Manila Water income rises 15% to P3.22 billion

MANILA, Philippines - Ayala-led utility firm Manila Water Co. Inc. posted a net income of P3.22 billion last year, up 15.4 percent from P2.79 billion in 2008, on the back of steady rise in billed volume sales and lower corporate income taxes.

In a financial report submitted to the Philippine Stock Exchange, Manila Water said its operating revenues rose 6.7 percent to P9.51 billion from P8.91 billion as billed volume went up two percent to 396 million cubic meters.

Meanwhile, costs and expenses grew 10.36 percent to P2.77 billion as a result of ongoing expansion activities. 

With the implementation of its capex plan for the year, Manila Water was able to connect an additional 54,000 households to the pipe networks, helping minimize the impact of lower consumption brought about by the economic slowdown and the early onset of the rainy season.

Investments in the network also resulted to a further reduction in water losses, with non-revenue water level declining from 19.7 percent in 2008 to 15.8 percent in 2009. This helped Manila Water maintain its service levels in Mega Manila’s East Zone with 99 percent of its customers benefitting from 24-hour water availability with sufficient pressure.

On the wastewater front, the company commissioned the four million-liter-per-day Pineda sewerage treatment plant. In addition, five additional sewerage treatment facilities currently being constructed in the cities of Makati, Marikina, Quezon and Taguig will result in Manila Water achieving 30 percent sewerage coverage by end-2010. 

In the meantime, the company’s sanitation program was able to service an additional 291,000 households during the year, bringing the total number of households serviced to 747,000 since the program’s inception.

Collection efficiency was maintained at 100 percent in 2009, indicating the high level of customer satisfaction in the East Zone. This has resulted in strong operating cash flows for the company which stood at P8.7 billion. 

At the same time, Manila Water continued to maintain a strong balance sheet with cash reserves totalling P9.4 billion and net bank debt-to-equity at 0.29 percent as of the end of the year.

The company’s concession agreement was also renewed during the year, resulting to an extension of the concession period from 2022 to 2037. The extension will allow Manila Water to increase its investment plan to P450 billion while ensuring the affordability of water rates to its customers.

Outside of the concession area, Manila Water made major strides in its expansion initiatives with the acquisition of concessions in Boracay and Laguna. This will allow the company to replicate its success in the East Zone to other areas in need of improvements in the provision of water and wastewater services.