Maynilad seeks average rate hike of P11 per cubic meter of water

MANILA, Philippines - Maynilad Water Services Inc. (MWSI), which distributes water in Metro Manila’s west zone, sought government approval to charge higher rates. The company applied for an average increase of P11 for all its customer segments, sources knowledgeable about the matter told GMANews.TV. The petition is part of its rate rebasing exercise, a process which allows both government and the company to set its fees for the next five years. If approved, the company will collect an additional P7.10 per cubic meter of water from a family of five that uses 30 cubic meters of water monthly, documents from the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS)-Regulatory Office show. Instead of paying P511.64 per month for 30 cubic meters of water, Maynilad customers will now be prompted to fork out P724.60 per month for their water consumption, the same documents showed. Starting this year, MWSI was allowed to charge residential clients P77.62 for the first ten cubic meters of water, P9.48 for the next ten, and P18.02 for the next 20 cubic meters of water, the company’s website said. Excluded from these fees are charges related to currency adjustments, value added taxes, among other items. In 1997, when it secured a concession to run the Philippine capital’s west zone, it charged its customers P4.96 for every cubic meter of water. Maynilad refused to make any announcement about its rate hike this early, a company spokesperson told GMANews.TV. “We will be explaining details during a formal public consultation," Jennifer Casipit, the company’s corporate communications officer said over the phone. Two public consultations—set for November 28 and December 4—will be held at the Clamshell exhibit near the Palacio del Gobernador in Intramuros and at Innotech along Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City respectively. Besides Metro Manila’s West Zone—covering nine cities and two municipalities—Maynilad also distributes water in a city and five towns in Cavite. A P1 increase translates into additional revenues worth P400 million a year for Maynilad, a source told GMANews.TV. Maynilad is owned and managed by a consortium between two publicly-listed companies, D. M. Consunji Inc. and Metro Pacific Investments Corp. - RJAB Jr, GMANews.TV