MANILA Water Co., Inc. said its Cardona water treatment plant in Rizal province had been producing up to 63 million liters per day (MLD) as of Sunday, July 7, helping the water concessionaire narrow the supply gap that has burdened its customers since March.
In a statement on Wednesday, Metro Manila’s east zone water service provider said aside from the new water treatment plant, supply has also been augmented by the rehabilitation of existing deep wells and the construction of new ones. The total yield from all operational deep wells has reached 58 MLD.
Manila Water also cited the reduction of its system loss or non-revenue water (NRW) as among the reasons that helped ease the water deficiency that started from 150 MLD in March and reaching almost 350 MLD in late June when the National Water Resources Board (NWRB) reduced its allocation for domestic use in Metro Manila from Angat Dam.
“With an average production of 1,500 MLD, the 4.5% improvement in NRW translated to almost 70 MLD volume of water which we can use to help to bridge the deficit,” said Manila Water Chief Operating Officer Abelardo P. Basilio.
From an average of 12% NRW from late last year to early this year, it has been reduced to 7.5% in June 2019.
“While we have increased our efficiencies and the technical solutions we have put in place are ensuring we are able to distribute the still-limited supply as equitably as we can, we cannot rest and let our guard down,” Mr. Basilio said.
“The water supply situation remains volatile and continue to change day to day as Angat, Ipo and La Mesa dams remain in sub-ideal levels. We are keeping to our commitment of working towards 24/7 supply at 7 psi pressure, or reaching only up to the ground floor, for all customers,” he added.
In March, Manila Water said the Cardona facility was expected to add 31 MLD within that month before reaching 50 MLD by end-March and hitting its full capacity of 100 MLD by August.
In the same month, it said deep wells would add about 30 MLD more, while discussions were in place with the other Metro Manila concessionaire for a cross-border flow of 32 MLD to help ease the shortage.
The east zone concessionaire has been experiencing a water supply deficit since March 6, which came about as water demand reached 1,750 MLD while supply remained at 1,600 MLD. The Cardona water treatment plant failed to meet its target launch in late 2018 because of technical issues. — Victor V. Saulon
