Leading telecoms and digital services provider PLDT has set up interconnection links with another telco operator in Surigao del Norte, allowing free local calls within the Province between subscribers of the two service providers. The second northernmost province in Mindanao and an important transportation hub between Visayas and Mindanao, Surigao del Norte’s capital Surigao City is dubbed as the "Gateway to Mindanao."

“With the implementation of the interconnection agreement, subscribers in Surigao del Norte can now call their friends, family members, loved ones, and business associates toll-free anytime, regardless of their telco connection,” said PLDT VP and Head of International Network and Carrier Business Genaro Sanchez.

The interconnection agreement covers PLDT and Globelines subscribers in Surigao City as well as those in the towns of Loreto, Mainit, Tagana-an, Tubod, Sison, San Francisco, and Malimono.

Surigao del Norte’s Siargao and Bucas Grande Islands are celebrated tourist destinations, well-known for their long stretch of sugar-fine beaches, vast mangrove forest, and deep waters teeming with marine life. 

The PLDT-Philcom office in Surigao del Norte will cover and cater the subscribers’ telecommunications requirements in the local integrated areas.

According to PLDT-Philcom General Manager Augustus Caesar Cotelo, “Like most PLDT offices nationwide, PLDT Philcom is also implementing an expansion program using fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) and the latest wireless technology. Areas in Surigao del Norte will be covered by these expansion programs in the near future and all these will be integrated to PLDT’s IP backbone network.”

Cotelo pointed out that, “This IP backbone runs on PLDT’s Domestic Fiber Optic Network (DFON), now reaching 150,000 kilometers, which is the most extensive fiber optics network in the country that facilitates the direct transmission of internet data to our gateway, providing fast and reliable internet experience to our subscribers.”

In addition to Surigao del Norte, PLDT-Philcom also serves the provinces of Compostela Valley, Agusan, Surigao del Sur, Agusan del Norte, Misamis Oriental, Bukidnon, parts of Davao del Norte, and Davao Oriental which was also interconnected early this year.

Last year, PLDT likewise interconnected with Globelines in the provinces of Camarines Norte, Camarines Sur, Biliran, Leyte, Southern Leyte, Aklan, and Bukidnon.