City water utilities too broke to pay for pipes, meters

Some areas without access to tap water in Ho Chi Minh City may have to keep going without, as suppliers can’t pay for promised pipelines and water meters.

Nguyen Son Street is the most populated and commercial street in Tan Phu District but it’s not connected by pipes yet.

Frustrated residents rely on underground water for washing, cleaning and bathing, and must buy bottled water for cooking and drinking.

Saigon Water Corporation (Sawaco), the city’s biggest water utility, is rationalizing its funding resources and will only invest in projects that are “really necessary,” said Lai Van Dang, director of a member of Sawaco – Tan Hoa Water Supply Company in the two districts.

The company planned to install 8,000 water meters for residents in the districts this year but has done little so far, Dang said.

A new water plant in Thu Duc District is also ready to supply 300,000 cubic meters of water a day to districts 2, 9 and Thu Duc. But the residents would have to wait as the lack of money means no pipelines and water meters.

Nguyen Xuan Cau, director of Thu Duc Water Supply Company, said there’s nothing Sawaco members like his company can do as they have not managed to access bank loans since the beginning of this year.

Since 2007’s decree requiring water supply companies to pay for water meters, Thu Duc Water Company has owed Sawaco almost VND20 billion (US$1.12 million) for meters.

Cho Lon Water Corporation shares the same plight with Sawaco as its many plans to develop the pipelines to residents’ houses in districts 5, 6, 8, Binh Tan and Binh Chanh still remain on paper.

The company now needs VND70 billion ($3.9 million) to install new pipelines and another VND20 billion to fix the old ones, said Director Pham Manh Duc.

Duc said the company needs 30 percent of that money at hand to borrow from the city’s Urban Investment and Development Fund and has to return the money after seven years.

“We cannot afford that.”

The company has no property to mortgage at commercial banks.

It has installed 8,000 water meters out of its 12,000-water-meter goal this year, but that’s because the company borrowed money from the residents by promising to repay them over 10 years.

Duc is awaiting changes in the water prices so that water supply companies can raise funds to develop and improve the pipeline system.

His counterpart, Cau of Thu Duc Water Supply Company, also said the city administration should consider raising the water price or share the cost of water meters with water companies.

Reported by Mai Vong