Water rates to rise
Water consumers in Metro Manila and adjacent areas will see their monthly bill rise again in the next three months as the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System approved adjustments for its two concessionaires.
Maynilad Water Services Inc. said the rate adjustments mean that a household that uses 10 cubic meters of water or less each month will see an increase of P2.70 in their monthly bill.
Households that use 20 cubic meters a month will pay P10.18 more, while those that use 30 cubic meters a month will see an additional P20.78 in their bill.
On the other hand, Manila Water Co. Inc. said customers that use 10 cubic meters of water each month will see an increase of 61 centavos in their monthly bill. Those who use less than 10 cubic meters will pay P2.18 more.
Also, Manila Water customers that use 20 cubic meters a month will pay P1.34 more, while those that use 30 cubic meters a month will see an additional P2.66 in their bill.
In separate statements, Maynilad and Manila Water announced the rate hikes—including those for inflation as well as for currency exchange fluctuations—that the MWSS Regulatory Office approved for the first quarter of 2018.
The MWSS RO approved an inflation adjustment of 97 centavos per cubic meter for Maynilad, which the company said was equivalent to 2.8 percent of its P34.51 per cu.m. average basic charge that was approved for 2017.
“The MWSS also granted Maynilad a foreign currency differential adjustment (FCDA) equivalent to 0.6 percent as applied to the newly approved 2018 average basic charge of P35.48 per cu.m., beginning first quarter of 2018,” the company said in a statement.
“Despite the downward adjustment of an average of (17 centavos per) cu.m. in the FCDA, the overall impact of the [inflation] and FCDA adjustments is an increase in the monthly water bills of Maynilad customers for the first quarter of 2018,” the company added.
As for Manila Water, its basic charge will increase by 69 centavos per cu.m. to P25.51 in the first quarter next year from P24.81 this quarter.
Also, regulators approved an upward FCDA of 63 centavos per cu. m. for Manila Water.
The FCDA is designed to allow the concessionaires to recover losses or give back gains resulting from the fluctuations in the value of the peso against other currencies.
Both MWSS concessionaires service foreign currency-denominated loans, the proceeds of which are used in the improvement and expansion of their services.
Maynilad said it also pays similarly denominated concession fees to the MWSS. Manila Water also pays for concession loans to and foreign currency-denominated borrowings of the MWSS.
The increase in the concessionaires’ FCDA reflect the depreciation of the peso against foreign currencies over the past three months.
