Maynilad spending P30 billion for service improvements

MANILA, Philippines — West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. is setting aside as much as P30 billion for capital expenditures (capex) this year to continue service improvements amid the ongoing threat of the El Niño weather phenomenon.

Maynilad president Ramoncito Fernandez told The STAR in a chance interview that the amount will be used to develop more water sources, as well as for pipe laying and wastewater projects.

“Our five-year 2023-2027 business plan has been approved. Our capex commitment there is P162 billion for five years. For this year, it’s between P28 billion and P30 billion,” he said.

Fernandez said one of Maynilad’s major projects this year is the full completion of its Poblacion Water Treatment Plant in Muntinlupa City.

He said full production of the facility at 150 million liters per day (MLD) should be achieved on or before the middle of the year.

“After President Marcos inaugurated it last December, we are now producing 50 MLD. Our commitment is by mid-year this year, it will be 150 MLD,” Fernandez said.

The P11-billion Poblacion WTP is Maynilad’s third water treatment facility that draws water from Laguna Lake.

It is a vital part of the company’s plan to develop alternative sources of water to ensure long-term water security for its customers.

At full capacity, the facility will serve around one million Maynilad customers in Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa and Cavite.

Fernandez said the project also serves part of the company’s efforts to minimize the impact of El Niño.

“As you very well know, Metro Manila is 90 percent dependent on Angat Dam and Angat is very sensitive to climate change. With the forecast that is given us, we have prepared, together with Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System, mitigating actions to minimize the impact of El Niño. We have done a lot already, and that Poblacion project is included,” he said.

Maynilad has ensured that it is better prepared this time around following capacity improvement investments to manage the limited supply during El Niño.

“In case the worst happens, we will mitigate it. The worst that can happen is that the impact would be lessened, not like before,” Fernandez said.

“If you remember in April last year we interrupted more than a million customers. So our objective is at the worst, that will not happen again. It should be smaller or shorter in case there would be interruptions,” he said.

Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines. It serves the West Zone or the areas of Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, Malabon, and certain portions of Manila, Quezon City, Makati and Cavite.

The company is also currently preparing for its initial public offering (IPO), which it is mandated to undertake before 2027.

“Our franchise requires us to list on or before the fifth year of the award, which is January 2027. We are preparing. It is a very important part of what we are looking forward to. We’re preparing early,” Fernandez said.

Republic Act 11600, signed into law on Dec. 10, 2021, grants Maynilad a 25-year franchise to establish, operate, and maintain a waterworks system and sewerage and sanitation services in the West Zone service area of Metro Manila and the province of Cavite.

The law also requires Maynilad to publicly list at least 30 percent of its outstanding capital stocks five years from the grant of the franchise and prohibits it from passing corporate income tax to customers.