Manila Water takes part in Saudi Arabia project

MANILA, Philippines — Ayala-led Manila Water Co. Inc., together with French and Arab firms, will take part in managing and operating National Water Co. (NWC), Saudi Arabia’s state-run water agency.

In a regulatory filing, Manila Water said its consortium with French water distributor Saur Group and Saudi water distributor and operator Miahona Co. inked a management, operation and maintenance contract with NWC.

The contract will cover Saudi Arabia’s northwest cluster facilities, which supplies the cities of Madinah and Tabuk.

The contract is valid for a seven-year period, which will entail the implementation of enabling projects and deployment of key personnel to manage the cluster and achieve key performance indicators set by the NWC.

Once goals are reached by the third year, the contract will automatically move to the last phase of transferring the whole thing to the private sector.

Manila Water has several international business operations under its Manila Water Asia Pacific subsidiary.

According to several Arab sites, the contract is the first one under Saudi’s plans to privatize its water infrastructure sector and an integral part of the Vision 2030 program to open its economy to foreign investors.

The contract includes management of 15,000 kilometers of water pipeline networks, 50 drinking water production plants, 10 wastewater treatment plants and 622 boreholes.

Multinational water experts will work in the northwestern sector aiming to transfer global experience, nationalize smart technology and expertise and pave the way for the concession contracts, the last leg of the water privatization project.

The project  is expected to improve the lives of 3.5 million people living in the covered areas.