PLDT Explores Stake Sale In Data Center Assets To Raise Cash For Business Development

• Philippines’ largest telecommunications firm PLDT Inc (NYSE: PHI), weighed the sale of a significant minority stake in its data center assets as it battled fallout from a spending scandal.

• PLDT eyed selling telecom towers in 2023 to offset the impact of the capital spending exceeding its budget, Bloomberg reports citing familiar sources.

• PLDT consulted financial advisers as it weighs bringing in an investor into its data center business.

• A transaction could value the business at $700 million - $800 million.

• A partner would help the company raise cash and further develop its business.

• In 2022, PLDT sold half its telecom towers for about $1.3 billion in two portfolios to Edotco Group Sdn. and EdgePoint Infrastructure units. It’s also considering selling a few thousand towers for about $300 million.

• PLDT had weighed a sale of the data centers in 2021 before putting the process on hold.

• PLDT did not consider a stake sale “as of the moment,” Mitch Locsin, PLDT’s first vice president and head of the enterprise, said in response to a Bloomberg query. He added that the company’s information technology unit focused on completing its hyperscaler 11th data center.

• PLDT grappled with local investigations and a U.S. shareholder lawsuit related to a 48 billion peso ($871 million) spending overrun discovered in an internal audit last year.

• Price Action: PHI shares traded lower by 0.77% at $24.34 on the last check Thursday.

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