KUALA LUMPUR, 2 Dec 2008: The energy, water and communications ministry which is in the final stage of reviewing the water tariff, will come up with a new pricing soon.
Deputy Minister Datuk Joseph Salang said the ministry was in the midst of gathering feedback and information and had appointed a consultant to look into the matter.
He said the ministry was studying whether the tariff increase was justified or not, adding that the current tariff did not cover the operating costs.
Salang was speaking to reporters after launching the Pantai Sewage Treatment Plant here today.
The average water tariff for domestic users (according to the ministry’s website) is 31 sen to 90 sen per cubic metre while it is 90 sen to RM2.93 per cubic metre for industrial users.
Salang said the ministry would also look at how the government could patch up the operators’ losses or insufficient wages from the available tariff.
Meanwhile, the deputy minister said five of the 13 treatment plants under the National Sewage Treatment Plant Project, namely Bunus (Kuala Lumpur), Pantai, Bandar Tun Razak, Puchong and Klang were completed.
He said the remainder — Kangar, Kota Star, Juru, Sungai Nyior, Sunggala (Port Dickson), Sungai Udang (Melaka), Kuala Sawah (Seremban) and Damansara — were scheduled to be completed by next March.
“When all the 13 treatment plants are completed, it would benefit about 2.8 million residents in Peninsula Malaysia, with a reduction in pollution,” he said, adding that the cost of the project amounted to RM2.43 billion and was jointly funded by the Japanese and Malaysian governments.
The project is aimed at contributing towards the improvement of public sanitation condition in Malaysia, using advanced sewage and sludge treatment technologies. — Bernama
