Maynilad mulls new P4-B treatment plant in Muntinlupa

MANILA, Philippines – West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. is eyeing the construction of a third Putatan treatment plant by 2019.

“It’s either we build a third Putatan treatment plant or we find another source. If we see the Kaliwa Dam will be impossible to build, then we will start constructing,” Maynilad president and CEO Ramoncito Fernandez told The STAR.

“It takes three years to build and right now, we are already scouting for possible properties,” he added.

Maynilad COO Randy Estrallado said a new plant would require about P4 billion for an initial capacity of 100 million liters per day (MLD).

Its Putatan plant in Muntinlupa is the first water treatment facility that taps into Laguna La™ke as an alternative to the Angat Dam and is the largest membrane-based water treatment plant in the Philippines and is also the first of its kind in the country to use large-scale microfiltration and reverse osmosis.

“We have no more space in Putatan 1 and 2 so we have to look for another if we will build Putatan 3,” he said.

Fernandez assured the new plant would be compliant with all environmental standards given the Department of Environment and Natural Resources’ hardline stance on raising its standards.

The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System’s P18.72 billion New Centennial Water Source-Kaliwa Dam project has already attracted bidders since 2014.

Among the firms that bought bid documents include Prime Metroline Holdings, San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders and Developers Group, Obrascon Huarte Lain S.A., Abengoa Abeinsa Business Development, DM Consunji, San Miguel Holdings Corp. and Filinvest Development Corp.

“Until now, there’s no bidding yet and they even pushed it back to 2022,” Estrallado said.

But, National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) director-general Ernesto Pernia earlier said the government was targeting to bid about 17 infrastructure projects worth around P580 billion before end-2017, including the Kaliwa Dam project.

The private partner for NCWS-KDP would be responsible for the design, financing, and construction of the Kaliwa Dam and the raw water conveyance structure.

Under a build-transfer contractual arrangement, the government would pay the private partner with fixed annual amortization over 25 years.

The PPP project aims to ensure long-term water security in Metro Manila and nearby provinces by increasing raw water supply to meet future potable water demand.

Fernandez said desalination could be another source but has yet to be proven as a viable alternative.

Maynilad is also looking at expanding its operations overseas, particularly in Vietnam and Indonesia, before 2020.

Fernandez said the company was also expanding outside its concession as it has entered into partnerships with other water districts nationwide such as in Iloilo and Cagayan de Oro.

Maynilad has earmarked P65 billion for its capital expenditures in the next five years, where half of its yearly P13 billion budget will be allocated for waste water treatments.

It also has six sewage treatment plants in the pipeline located in Pasay, Paranaque, Valenzuela, Cavite and two in Muntinlupa.

Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines in terms of customer base. It serves the areas of Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas, Malabon, and certain portions of Manila, Quezon City, Makati and Cavite.