By Sheldeen Joy Talavera, Reporter
WEST ZONE concessionaire Maynilad Water Services, Inc. is leveraging artificial intelligence (AI) to enhance its water supply services by addressing pipe leaks, its chief operating officer (COO) said.
“One of our top priorities this year is to further reduce non-revenue water (NRW). To achieve this, we are integrating new technologies to enhance our leak detection capabilities,” Maynilad COO Randolph T. Estrellado said in an interview with BusinessWorld.
To augment water supply, Mr. Estrellado said that the company is “actively reducing NRW” through pipe-laying, pipe replacement, and AI-powered leak detection.
NRW refers to water that is not billed and is lost through leaks or illegal connections.
For 2025, the company has allocated P10 million for the use of AI technology in leak detection.
“Integrating AI into our operations strengthens our efforts to reduce NRW by enhancing and complementing our existing leak detection tools,” Mr. Estrellado said.
With the use of AI, the company was able to detect pipe leaks and monitor pipe conditions, allowing it to replace pipelines more efficiently.
“Basically, all we do is input the pipe sizes, the quality types of pipes, when they were installed, and the repair history. The AI processes that information and tells us where it thinks the next leak is going to be or where the pipes may be more vulnerable, just using that information,” Mr. Estrellado said.
“And that’s also been very productive,” he added.
Maynilad has tapped Portugal-based AGS, a subsidiary of Marubeni Corp., for its AI technology called Infrawise. During its pilot run in 2023, the AI software was able to identify 1,525 leaks covering 750 kilometers of pipelines.
Maynilad Water Holdings Company, Inc. — a joint venture between Metro Pacific Investments Corp. (MPIC), DMCI Holdings, Inc., and Marubeni — took control of Maynilad in 2007.
When the consortium took over the company, NRW was at 68%, which it managed to bring down to 39%, said Mr. Estrellado.
“Of course, that’s still high, and we have even more aggressive targets in the coming years. We’re committed to bringing it down to 24% by the end of this rebasing period,” Mr. Estrellado said, referring to the 2023-2027 rate rebasing period.
He said that Maynilad is acquiring Pipa Hydrocam LS, a tethered camera for internal pipe inspections, and undergoing pilot testing of Gaill and Sim-On Water, which use hydraulic simulations through a “digital twin” of its system to enable more efficient outage management.
Moreover, the company is also exploring ways to fully leverage big data analytics.
“By analyzing historical and real-time data, we aim to gain actionable insights that will strengthen water quality monitoring, improve operational efficiency, elevate customer service, and support our sustainability objectives,” Mr. Estrellado said.
Maynilad is the largest private water concessionaire in the Philippines in terms of customer base, according to its website.
Republic Act No. 11600, signed into law on Dec. 10, 2021, granted Maynilad a 25-year legislative franchise until 2047 to establish, operate, and maintain a waterworks system and sewerage and sanitation services in the west zone service area of Metro Manila and Cavite province.
The law states that Maynilad should offer at least 30% of its outstanding capital stock within five years from the grant of the franchise.
Maynilad Chairman Manuel V. Pangilinan has said that the company is in talks with banks in preparation for its planned initial public offering.
This year, the company is expecting several projects to come online, including the Julian Modular Treatment Plant in Imus, the Pasay NEW WATER Facility, and the newly constructed deep wells. These projects combined are projected to yield an additional 33 million liters per day (MLD).
On the wastewater side, Mr. Estrellado said that two sewage treatment facilities in Muntinlupa are currently undergoing testing and commissioning: the Tunasan and Cupang Water Reclamation Facilities. These are targeted for full operational capacity this year.
Once fully operational, Cupang can treat up to 46 MLD of wastewater, while Tunasan has a designed capacity of 20 MLD.
“Our outlook for demand and water infrastructure projects is outlined in our approved business plan, which aims to secure the growing water needs of our customers in the service area, driven by population growth and industrialization,” Mr. Estrellado said.
Under the plan, Maynilad aims to achieve 95% 24-hour, 7 per square inch water availability by 2027, progressing to 100% by 2032.
MPIC, which has a majority stake in Maynilad, is one of three Philippine units of Hong Kong-based First Pacific Co. Ltd., the others being Philex Mining Corp. and PLDT Inc. Hastings Holdings, Inc., a unit of PLDT Beneficial Trust Fund subsidiary MediaQuest Holdings, Inc., has an interest in BusinessWorld through the Philippine Star Group, which it controls.
