This will serve both fixed and wireless customers in these areas and complement the existing aerial cables in the affected provinces.

“Learning from our experience in past typhoons, this project will help fortify our fiber optic network in Luzon, particularly the southern part which is often affected by calamities,” said PLDT President and CEO Napoleon Nazareno.

The fortification project covers the FOC links in the Laguna towns of Calamba, Los Baños, Calauan, Pila, Sta. Cruz, Liliw, and an ongoing construction in San Pablo.

Nazareno pointed out that underground cables are less vulnerable to fiber cuts due to typhoons and landslides. “Underground fiber optic cables are more resilient because they are not susceptible to cuts brought about by strong winds, falling trees, and utility poles. A resilient network can provide and maintain reliable service even in disruptive conditions such as typhoons.”

He stressed that this project is PLDT’s way of helping Southern Luzon get back on its feet after the unnerving force of Glenda, one of the strongest typhoons in 2014 with turbulent winds of up to 185 kph that caused far-reaching damages to people’s lives, properties, and businesses.

“As we establish a more resilient and reliable connectivity to the affected areas in Southern Luzon with the rest of the country and the world, our customers in the area will be able to experience high-quality voice, data, and multimedia services,” Nazareno said.

The southern Luzon fortification project is included in the P39 billion capital expenditures program of PLDT for the year.

By the end of 2014, PLDT has already rolled out 619 kilometers of underground fiber optic cables in Northern Luzon, strengthening its capacity to provide multimedia services to some 11 million subscribers of PLDT mobile subsidiaries Smart and Sun Cellular and around 450,000 PLDT HOME customers.

PLDT’s domestic fiber optic network (DFON) has also linked Palawan province to the world last year through undersea and inland cable links that run from Puerto Princesa to Taytay in Palawan and San Jose de Buenavista to La Paz, Iloilo City.

Last year also saw the installation of over 150 kilometers of PLDT’s submarine and inland fiber optic cables that linked the island of Bohol with the major urban centers in the Visayas and Mindanao regions. These fiber links support the increasing demands for reliable telecoms and data services in two of the most popular tourist destinations in the country.