Aboitiz Infra prepares for recovery, ramps up 2021 capex by 250%

The Aboitiz Group’s infrastructure arm is ramping up its cell tower construction business this year while signaling other investments will continue after slowing down in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aboitiz InfraCapital Inc. announced on Friday a total capital spending budget of P13 billion in 2021—up by 250 percent from last year’s P3.7 billion.

Of this, P2.5 billion will be spent on building shared cell sites as the government encourages independent contractors to increase tower density and cut congestion in the country’s telecommunications networks.

In February, an Aboitiz InfraCapital subsidiary secured its certificate of registration as an independent tower company from the Department of Information Communications and Technology.

Aboitiz InfraCapital earlier announced tie-ups with the country’s leading telco providers.“COVID-19 may have affected our short-term plans, but we remain committed to our businesses, and to the same growth pathway and trajectory,” Aboitiz Group president and CEO Sabin Aboitiz said in a statement.

“We are here for the long haul and we will continue to take bold and deliberate steps to achieve our growth objectives,” he added.

Aboitiz InfraCapital said the bulk of the spending this year would go to its water projects such as Apo Agua Infrastructura Inc.’s bulk water supply project with the Davao City Water District.Once operational, Apo Agua can provide some 300 million liters of treated water to over a million customers.

The company also budgeted P2.8 billion for land acquisition and the redevelopment of its vast property assets into “smart and fully integrated economic centers.” The remaining P1.2 billion will be spent on other projects in the pipeline although details were not immediately available.

“This year, we will focus on seeking, creating, recognizing, and capitalizing on opportunities,” Aboitiz InfraCapital president and CEO Cosette Canilao said in the same statement.

“With the Aboitiz Group’s strengths, nationwide presence, and legacy, we are committed to investing in projects that uplift lives and spur growth through better and integrated infrastructure facilities and services,” she added.