Globe Telecom Inc. said Tuesday it is keeping its P63-billion capital spending plan this year amid the coronavirus disease 2019 outbreak.
The telecom unit of the Ayala Group said it would fulfill its P63-billion capital expenditures in 2020 despite the global health crisis.
“We recognize the critical risks that a disruption from an emerging infectious disease can bring to our operations. And from the onset, as part of our Business Continuity Management Plan, we already prepared for workforce health and safety, supply chain disruption and the need to provide seamless connectivity, among other things,” Globe president and chief executive Ernest Cu said.
Cu said the magnitude of Covid-19’s impact on the company’s overall business operations and the whole economy should be assessed.
The company spent P51 billion for capital investments in 2019 which represented 34 percent of gross service revenues and 67 percent of full-year earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
Globe ended 2019 with more than 94 million mobile customers and over 2 million home broadband customers, representing a year-on-year increases of 27 percent and 25 perccent, respectively.
“We have made strong strides aligned with our vision of redefining customer experience, enabling last mile connectivity and revitalizing the country’s digital economy. Our performance in 2019 is a testament of our integrated approach to value creation by focusing on customer experience, driving sustainability and adopting a holistic approach to risk management,” Cu said.
Globe embarked on various sustainability programs to be a market disruptor in terms of innovative technology and sustainability initiatives.
Globe reported a net income of P22.28 billion last year, up 20 percent from P18.62 billion in 2018. Core income also rose 20 percent to P22.45 billion from P18.73 billion in the same period.
Consolidated service revenues increased 12 percent last year to P149 billion, fueled by the gains from data across mobile, broadband and corporate data services.
Revenues from mobile business went up by 12 percent to P111.8 billion, surpassing the P99.5 billion reported in 2018.
Earnings of the Home broadband business rose 17 percent in 2019 to P21.7 billion from P18.6 billion in 2018, driven by a rising level of fixed wireless broadband users reaching close to 1.4 million. Total home broadband subscriber base exceeded 2 million, up 25 percent from a year ago.
Corporate data revenues went up 9 percent to P12.8 billion from P11.8 billion in 2018.