Indian-led iSON Group plans to invest up to $375 million in the Philippines over the next decade, broadening its scope from telecom towers to include agriculture, digital healthcare, and business process outsourcing, signalling increased foreign confidence and strategic growth in the country.
Indian-led iSON Group is preparing to pour up to $375 million into the Philippines over the next decade, widening an earlier telecom-focused plan into agriculture, digital healthcare and business process outsourcing after meetings in India with President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and economic officials, according to the Department of Trade and Industry.
Most of the money, about $300 million, is earmarked for iSON Tower Ltd. Inc., which wants to lift its Philippine portfolio to more than 3,000 telecommunications towers. The company has already put in roughly $65 million for 450 towers across Metro Manila, Luzon, the Visayas and Mindanao under the government’s common tower policy, and it plans to keep building at a pace of 300 to 400 towers a year for the next 10 years.
The broader investment push also includes $75 million for other lines of business. iSON’s agrotech unit is planning a $50 million agro-solar venture in New Clark City with the Bases Conversion and Development Authority, combining 50 hectares of greenhouses and polyhouses with a 40-megawatt-peak solar photovoltaic plant. The first crops would include capsicum, cherry tomatoes and cucumbers, with output later expanding to 20 to 25 varieties. Another $15 million would go to iSON Health, which offers teleconsultations in English and Tagalog, second opinions through more than 300 partner hospitals and medical tourism services. The final $10 million is intended to expand contact centre operations serving Globe Telecom and Smart Communications, while also shifting offshore work from South Africa, Egypt and India to the Philippines.
The government has said the qualifying projects may be eligible for tax breaks under the CREATE MORE Act and could be fast-tracked through the green lane for strategic investments. DTI Secretary Cristina Roque said the plans show that reform efforts are drawing in overseas capital, while Finance Secretary Frederick Go said the expansion reflects growing investor confidence in the country’s economic direction.
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