KUALA LUMPUR: Telekom Malaysia Bhd (TM) expects capital expenditure (capex) to accelerate in the second half of 2026 (H2’26), with spending to be roughly balanced between its existing core infrastructure and new growth areas.
The telecommunications group spent RM555.7 million on capex in the first half of 2026 (H1’26), equivalent to 9.4% of revenue.
TM, in a statement, said capex is expected to catch up in H2’26 as it accelerates planned investments in line with its full-year guidance of 18% to 20% of revenue.
Group CEO Datuk Amar Huzaimi Md Deris said the group was maintaining a balanced allocation between its existing core and new growth areas, including data centres and 5G infrastructure.
“Of course, we don’t disclose an expansive breakdown of the capex. But rest assured, the capex is equally balanced for the core and the new growth area, including the data centres and also the 5G network,” he said during the group’s media briefing on its second-quarter results.
He said the allocation was roughly evenly distributed between the existing core and new growth areas.
He said most projects would continue to be deployed in H2’26, adding that the group remained on track to meet its full-year capex guidance.
TM’s investments are focused on digital infrastructure, including data centres, cloud, GPU-as-a-Service and access to 5G.
Amar Huzaimi said growth in H2’26 was expected to remain broad-based across its three main lines of business: Unifi, TM One and TM Global.
“We have good traction for this year from all three lines of business. All three lines of business have recorded a positive growth trajectory, and we anticipate the momentum will continue in the second half of the year,” he said.
For H1’26, TM’s revenue grew 4.8% year-on-year to RM5.9 billion, driven by growth across all customer segments.
Its business-to-consumer segment, Unifi, recorded a 5.2% increase in revenue to RM2.91 billion, while business-to-business revenue rose 1.9% to RM1.36 billion. Carrier-to-carrier revenue, meanwhile, grew 6.8% to RM1.55 billion, supported by momentum in data centre, international data and 5G backhaul services.
