NWC To Continue A Number Of Capital Projects In 2021/22

For the 2021/22 fiscal year, the National Water Commission (NWC) will continue the implementation of strategic initiatives and capital projects geared towards improving operational efficiency, expansion of coverage areas as well as service reliability.

Among them is the Kingston and St Andrew (KSA) non-revenue water (NRW) programme, which is slated to be completed by December 2021.

As stated in the 2021/22 Public Bodies Estimates of Revenue and Expenditure, the programme is expected to result in a reduction in NRW in the KSA from 59 per cent to 30 per cent.  It will be replicated in other areas.

The St. Catherine NRW Co-Management programme is slated to commence in the 2021/22 financial year.

A number of revenue-enhancing activities will also continue during the financial year, which includes the replacement of aged meters, metering of unmetered accounts and the installation of more accurate meters. The NWC will also seek to increase its customer base and collection rate.

“The Commission will continue the implementation of several projects during the year, including the Spanish Town mains replacement to increase the distribution of water in Kingston. The Commission will also pursue water and sewerage infrastructure upgrades required to support the infrastructure development plans for Port Royal,” the document said.

Other priority projects for the NWC during the new financial year include continuation of the digitisation and modernisation of its operations by strengthening the capacity of its information and communication technologies infrastructure to improve efficiencies and ensure business continuity.

The Commission also intends to replace obsolete and inefficient electrical equipment at 25 high-energy consuming facilities and to implement a maintenance management system by December 2021, to improve system uptime.