Globe boosts internet network in southernmost Philippines

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December 13, 2025 | 12:00am

MANILA, Philippines — Globe Telecom Inc. is putting up a 175-kilometer subsea cable across Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi – collectively called Basulta – to improve internet speed in the farthest region of the Philippines.

Globe said it would put up a 48-core subsea cable in Basulta, a project emanating from Zamboanga City and terminating in Isabela City, Basilan, with an extension to Sulu.

The project covers the installation of cable lines underwater and also involves the investment of inland and front-haul infrastructure in the region.

The project will also place access transport and landing stations in Basulta to scale up its network infrastructure for digital connectivity. Globe will also deploy network nodes to fire up broadband and mobile services for Basulta consumers.

Based on Globe’s timeline, the project is scheduled to begin surveying works in early-2026. The project should begin construction by mid-2027, according to the telco.

Once the project is completed, Globe president and CEO Carl Raymond Cruz said Isabela City is going to end up as a district with high-capacity internet for digital purposes.

The project also supports the Department of Information and Communications Technology in its push to set up fiber lines in geographically isolated and disadvantaged areas.

“As data consumption continues to grow beyond 30 GB per user each month, we are expanding our fiber and broadband not just to connect homes, but to empower small businesses and fuel the broader digital economy,” Cruz said.

Globe is also in the process of upgrading its broadband network to full fiber, an initiative that has covered more than 600 towns in 70 provinces. Globe is replacing copper lines with fiber cables to enhance service stability and trim its environmental impact.

Globe invested P228 billion in capital expenditures and P236 billion in operating expenses in the last three years. It is also developing new products to cater to the mass market, including GFiber Prepaid, which is its low-cost spinoff that is now serving over 400,000 homes nationwide.

The move to expand in Basulta also supports Globe in its ambition to become the second largest player in the broadband space.

As of September, the telco-to-tech giant is managing a subscriber base of 2.1 million in broadband, still behind PLDT Inc.’s 4.12 million and Converge ICT Solutions Inc.’s three million.