West zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc said it has recovered 979 million MLD of water since 2008 when it first launched its Non-Revenue Water Management (NRW) Program.
This recovered volume is enough to fill up roughly 390 Olympic-size pools every day, and supply about 1.7 million households with potable water.
“Our almost P25 billion capital investment in NRW Management over the past 12 years enabled us to recover a water volume that is equivalent to constructing a new dam,” said Maynilad chief operating officer Randolph Estrellado.
Besides NRW management, another initiative that provided additional supply for distribution was the tapping of Laguna Lake as an alternative raw water source besides Angat Dam. Maynilad began drawing water from the lake as early as 2010 after constructing its Putatan Water Treatment Plant in Muntinlupa. The company currently has two treatment facilities in the area that have a combined output of 300 MLD.
As the population continues to grow, Maynilad has been further tightening its water network through pipe replacement and leak repair activities, to enhance efficiencies and make more water available for its growing customer base, which currently stands at around 9.6 million people–up from only 6.1 million in 2006 before Maynilad’s re-privatization.
“These infrastructure enhancements, as well as the two additional treatments plants we built in Putatan, helped to boost available supply and stave off water shortages. However, Metro Manila’s continued over-reliance on Angat Dam as our single major raw water source is a supply risk that the government is now seeking to address,” said president and chief executive officer Ramoncito Fernandez. – J. Macapagal
