Smart obtains first P2 billion green loan for 5G rollout

MANILA, Philippines — Wireless giant Smart Communications Inc. has obtained its first-ever green loan amounting to P2 billion, securing the needed funding to expand its 5G network nationwide.

PLDT Inc. yesterday said its mobile unit Smart has received a green loan from the Metropolitan Bank & Trust Co. (Metrobank) to finance its 5G expansion.

The facility was marked as a green loan given Smart’s commitment that its 5G assets would raise energy efficiency in the delivery of connectivity services to customers.

PLDT chief financial officer Danny Yu said 5G networks can carry more data traffic at a quicker pace. As such, 5G requires less energy when transferring gigabytes of data to consumers.

Yu also said 5G, when compared to 4G, can deliver better speeds and lower latency. This means that consumers would spend less time loading apps, games and videos, all of which contribute to energy reduction.

“This green loan is more than just a financial milestone, as it demonstrates Smart’s participation in shaping a low-carbon digital future,” Yu said.

“By investing in energy-efficient technologies, we are pursuing business growth and efficiency, while being mindful of our impact on the environment,” he added.

Under Smart’s strategy, the telco is working on cutting greenhouse gas emissions by as much as 40 percent by 2030 as against its 2019 baseline.

Metrobank corporate banking group head Rommel Dionisio said the bank has decided to extend another green loan to the PLDT Group as it supports its own principles. Last year, PLDT secured P4 billion in green loans from Metrobank.

For that borrowing, PLDT used the loan to widen its broadband presence across the archipelago. Further, it spent part of the amount to invest in energy-saving systems when bringing the internet to consumers.

PLDT, as a whole, is committed to adopt more green technologies to raise energy efficiency and trim carbon emissions.

These solutions include tapping into renewable energy to power facilities and using green radio, enabled by artificial intelligence, to keep wireless sites up and running.