Maynilad spending P2.7B to replace leaky Manila pipes

MANILA, Philippines  —Maynilad Water Services Inc. will spend P2.7 billion until 2027 to cut water losses within Manila mainly through pipe replacement projects and leak repairs.

Nearly 90 percent, or P2.4 billion, of the total will be used to replace part of Manila’s old pipe network, while P190 million will go toward network diagnostics and leak detection, Maynilad said on Thursday.

The remaining P151 million will be used for leak repairs.

These projects make up the concessionaire’s P16.5-billion nonrevenue water management program.

“It is in Manila where the oldest section of the pipe network that we inherited from the government is located,” Maynilad chief operating officer Randolph Estrellado explained.

READ: Maynilad in P16.5-B effort to cut water losses

Since 2007, Maynilad has replaced 701 kilometers of old pipes within its concession area in the West Zone of the Greater Metro Manila area, the company said.

To further reduce Maynilad’s water losses, the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System Regulatory Office last week said it had partnered with Japanese water utility firm Yokohama Water Co. Ltd. to assess the company’s nonrevenue water systems and programs.

Under their agreement, Yokohama’s findings will be used to help cut Maynilad’s nonrevenue water, or supply that is lost due to leaks and illegal connections.

In 2022, Maynilad said it had slashed its nonrevenue water level to 43 percent of its total water produced, from 68 percent in 2006.
This, however, is still far below the World Bank’s recommended level of less than 25 percent of a company’s total water production.