Sale of Telecom Towers Being Considered by PLDT to Improve Finances

PLDT Inc. has begun identifying which of its telecom towers are no longer “strategic” as it gets ready to sell some of these assets to maintain its position as the top telco in the country. The move comes after certain financial institutions influenced the company, citing that it might be a financially sound strategy moving forward.

“We are at the start of the process of considering with what to do with the towers and we’ve spoken to a number of international banks and they have enlightened us on the advantages of selling part of our towers. We’re open to the idea,” explained PLDT Chairman Manny V. Pangilinan during a recent news briefing.

“In our discussion with the banks, they managed to persuade us if we were to let go of some of our towers that are not strategic to maintaining our position as the dominant network in the country —that led us to think that maybe we should be open to it as long as the financial case is beneficial to PLDT,” he added.

PLDT is projected to acquire close to $800 million from the selling of its tower assets. “Purely from a financial perspective, the transaction could also probably translate to a financial gain,” Pangilinan elaborated further.

The firm is still caught up in the nascent stages of the sale, as it considers the possibility. A final valuation for the assets is also yet to be decided.

“Many of the details have got to be worked up. We’re open to it.”

Source: BusinessMirror