Converge ICT Solutions Inc. has abandoned its earlier plans to build its next major data center in the Visayas or Mindanao, instead scouting locations in Calabarzon for new facilities as it seeks to capitalize on the artificial intelligence (AI) boom.
Converge cofounder and CEO Dennis Uy said the fiber broadband provider is planning two additional data centers, with Cavite, Laguna, and Batangas among the potential locations. These would add to its existing facilities in Pampanga and Metro Manila.
At the same time, Uy said one of the proposed facilities could become Converge’s largest data center yet, with a potential capacity of 80 megawatts (MW).
The company’s largest existing facility in Angeles, Pampanga, has an initial capacity of 12 MW, expandable to 36 MW, making the new facility significantly larger. Converge also operates data centers in Caloocan and Pasig, as well as Clark, Pampanga.
‘It’s the biggest,’ Uy told reporters last week. ‘This is for AI.’ Keeping data centers in Luzon marks a departure from Uy’s position in 2025, when he said Converge was considering locations in the Visayas and Mindanao for a potential 100-MW data center that would have been the company’s largest.
Beyond expanding its physical infrastructure, Uy said Converge is also developing a token-based platform that would let subscribers access multiple large language models, depending on their preferences and needs.
Although Converge already has expansion plans on the drawing board, Uy emphasized that developing data centers would require substantial investment and several years of preparation.
According to Uy, building a hyperscale data center costs at least $10 million per MW, meaning a facility of the scale Converge is considering could require capital expenditures of around $800 million, or P50 billion.
Despite the substantial costs, Uy remains intent on expanding Converge’s data center footprint as the company seeks to catch up with its more established telecommunications rivals, PLDT Inc. and Globe Telecom Inc.
PLDT’s data center arm, Vitro Inc., is already preparing to pursue a real estate investment trust (REIT) listing next year, the first of its kind in the Philippine data center sector. Globe, meanwhile, is a partner in the STT GDC Philippines consortium and has also expressed openness to pursuing a similar route for its data center assets.
Asked whether Converge was considering a REIT listing of its own, Uy said he saw no immediate need.