CAT Bonds Poised to Take On Data Center Risk, First Deal Expected Within 12-18 Months

Samart Telcoms Public Company Limited, or SAMTEL, informed the Stock Exchange of Thailand that the SI Consortium, comprising Samart Communication Service Company Limited, a subsidiary 99.99% held by SAMTEL, and Information and Communication Networks Public Company Limited, or ICN, received a letter from National Telecom Public Company Limited, or NT, dated 6 October 2026, notifying the signing of a contract to expand the capacity of the Backhaul network between the Data Center and the submarine cable station to support one system of international data communication circuits. The SI Consortium won the project as per its submitted bid, with a total project value of 363.09 million baht, and NT has asked the SI Consortium to submit relevant supporting documents for the preparation and signing of the contract. The revenue split between Samart Communication Service Company Limited and Information and Communication Networks Public Company Limited stands at 54.59% to 45.41% respectively.

AT&T Inc. affiliates, affiliates of Global Infrastructure Partners, a part of BlackRock, and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board have agreed to form a new U.S. fiber joint venture that will operate as a leading wholesale fiber commercial open access company. The joint venture will combine Forged Fiber 37, the newly created subsidiary holding the fiber build engine, network assets and operations AT&T recently acquired from Lumen, with Gigapower, AT&T's existing wholesale fiber joint venture with GIP. Under the agreement, AT&T will hold 50% ownership of the joint venture, with GIP and CPP Investments collectively owning 50%, and AT&T expects to receive proceeds at closing that it intends to use consistent with its capital allocation priorities, including helping achieve its net-debt-to-adjusted EBITDA ratio target in the 2.5x range within approximately three years. The transaction is expected to close in the first half of 2027, subject to customary closing conditions and regulatory approvals, and supports AT&T's plans to reach more than 60 million fiber locations by the end of 2030. Until close, AT&T expects to continue to report Forged Fiber 37 as held-for-sale and discontinued operations, and after close it does not expect to consolidate the joint venture's financial results but plans to report its share of equity income or loss in earnings.

Vietnam's data center colocation market is projected to expand at a compound annual growth rate of 27.71% between 2025 and 2031, according to a new supply and demand analysis from ResearchAndMarkets.com. Growth is being driven by cloud migration, artificial intelligence adoption, digital transformation, hyperscale investment, and improved international connectivity. Recent developments include a November 2025 collaboration between Kinh Bac City Development Holding Corporation, Accelerated Infrastructure Capital, and VietinBank on an AI-focused data center campus at Tan Phu Trung Industrial Park with a planned capacity of 200 MW, and a June 2026 partnership between Foxconn and Brookfield to develop up to 1GW of renewable energy and battery storage capacity in Vietnam under a long-term Power Purchase Agreement. In May 2025, Viettel IDC partnered with KT on an AI-focused data center and GPU farm representing an investment of approximately $94.5 million. Retail colocation generated the largest share of total market revenue in 2025, but wholesale colocation is projected to contribute nearly 47% by 2031, driven by hyperscale deployments and larger leasing requirements. The cloud and IT sector led colocation demand in 2025 at approximately 20% of the market, with Vietnam targeting full cloud computing adoption across government agencies by 2031 and 70% adoption of domestic cloud services among businesses.

Interlink Telecom Public Company Limited, or ITEL, has been selected by the Provincial Electricity Authority, or PEA, to carry out the project to tidy communication cables on power poles for the year 2026. The project is divided into two parts: work in the central region worth 148,774,493.70 baht, and work in the southern region worth 117,830,798.25 baht, for a total value of 266,605,291.95 baht. Dr. Nattanai Anantarumporn, Chief Executive Officer of ITEL, said the company is pleased to have earned PEA's trust and is committed to completing the work efficiently and on target. The two projects, with a combined value of more than 266 million baht, will help strengthen the company's telecommunications infrastructure revenue base, with revenue recognition proceeding in line with the operating plan and contract conditions after signing.