Maynilad expects water demand rising

MANILA, Philippines — West zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. expects to sustain higher billed water volumes this year on higher water demand due to warmer temperature and as economic activity continues to pick up.

In an interview with The STAR, Maynilad president Ramoncito Fernandez said the company’s first quarter numbers were “relatively good.”

“It depends on a lot of factors, but that’s the objective, to continue with the trend,” he said.

In the first quarter, Maynilad saw billed water go up three percent to 127.6 MCM from 124 MCM as demand from semi-business, commercial and industrial customers continued to increase

Higher billed volume, along with the 14 percent increase in average tariff,  helped push revenues up by 18 percent to P6.22 billion from P5.29 billion

Last year, Maynilad saw billed volume inch up by one percent to 527 MCM from P519.6 MCM due to higher commercial and industrial demand.

Fernandez said the higher billed volumes was largely due to warmer temperatures and economic growth.

“It currently depends on the heat. In the past two months, the heat index went up. The demand correspondingly goes up when the heat index is up,” he said.

“Of course, consumption, economic growth, and we hope that the economy will grow further as government has projected. We’re very hopeful the targets of government will be achieved,” the Maynilad official said. The country’s economic managers are targeting the Philippine economy to grow by six to seven this year.

With the forecasted increase in water demand and the looming El Niño phenomenon, Maynilad is urging customers to conserve water.

“We have also been reminding our customers to do responsible use of water. I hope that they will help in the conservation of water,” Fernandez said.

Maynilad said it would accelerate its supply augmentation projects amid the threat of El Niño, which could yield around 163 million liters per day (MLD) of additional water supply from alternate sources.

The company said the supply augmentation projects include the reactivation of 45 deep wells across the west zone.

It is also looking to commission two modular treatment plants in Cavite, tapping of additional cross-border points with Manila Water, construction of an auxiliary filtration system at Putatan Water Treatment Plant, and production of an initial 50 MLD from its new water treatment plant in Poblacion, Muntinlupa.

The additional supply to be generated from the projects will help improve supply reliability for some 700,000 Maynilad customers in parts of Manila, Parañaque, Pasay, Muntinlupa, Las Piñas and Cavite.

Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines in terms of customer base.

It is the concessionaire of the MWSS for the west zone of the Greater Manila Area, which is composed of the cities of Manila (certain portions), Quezon City (certain portions), Makati (west of South Super Highway), Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon all in Metro Manila; the cities of Cavite, Bacoor and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta and Rosario, all in Cavite province.