Huge water hike opposed

The Mhlathuze Water team who made a presentation at Tuesday’s City Exco meeting: Vic Botes - GM: Operations), Nonhlanhla Nyewula - GM: Finance), Silas Mbedzi - CEO) and Marinus Brink - Management Accountant

The City of uMhlathuze has rejected proposed huge bulk water tariff increases that would be passed on to consumers. This on the basis of ‘insufficient dialogue’ and ‘increases far above the inflation rate’. The numbers were projected by services provider Mhlathuze Water during a presentation to the City Exco on Tuesday. Mhlathuze Water is contracted to provide the City with bulk potable water, raw water and discharge of sewage through the sea outfall pipeline. Proposed increases of 18% (raw water), 22% (purified water) and 10% (waste disposal) were mooted. Addressing Exco, Mhlathuze Water CEO - Silas Mbedzi explained the long cost chain that drove water prices upward. This includes abstraction, pipelines, transfers, pump stations, treatment plants and transmission, as well as capex costs and higher input costs such as energy, chemicals and salaries.‘We are the cheapest provider of water in the country but Mhlathuze is a water-stressed catchment and we must plan for the future,’ said Mbedzi.‘This takes into account projected industrial growth including a possible upsurge in the IDZ demand.‘We don’t want to be caught out as Eskom was, hence the construction of our new R185-million Nsese Water Plant extension.’ However, City Senior Manager: Financial Services, Mxolisi Kunene questioned the Mhlathuze Water funding model, and the apparent lack of consultation with the municipality regarding future volume demand. ‘There is no way we can handle this proposed scale of increase,’ said City Mayor, Cllr Zakhele Mnqayi, ‘and we certainly can’t pass it on to our embattled consumers in this time of recession.’ Exco decided to refer the matter back to the City’s financial managers and to seek the opinion of SALGA. In principle, it agreed that an increase in line with the CPIX (around 9%) would be acceptable.