Clark Water secures P1.15-B RCBC loan

Clark Water Corp., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Manila Water Co. Inc., has signed a term loan agreement of P1.15 billion with Rizal Commercial Banking Corp. ( RCBC) to finance in part its capital expenditure program.

Clark Water was formed in 2000 in partnership with the Clark Development Corp. (CDC), the administrative and governing body of the Clark Freeport Zone and the Clark Special Economic Zone, to provide stable water supply in the area.

In August 2014, Clark Water signed with CDC a contract for the extension of its concession agreement by another 15 years or up to 2040 from the original concession period of until 2025.

The company pledged to invest P3.93 billion for the duration of the concession agreement with P1.06 billion programmed for expenditure in the first four years of the extension of the service contract.

The total capital investment programmed for the duration of the concession term would be used for the improvement of the company’s water and wastewater facilities in the Clark Freeport Zone.

These projects cover water source development, construction of treatment plants and storage reservoirs, installation of pipelines and booster pumps, as well as construction of wastewater treatment plants, sewer lines and pumping stations.

In 2014, Clark Water completed three new deep wells, upgraded three booster pumps, and installed generator sets on its old water sources to improve supply reliability.

Manila Water president Gerry Ablaza said during the company’s recently-held stockholders meeting that the unit is looking at operating beyond the borders of the 4,400 hectare Clark Freeport Zone.

“Clark is sitting in the Pampanga-Tarlac corridor and we are identifying opportunities for going beyond that border,” said Ablaza.

He noted that at least 10 percent of Clark Water’s bulk volume is being supplied to small water districts in adjacent municipalities.