Manila Water sets P10-B capex for 2012

MANILA, Philippines - Ayala-owned Manila Water Co., Inc. intends to maintain a capital expenditure level of P10 billion for 2012, according to Gerardo C. Ablaza, president of MWCI.

In an interview with The STAR on the sidelines of the inauguration last Monday of MWCI’s P50-million upgraded laboratory facility in Balara, Quezon City, Ablaza said that Manila Water intends to maintain a capex of around P10 billion next year similar to its capex program this year.

For next year, Ablaza said most of the expenditures would be spent on waste water treatments plants. Last year, the emphasis was on water treatment plants.

MWCI chief financial officer and treasurer Luis Juan B. Oreta said that they are eyeing additional waste water treatments in Pasig, Marikina and two in Taguig.

The Pasig facility, Oreta said, would be the biggest with a planned capacity of 135 million liters per day (MLD), while the Marikina facility would have a capacity of 100 MLD.

The planned Taguig facilities, one of which will be in the Libingan ng Bayani area, would have a capacity of 75 MLD, while the other would be a smaller capacity of 40 MLD similar to the 40 MLD capacity of Manila Water’s existing Magallanes facility.

Over the next 10 years, Ablaza said Manila Water – along with MPIC-DMCI-owned Maynilad and the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) are looking at the development of three scalable water source project.

As for other water projects, Ablaza said Manila Water continues to remain interested in bidding for other projects in India and Vietnam.

Locally, Ablaza said, Manila Water is awaiting a Swiss challenge to its unsolicited proposal for the Carmen, Cebu bulkwater project.

The East Zone water concessionaire, Ablaza said, is also looking a several potential opportunities in Mindanao which he refused to identify at this point in time.