AYALA-LED Globe Telecom Inc. is preparing a record-high spending plan in 2021of P70 billion to fund an aggressive network expansion and to further boost its services nationwide amid pandemic.   On Wednesday, the telecommunication company during its 2020 Fourth Quarter Financial Media Briefing via Zoom, said the amount will be funded through a mix of cash from operations and debts.    In a statement, it said this record-breaking capital expenditure supports Globe’s continuous modernization of its network to make 5G as well as fiber technology available to customers in more areas in the country.    In 2020, Globe has invested a total of P60.3 billion in Capex surpassing the 2019 record-level spending by 18 percent. Also, the 2020 Capex represented 41% of gross service revenues and 82% of EBITDA.   The majority of the Capex or about 86% went to data-related requirements to meet the growing data demands of Filipinos nationwide, said in a press statement Wednesday.   “2020 was a challenging year for Globe but we pulled through despite the COVID-19 pandemic and adverse economic environment. Our prudent financial management in these turbulent times allowed us to maintain strong cash flows, giving us the flexibility to continue to invest back into our network,” said Globe Telecom Inc., President, and CEO Ernest L. Cu.   This includes aggressive cell site builds, upgrading of all its sites to Fourth Generation/Long-Term Evolution technology (4G/LTE), and fast-tracking the fiberization of Filipino homes nationwide.   “We are proud of what we achieved this year particularly the significant gains in the network front. We have been heavily investing in our network infrastructure, spending over ₱60 billion in 2020 alone or more than ₱265 billion investment for the last five years, to support the government’s call for improvement in telco services in the country,” Cu said.   It said that despite the continuing impact of the Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, Globe was able to build close to 1,300 new cell sites or cell towers, up from 1,100 the previous year.   Also, the aggressive modernization of its existing network infrastructure resulted in a total of 11,529 site upgrades to 4G/LTE this year, higher than the 10,135 in 2019.   Moreover, Globe deployed 5G sites in Metro Manila, as well as certain cities in Visayas and Mindanao making 5G available in 1,045 areas in the country.   These network improvements enhanced the customer experience and the Filipino digital lifestyle and addressed the challenges of the new normal.   The new site builds and network upgrades all over the country were validated by an increase in mobile consistency scores across all regions as indicated in the recent report from an independent analytics firm, Ookla®.   Its quarterly data shows that Globe's overall Consistency Score in the fourth quarter of 2020 improved to 60.82% from the previous quarter’s 56.83%.   Globe’s regional mobile Consistency Score™i also improved from the previous quarter in 16 out of 17 regions.   Besides, Globe registered increases as high as 10 PPTs (percentage points), with Consistency Scores ranging from 39% and 65% in the last quarter of 2020.   Globe financial and operating results for 2020 reported consolidated service revenues of ₱146.4 billion, a moderate decline of 2% from the record level of ₱149.0 billion reported a year ago.   The COVID-19 pandemic impacted revenues across all businesses except for Home broadband which sustained its double-digit growth. Total data revenues across mobile, broadband, and corporate data accounted for 76% of total service revenues from 71% last year.   “In 2021 we have earmarked another record-level cash capital expenditure of about ₱70.0 billion, to provide our customers with superior network performance and quality of service as we aim to deliver first-world internet connectivity for every Filipino,” Cu said. (PR)