MWSS fines Maynilad for service interruptions; customers to receive rebates in April

The regulatory office of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) will penalize Maynilad Water Services Inc. for its “unusual and prolonged” service interruptions in the past months.

According to Chief Regulatory Patrick Lester Ty, the penalty comes after the MWSS found that Maynilad failed to meet its commitment of an uninterrupted 24-hour supply of water at 7 pounds per square inch (psi) minimum pressure.

“Customers within the PWTP (Putatan Water Treatment Plant) Supply Zone were found to have been deprived of water service obligations for at least 15 days, which adversely impacted their health and welfare,” he said at a virtual briefing on Monday.

Maynilad has continuously been implementing water service interruptions due to issues involving the PWTP from December 2021, with at least 15 days of its committed water service unavailable for select days in February.

The company earlier said the service interruptions were expected to be addressed by February 15, but are likely to continue as the Putatan Plant has yet to resume at 100% capacity.

Ty said the penalty will definitely be in the millions, but will be much lower than the P1.134-billion fine imposed on Manila Water Company during the water crisis in 2019. The final amount is still being computed.

“The MWSS RO is set to implement the financial penalty in the form of bill rebates to affected Maynilad customers within the PWTP’s Supply Zone by April,” he explained.

“It is already in the process of identifying all accounts that will be covered by the Rebate program, the rebate amount for each account, and the policies and procedures for carrying out the Program, in coordination with Maynilad,” he continued.

Ty said Maynilad has already been informed of the decision, but the firm is contesting it citing the conditions of the water in the Laguna Lake.

“They were disputing our findings and they were saying that the cost is because of the water quality in Laguna Lake, but our finding is that it is within the designed parameters of the PWTP, so their excuse is not acceptable that’s why we are penalizing them,” he said.

Maynilad to comply with decision

In a separate statement, however, Maynilad said it will comply with the MWSS decision while maintaining that the PWTP’s production was hit by the quality of water in the Laguna Lake.

“Maynilad will abide by the MWSS Regulatory Office’s decision to impose a penalty for the service interruptions in the southern part of our concession, which happened after the combined effect of algal blooms and prolonged turbidity in Laguna Lake hampered the water production of our Putatan Treatment Plants,” the statement read.

“We wish to inform the public that our water service in the south has already been ramping up over the last few days following improvements in the turbidity level of Laguna Lake and our treatment process interventions; hence, most of the affected customers now have uninterrupted supply,” it added.

Maynilad said Laguna Lake provides 8% of its raw water supply which is tapped to serve customers in the south, noting that the quality has become more variable in recent years.

“We will keep working closely with all Laguna Lake stakeholders to ensure that it is protected, and that it continues to serve as another viable, alternate long-term supply source for Metro Manila water consumers,” it said.

Maynilad currently serves customers in the west zone, which covers the cities of Caloocan, Las Piñas, Makati, Malabon Manila, Muntinlupa, Navotas, Parañaque, Pasay, Quezon, Valenzuela. It also services certain areas in Cavite such as the cities of Bacoor, Cavite, and Imus; and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta, and Rosario. — RSJ, GMA News