Gov’t told to pay Maynilad over P3 B for rate adjustment losses

The Philippine government was told by an international tribunal to pay west zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc. more than R3 billion to compensate for the losses it had earlier incurred due to rate adjustments imposed by Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS).

In a decision, the Arbitral Tribunal (the Tribunal) unanimously upheld the validity of Maynilad’s claim that the government must compensate it for the delayed implementation of its relevant tariffs for the rebasing period 2013 to 2017.

The Tribunal particularly ordered the government to reimburse Maynilad the amount of R3.4 billion for losses from 11 March 2015 to 31 August 2016, without prejudice to any rights that Maynilad may have to seek recourse against MWSS for losses incurred from 1 January 2013 to 10 March 2015.

Further, the Tribunal ruled that Maynilad is entitled to recover from the Republic its losses from 1 September 2016 onwards.

In case a disagreement on the amount of such losses arises, Maynilad may revert to the Tribunal for further determination.

Maynilad said that in the coming days, it will coordinate and cooperate with the Government in finding the most efficient way to implement the judgment.

“We will continue to honor our commitments under the CA (concession agreement) and pursue the capital expenditure projects that will improve further the quality of service to our customers, as well as support the Government’s initiative in ensuring the sustainability of our country's water resources,” Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito S. Fernandez said.