G, IoT, and AI.
Jojo Gendrano, senior vice president at PLDT, emphasized that this investment is essential for accelerating high-capacity data services and propelling the Philippine economy. Chief operating officer Butch Jimenez highlighted the importance of international submarine cable systems, noting that the Apricot cable also enhances network resiliency, ensuring robust domestic connectivity across Luzon and Mindanao.
