A CEBU-based firm is pushing for the application of desalination and reverse osmosis to help address the perennial water-supply shortage besetting Metro Manila and nearby provinces.
Mactan Rock Industries Inc., a manufacturer of water-treatment chemicals and equipment, is offering its water-treatment technology to industrial and commercial establishments, to extract and purify raw water from the heavily polluted Manila Bay, or rivers like Pasig River and Marikina River.
The company was among the exhibitors that showcased their products and technologies during the Water Philippines 2019 Exhibition happening from March 20 to 22 at the SMX Convention Center in Pasay City.
Antonio Tompar, CEO of Mactan Rock, told the BusinessMirror that desalination or reverse osmosis, basically a process to make saline or brackish water fresh and drinkable, is a viable solution to Metro Manila’s perennial water-supply problem.
The desalination technology, particularly reversed osmosis which the company specializes in, is already “ripe” especially for a commercial and industrial area like Manila Bay.
He said availing the technology, because of the need to install desalination equipment and use of chemicals, would entail some costs. However, compared to decades ago when the technology providers and equipment are limited, desalination is much cheaper and affordable today.
“It’s like the calculator. When I was in college, it costs P1,500. Now, it is cheaper,” he said.
“We already have reverse osmosis in the Philippines. We already have 36 desalination plants all over the country. We have in Davao, Aparri, but mostly in Mactan, Cebu. We also have three in Metro Manila,” he said.
“In the Manila Bay area, like in Mall of Asia, all those big hotels, we can supply them directly,” he said.
Tompar said going for desalinated water is relatively cheaper than the cost of freshwater coming from Angat Dam because the water companies charge consumers for the cost of water treatment and distribution.
“We charge only less than P80 per cubic meter [cu m]. The usual is more than a P100 per cu m,” he said, adding desalinated or purified water from the river is much cheaper. Water extracted from rivers, he said, can supply villages near the river.
About 96 percent of raw water supply for Metro Manila and nearby provinces like Bulacan, Cavite and Rizal come from Angat dam. Because of the increased population and expansion of service areas, the demand for water over the years had outgrown the current maximum water allocation of 4,000 million liters per day (MLD).
The water demand for the East Zone of Metro Manila, which has 6.8 million water consumers and customers serviced by Manila Water Co. Inc. spiked to as many as 1,740 MLD in February this year, exceeding the 40-percent share or 1,600 MLD it gets from the total water allocation from Angat, resulting in severe water-service interruption that affected about 1.2 million customers.
Manila Water started operating its water-treatment plant in Cardona, Rizal, on March 14, extracting raw water from Laguna de Bay. The company uses reverse osmosis to purify the water it now distributes to its customers to augment the water allocation it receives from Angat dam.