Maynilad slates P35-B 5-year capex
MANILA, Philippines – West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. is setting aside up to P35 billion in the next five years for its capital expenditures, turning its focus on wastewater services, a top company official said.
In an interview, Maynilad president and chief executive officer Ramoncito Fernandez told reporters the company is looking to spend between P30 billion to P35 billion from 2018 to 2022.
“The bulk of our capex in the next five years will be wastewater without forgetting laying down new pipes, laying down new reservoir and changing the linking pipes,” Fernandez said.
“In the last five years, we rolled out wastewater because that is also part of our obligation to the concession,” he said.
For 2017, Maynilad said it plans to spend P13.2 billion for its water and wastewater infrastructure projects.
It added bulk of the budget, or about P8.2 billion of this year’s capital expenditures will go to water infrastructure projects to ensure sufficient water supply and pressure in the West Zone.
He said the company has spent around P42 billion in its reservoirs, pumping stations and new pipes over the past five years.
Asked if the firm has plans of increasing its reservoir, Fernandez identified the South, particularly areas such as Kawit and Imus in Cavite, as potential areas for growth.
“At the same time, we are putting up Putatan 2, we are putting up a second plant in the South with a capacity of 150 million liters per day. We hope to commission it before the second half of next year,” Fernandez said.
Earlier this year, Maynilad began operating the P435 million Sacred Heart Reservoir in Quezon, which can store up to 50 million liters of water.
At present, Maynilad has 30 reservoirs located in strategic locations throughout its west concession area, more than four times the seven reservoirs it had in 2006, before the company was privatized.
Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the country in terms of customer base. It serves the areas of Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, Malabon, and certain portions of Manila, Quezon City, Makati and Cavite.
Maynilad Water Holdings Company, Inc. owns and manages Maynilad. The company is a joint venture among Metro Pacific Investments Corp., DMCI Holdings Inc. and Marubeni Corp.
(Article from www.philstar.com Image from )
