KUALA LUMPUR – Pengurusan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Air Selangor) has expressed the hope that the domestic water supply tariff adjustment will be implemented as soon as possible.
Air Selangor acting chief executive officer Ir Abas Abdullah said this is to ensure an equilibrium between revenue and expenditure of Air Selangor could be achieved towards a resilient water supply.
He said the company is currently operating within a tariff environment that did not recover both its capital expenditure (capex) and operational expenditure (opex), which means there is no equilibrium between revenue and expenditure.
“Further delay in tariff adjustment will cause challenges for us to achieve full-cost recovery and hamper Air Selangor’s ability to continue upgrading its ageing water infrastructure, which will ultimately impact our service in the long run,” he said when presenting the Air Selangor Sustainability Report 2022 here today.
Effective August 1, 2022, water supply tariffs for non-domestic and special accounts were adjusted with an average increment of 28 cents per cubic metre (m3) of water.
The water supply tariff for domestic users remains unchanged but the government, through the Natural Resources, Environment and Climate Change Ministry, is considering implementing the proposed review of water tariffs.
On the Air Selangor Sustainability Report 2022, Abas said the company recorded a revenue of RM2.45 billion, an increase of 12.38% from RM2.18 billion recorded in the previous year.
He said the increase was the result of the recovery in the Malaysian economy following the relaxation and removal of Covid-19 restrictions coupled with the tariff adjustment for the non-domestic and special categories in August last year.
“Despite the increase in revenue, it was still insufficient to offset the operating costs and capex, and it will have an impact on Air Selangor’s long-term operational management,” he added.
The report stated that Air Selangor has increased its capex by 88.21% to RM2.58 billion last year as compared to RM1.37 billion in 2021.
Meanwhile, Air Selangor has also recorded various achievements through its 2022 sustainability initiatives including a lower non-revenue water rate at 27.76% in 2022, a decrease of 0.23% as compared to 2021 as well as compliance with the Health Ministry’s Drinking Water Quality Standard of 99.85%.
With the theme of Towards Water Supply Resiliency, the Sustainability Report 2022 conveys Air Selangor’s commitment to sustainability efforts by addressing the critical global issue of water supply as well as building resilience to mitigate risks and secure water security for the nation.
The report can be accessed via https://hydrohub.airselangor.com/publication/2022-sustainability. – Bernama, July 4, 2023
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