Philippines Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) is in talks to sell 49 percent of its data center business to Japan’s NTT.

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– PLDT

First reported by Reuters, the deal could value the Filipino telco’s data center business at $750 million.

PLDT and NTT both declined to comment, but the deal is expected to close in the second half of this year.

According to the report, PLDT’s share price has climbed 5.6 percent year-to-date, giving the company a market value of $5.09 billion.

This is not the first time that the Filipino telco has considered selling its data center business. PLDT considered selling its data centers for $500 million in 2021, but the deal was put on hold. At the time, NTT backed the deal.

Founded in 1928 and headquartered in Makati City, PLDT owns and operates 11 data centers through its subsidiary ePLDT.

The telco’s data centers span Cebu, Clark, Davao, Manila, Santa Rosa, Subic, and Sucat in the Philippines. The company is developing a 12th data center, with 100MW IT capacity, in the nation.

In March 2023, PLDT agreed to sell over 1,000 telecom towers to KKR as part of its plan to raise capital for network expansion.