PLDT gets NTC’s OK to build 2 cable landing stations for Apricot system
Pangilinan-led PLDT Inc. on Wednesday said it has secured a provisional authority from the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) to construct two new cable landing stations in the Philippines for the Apricot cable system.
The Apricot cable system is a new intra-Asia subsea cable facing the Pacific side of the Philippines.
In a statement, PLDT said the construction of the cable landing stations—in Baler, Aurora and in Digos, Davao—will provide telco carriers new alternate routes that will not traverse the usual West Philippine Sea waters.
The cable landing stations are targeted to be completed by early 2025.
These are seen to further fortify PLDT’s international cable network to deliver higher speeds, lower latency connectivity in and out of the Philippines, and add resiliency to its existing landing stations in Batangas, La Union, and Daet.
“The Apricot cable system’s route ensures a significantly higher degree of resilience. When our Baler and Davao cable landing stations are completed, PLDT will have alternate sites facing the Pacific, making it easier to hook up to data offices in the US,” said PLDT and Smart president and CEO Alfredo Panlilio.
PLDT said the project will augment its international capacity for data traffic, particularly to the US and across Asia and the Pacific, and raise PLDT’s total international capacity to more than 140 terabits per second once fully equipped.
The 12,000-kilometer-long cable system will connect the Philippines, Japan, Singapore, Indonesia, Taiwan, and Guam.
As of end-March, the telco said it has expanded its total fiber footprint to over 1.1 million kilometers, consisting of over 231,000 kilometers of international fiber and over 874,000 kilometers of domestic fiber. — Ted Cordero/BM, GMA Integrated News
