Manila Water to abide by MWSS order to pay P1.13-B fine

MANILA, Philippines — The Manila Water said Wednesday it will abide by the order of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) to pay fines worth P1.13 billion in relation to water supply shortage experienced by some of its customers in March.

The MWSS ordered the water concessionaire to pay P534 million for not meeting service requirements and to set aside P600 million for the development of a medium to long-term water source for the East Zone.

READ: MWSS fines Manila Water for supply shortage

“We will abide by the MWSS decision to impose a penalty. While we are not the root cause for the inadequacy of the raw water supply coming from Angat Dam which we are mandated to treat and distribute, Manila Water, as agent and contractor of water services of MWSS, hold ourselves accountable for our inability to provide our consumers with the usual uninterrupted water service,“ said Manila Water Company, Inc. president and chief executive officer Ferdinand dela Cruz.

Dela Cruz said the company’s inability to provide uninterrupted water supply to some of its customers was because the company’s allocated water supply from Angat Dam is no longer sufficient for the need of consumers in the East Zone.

“This raw water allocation has remained unchanged at 1,600 MLD (Millions of Liters Per Day) since the concession started in 1997 when the East Zone had a population of only 3 million people. Today, Manila Water serves a population of almost 7 million people whose per capita consumption has significantly increased through over two decades of economic progress in Metro Manila,” he said.

Dela Cruz said the company has “strongly advocated for many years” the development of new water sources beyond Angat Dam to ensure sufficiency of water supply and resiliency in case of calamity around the dam’s system.

“However, the development of new water sources is, under the Concession Agreement, ultimately the responsibility of MWSS,” Dela Cruz added.  /muf