Maynilad temporarily stops water supply interruptions
Maynilad Water Services, Inc. (Maynilad) temporarily stopped supply interruptions within the greater part of Metro Manila after typhoon “Lando” increased water elevation at Angat Dam, somehow reducing fears that El Niño will trigger crisis in water by next year.
A statement showed that Maynilad had just suspended the regular off-peak water service interruptions it recently implemented, which affected 56 percent of its customers.
This, according to the company, came after typhoon “Lando” “significantly increased water level at Angat Dam” over the weekend.
The West Zone of the Greater Manila Area is composed of certain areas in Manila, Quezon City, Makati, Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, Malabon, Cavite, Bacoor, Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta, and Rosario.
“This water elevation has increased our confidence that we will have enough supply to mitigate the impact of the strong El Niño on Maynilad’s production level,” said Maynilad Water Production Head Ronaldo Padua.
“At any rate, we will monitor how long this level can be sustained, and if it is enough to meet Metro Manila’s water supply requirements until the middle of 2016 when we expect the El Niño episode to end,” he added.
Rains brought by typhoon “Lando” over the Angat watershed on Sunday increased the Angat Dam’s water elevation by almost 4 meters — from 194.60 meters above sea level (MASL) as of 6 a.m. of October 18 to 198.40 MASL by 3 p.m. of the same day.
As of 6 a.m. on Monday, Angat Dam elevation is at 201.56 MASL.
“Maynilad will give two days’ advance notice should water levels decrease and it is forced to re-implement the off-peak water supply interruptions to help conserve water during El Niño,” the company further said.
Before this announcement, the water company has been implementing seven-hour, off-peak water service interruptions (9 p.m. to 4 a.m.) since September 16, 2015 in a move to preserve the water level at Angat Dam, the main supply source of Metro Manila, during El Niño season.
This happened after the National Water Resources Board has reduced raw water allocation for Metro Manila from 38 cubic meters per second (CMS) in September to only 36 CMS in October.
Due to peso devaluation, Maynilad also started implementing increased water rates last month and this should last until the end of the year.
An earlier statement showed that residents in the West Zone will have adjusted water rates as Maynilad implements a slight increase in its Foreign Currency Differential Adjustment (FCDA) starting October.
FCDA is a tariff mechanism granted to utility companies to allow it to recover losses or give back gains arising from the fluctuating movements of the peso against other currencies since Maynilad pays foreign-dominated Concession Fees to the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) as well as loans to fund projects that will improve service for its customers.