Manila Water restores 24-hour water availability to 100% of customers, exec says

The Manila Water Co. said on Tuesday it has already restored a 24-hour water availability to 100 percent of its customers in Metro Manila’s  East zone following a period of service interruption due to lack of supply.

“We are now at 17 days running of 24-hour water availability to 100% of our customers,” Manila Water chief operating officer Abelardo Basilio said in a statement.

The water concessionaire was slapped with more than P1-billion sanction in connection with the water crisis in Metro Manila and Rizal province which started in the first quarter of the year. 

MWSS imposed the sanction due to Manila Water’s violation of Article 10.4 of the concession agreement after failing to provide 24/7 water supply to its consumers.

The water concessionaire said that they faced a 150-million liter per day (mld) of deficit in March up to almost 350 mld in late June.

Due to the plummeting water level of main source Angat Dam, the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) reduced the allocation to Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) twice from the regular cubic meters per second (cms) to 40 cms, and then reduced further to 36 cms in June.

MWSS regulates the two concessionaires Manila Water and Maynilad.

Manila Water said the supply gap was narrowed through the increased production in Cardona Water Treatment Plant in Rizal, the rehabilitation of existing deep wells and construction of new wells across the East zone, and the efficient reduction of its system loss or Non-Revenue Water (NRW).

Manila Water said the Cardona treatment plant is now producing water consistent with the current demand of Rizal towns which include Cardona, Binangonan, Angono, Taytay and parts of Cainta.

Deep wells, meanwhile, is producing more than 40 mld.

Manila Water also said that from 12 percent of system loss from last year to early this year, it was reduced to about 10 percent  due to pressure reduction.

In August, NWRB increased the allocation to MWSS from 36 cms to 40 cms as Angat Dam recovered to minimum operating level. 

“But while we have increased our efficiencies, and the technical solutions we have put in place are ensuring we are able to distribute the still-limited supply as equitably as we can, we cannot rest and let our guard down,” Basilio said.

“The water supply situation remains volatile as Angat Dam continues to struggle to reach the ideal 210 to 212-meter level by end of 2019,” he added.

For September, the NWRB maintains the allocation for the concessionaires of MWSS, which includes Manila Water, at 40 cms. —LDF, GMA News