Manila Water to cut rates in East Zone by April 1

Manila Water Co. will reduce its tariff rates by 16 centavos per cubic meter effective April 1 in view of the continuing appreciation of the peso vis-à-vis other currencies, and the proper management of its borrowings.

In a statement, Manila Water said the reduction in the foreign currency differential adjustment (FCDA) will be from 12 centavos per cubic meter to 28 centavos per cubic meter or a reduction of P3 in the monthly bills of non-sewered residential customers consuming 30 cubic meters per month.

The FCDA is a mechanism that allows the concessionaires to recover their foreign currency losses due to payments of concession loans and foreign currency denominated borrowings.

Despite a decline in the tariff, there will be no negative effect on the company’s net profits for the year because the FCDA is merely a recovery of foreign exchange losses.

Manila Water said the FCDA is based on an exchange rate of P48.38 to the dollar.

Manila Water has to continue paying for the foreign exchange-denominated concession fees to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) as well as loans required for its service expansion and improvement.

The Ayala-led utility firm is set to complete its P2-billion Antipolo water supply project which will benefit an additional one million people.

At the same time, Manila Water will continue to implement its aggressive service expansion programs to reach the fringe areas of Taguig, Antipolo, San Mateo, Rodriguez, Cainta, Taytay and Angono in Rizal province.

Water supply projects have already commenced in the towns of Baras, Binangonan and Jalajala, also in Rizal.

Further service improvement and rehabilitation projects are also being undertaken in areas with 100 percent water coverage which include the southeastern part of Quezon City, Mandaluyong City, San Juan, Marikina City, Pasig City, Pateros, Manila (San Andres and Sta. Ana only) and Makati City (east of South Superhighway).

To help protect and preserve the environment, Manila Water is likewise expanding its wastewater operations and sanitation services all over the East zone concession area and is currently building septage treatment plants in San Mateo, Rizal, Pinugay in Antipolo and Food Terminal Complex in Taguig.

Manila Water’s sales recently registered on all-time high at 948 million liters per day, representing a 10 percent growth over the previous year’s level and the highest in the past five years. This achievement was supported by the company’s aggressive expansion programs which allowed it to add 103,000 new household connections, bringing total households served to 870,000 as of end-December last year.

Manila Water posted a net income of P2.4 billion last year, up 19 percent from P2.01 billion in 2005, mainly due to higher revenues. Revenues went up 17 percent to P6.5 billion or 17 percent higher than the previous year, largely a result of the company’s continuous operating efficiency improvements and unrelenting efforts to provide better water and wastewater services to its customers.

For this year, the company is setting aside more than P4 billion for its projects to allow it to sustain operating efficiencies, ensure the reliability of the system and continue its network expansion.

Since 1997, Manila Water has laid over 1,877 kilometers of new pipelines within the East Zone, representing more than half of its total network. Sewerage and sanitation programs also made substantial progress during the past year through the Manila Third Sewerage Project, a P4 billion project being carried out by Manila Water in cooperation with the World Bank.