Wednesday, June 27, 2012

Bernama:Puncak Niaga Minority Shareholders Ask Board Of Directors To Sue Syabas

Puncak Niaga Holdings Bhd's minority shareholders today asked the Board of Directors to sue Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas), the sole supplier and distributor of treated water in the Klang Valley.


They asked Tan Sri Rozali Ismail, who is Puncak Niaga Holdings and Puncak Niaga Sdn Bhd Executive Chairman, to take legal action against Syabas to pay RM1.09 billion owed to Puncak Niaga up to Dec 31, 2011.

The amount is the outstanding cumulative figure over the last three years.

G. Parameswaran, the shareholders' spokesman, said they hoped Puncak Niaga's cashflow status would improve after Syabas settled the arrears.

"This will make it possible for Puncak Niaga to pay dividend to its shareholders," he told reporters after the company's annual general meeting.-- BERNAMA

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

Bernama:Increase In Water Usage Causes Supply Disruption In The Klang Valley

Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas) today clarified that the water supply disruption in several areas in the Klang Valley was due to the rapid increase in water usage and not due to shortage of water resources.
Its chief operating officer, Datuk Ir Lee Miang Koi, said the situation resulted in all existing water treatment plants to operate at maximum level.

"The increase in water usage in the past few weeks has almost reached the maximum production and exceeded the production capacity of the plants for the past few days.

"Due to the high demand, there has been a remarkable drop in the water level at the main reserve pond, and with the hot and dry weather, has caused the water pressure to be low in some areas, and in some area with no water supply," he told reporters at a briefing on the water supply status in Selangor, Kuala Lumpur and Putrajaya here.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

NST:Give new water proposals, Selangor told

Stop harping on things that have already been discussed and bring new proposals to the discussion table.
Energy, Water and Green Technology Minister Datuk Seri Peter Chin Fah Kui said this was what was needed to break the stalemate over the transfer of Selangor’s water assets under the state’s restructuring plan.

He said he had written to Selangor Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim suggesting that the state government come up with new proposals.
“Once he (Khalid) has them, I am willing to sit down and discuss the new proposals.

"What I am trying to say is we need some concrete proposals other than what has been on the table. They are very keen to take over those water companies. But how?

"They have to come up with some suggestions that are practical."


Monday, June 18, 2012

TheStar:Water crisis looms in Selangor

After the haze, millions of households in Selangor may face the more serious problem of water shortage.

Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas) has detected drastically lower levels in the state's “balancing reservoirs” for treated water as the hot weather persists.

Balancing reservoirs are the main dams where treated water is channelled into.

The notably low levels in the Semenyih and Langat balancing reservoirs and increased demand for water under the current dry spell could result in cuts to supply in Petaling, Kuala Lumpur, Hulu Langat and Sepang.

A problem looms A view of the Semenyih dam. While water levels at the dam are still okay, the balancing reservoirs are seeing severely low levels, says Syabas. This could lead to problems in supply. — ROHAIZAT MD DARUS / The Star

Syabas has also been notified that the output of treated water in all 33 treatment plants in the state on Saturday was at the highest at 4,405 mld (million litres a day) although the plants are designed to produce 4,371 mld.

SinarHarian:17 Sumber Air Alternatif

Lembaga Urus Air Selangor (Luas) mengenal pasti 17 kolam air yang sesuai dimajukan sebagai sumber air alternatif ketika krisis dan kemarau melanda Selangor.

Pengarahnya, Md Khairi Selamat berkata, ia dikenalpasti bersama Jabatan Kesihatan Negeri dan pihaknya kini dalam proses mewartakan kolam berkenaan untuk digunakan sebagai sumber bekalan alternatif apabila diperlukan.

“Semua kolam itu berada di kawasan Hulu Selangor, Kuala Selangor dan Kuala Langat,” katanya dalam sesi pembentangan kertas kerja bertajuk Pengurusan Sumber Air di Selangor, dalam Forum Air Selangor 2012, semalam.

Selain itu, Md Khairi turut mencadangkan supaya sistem penapisan tebing sungai (RBF) digunakan di negeri ini kerana kaedah itu berkesan dalam mengurangkan penutupan loji akibat kesan pencemaran dan mengurangkan kos operasi terutamanya bahan kimia dan elektrik.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

MalayMail:S'gor govt owes RM1.05 billion in water tariff adjustment - Syabas

SYARIKAT Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas) is seeking the Selangor government to pay RM1.05 billion in water tariff adjustment.

Syabas, in its amended statement of claim, is seeking a declaration that based on the concession agreement, dated Dec 15, 2004, the Selangor government still owed Syabas RM1,054,208,382 (based on Agreed Tariff of RM1.89/m3) for the period from Jan 1, 2009 to March 31, 2011.

Alternatively, Syabas is also seeking the High Court to declare applicable the Agreed Tariff under the concession agreement, dated Dec 15, 2004, for the period Jan 1 2009 to March 31, 2011, to be RM1.89/m3 as confirmed by the certificate, dated Dec 26, 2008, which was issued by the Auditor-General and a judgment be entered for the plaintiff against the defendant.

In the amended claim, filed on Sept 8, last year, Syabas is also seeking costs and other relief deemed fit by the court.

MalaysianInsider:Illegal to meddle in Selangor water issue, MB tells Putrajaya

Putrajaya’s “interference” in the Selangor water issue is unlawful, Tan Sri Khalid Ibrahim has alleged, referring to a 2006 legislation which he says gives the state government full power over water management.

Malay daily Sinar Harian today reported the Selangor Menteri Besar as pointing out that the Water Services Industry Act, mooted and approved by the federal government in 2006, forbids the latter government from encroaching on the state’s powers.

“I think the federal government cannot do it. This is because in the constitution, water management is under the state government, but its implementation and understanding is between the two governments,” Khalid was quoted as saying in the paper.

He added that his government have also made an agreement with the federal government to resolve the water issue “in the interest of the people” and hoped Putrajaya would address the issue sincerely.

“If they keep questioning the actions of the state government based on political reasons, we will just wait until the results of the next election,” he warned.

“This is because I believe the power rests in the people to determine who is more [sic] fit to govern the state,” he added.

Wednesday, June 13, 2012

FreeMalaysiaToday:S’gor cari alternatif, jamin bekalan air

Kerajaan Negeri Selangor akan meneruskan usaha penstrukturan semula industri air dengan beberapa alternatif lain demi menjamin kelangsungan bekalan air bersih untuk rakyat di Lembah Klang.
Menteri Besar Selangor, Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim berkata,antara usaha untuk mencari bekalan air bersih itu termasuklah dari air tanah, mengurangkan air tidak terhasil atau Non Revenue Water (NRW).

Menurutnya pembinaan Langat 2 bukan jalan terbaik untuk meningkatkan kadar bekalan air bersih di Lembah Klang.

“Bagi memastikan bekalan air cukup, kita sepatutnya melihat kepada usaha yang lebih murah seperti mengurangkan kadar NRW, mengawal penggunaan air secara berhemah dan mencari sumber air lain seperi air hujan dan sumber air tanah serta rawatan air menggunakan teknologi membrane.

Bernama:Selangor Government To Proceed With Restructuring Of Water Industry

The Selangor government will continue with restructuring of the water services industry, a move that will revoke the agreement under the Water Services Industry Act 2006.

Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim said the restructuring will proceed despite objection from the federal government and water concessionaire including Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd (Syabas).

"The restructuring is necessary to keep the tariff reasonable and ensure that water services are managed in a holistic manner," he told reporters after attending the Selangor Water Forum here Tuesday.

The Selangor government will use several approaches including tapping groundwater resources to balance the water supply needs of consumers.--BERNAMA

Friday, June 8, 2012

Bernama:Muhyiddin Asks Selangor People To Get State Government To Solve Water Problem

Deputy Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin today suggested that the people of Selangor urge Menteri Besar Tan Sri Abdul Khalid Ibrahim to quickly solve the water problem in the state which he said was worsening.

Unless the problem was solved immediately, the people of Selangor would be faced with a grave situation, he said.

"This is not a question of politics. It is a question of survival, as water accounts for all aspects of life.

"It is a serious problem, and I ask the people to urge the menteri besar to solve the problem quickly.

The federal government has negotiated repeatedly on the matter, to the extent that (Energy, Green Technology and Water Minister) Datuk Peter Chin Fah Kui was almost sued whereas we are trying to solve a major problem faced by the people," he said at the ground-breaking for construction of Sekolah Rendah Jenis Kebangsaan (SRJK) Tamil Ladang Bukit Minyak, here.

Muhyiddin said that as chairman of the Committee on the Country's Water Resources, he had to bring up the matter as there was no positive development in the talks with the Selangor government, and it involved public interest and welfare.

Thursday, June 7, 2012

TheStar:Mohd Zin: Water supply not enough to cope with situation

SELANGOR Barisan Nasional coordinator Datuk Seri Mohd Zin Mohamed has warned that the water supply in Selangor cannot cope with the demand.

He said requests for water supply from developers have been put on hold by Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) since January due to expected shortage of water supply.

“It involved 134 applications for a total request capacity of 141 million litres per day, as of April.

“The affected districts included Klang, Petaling, Sepang, Kuala Langat, Kuala Lumpur, Hulu Langat and Gombak,” he said.

Mohd Zin explained that the recorded water demand growth from 2005 to 2010 was 3.5% a year, and that the demand was expected to increase by 3.5% a year for 2013 to 2015.

“By comparing the production and distribution capacities of all 33 water treatment plants in the state, we have a reserve capacity of only 2.4%, which is 106.8 million liter per day.

“This amount is very little because on certain days, the water usage in Klang Valley is 7% higher than the average demand capacity.

“The low reserve capacity will cause Syabas to take a longer time to recover from water supply interruptions,” he said.

TheStar:Pua ordered to pay Syabas RM200,000 in damages

KUALA LUMPUR: The High Court here has ordered PJ Utara MP Tony Pua to pay Syabas RM200,000 in damages over a defamation suit.

Justice Amelia Tee Hong Geok Abdullah ruled in favour of the water concessionaire and also dismissed the DAP national publicity secretary’s counter-claim in relation to an article published in a Chinese daily.

“After due consideration of the evidence adduced by both parties, the Court finds that the plaintiff (Syabas) has succeeded in making out its case against the defendant on a balance of probabilities,” she said in her 49-page written grounds of judgment.

She also granted Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor Sdn Bhd an injunction restraining Pua or his agents from further publishing the defamatory words.

The judge rejected Pua’s defence of qualified privilege, saying he had failed to give pertinent details about the defendants in his speech, which resulted in it being defamatory.

“The defence would have been available to him (Pua) had he, in his speech, conveyed the reasons why the plaintiff was unable to replace the water pipes,’’ said Justice Amelia.

Friday, June 1, 2012

FreeMalaysiaToday:‘Saya dah buat penstrukturan air Selangor pada 2007′

Bekas Menteri Besar Selangor, Dr Mohd Khir Toyo mendakwa beliau telah memulakan penstrukturan air pada 2007 tetapi tergendala apabila BN kalah dalam pilihan raya umum 2008.

Menurut beliau, kerajaan Selangor waktu itu berjaya mengambilali dua syarikat pengeluar air iaitu Abbas dan Splash tetapi tidak sempat mengambilalih Puncak Niaga yang menguruskan anak syarikatnya Syabas ekoran kejatuhan kerajaan BN.

Dalam penstukturan semula itu, katanya, satu perjanjian antara kerajaan negeri dan Syarikat Bekalan Air Selangor (Syabas) telah disediakan oleh Unit Perancang Ekonomi (EPU), Jabatan Perdana Menteri.

“Walaupun terdapat fasal-fasal mengenai kenaikan tarif air namun ia mesti dipersetujui secara bersama antara kerajaan negeri, Persekutuan dan Syabas setiap kali ada permintaan untuk menaikkan tarif tersebut.

“Kerajaan negeri telah meminta diwujudkan Panel Penentuan Tarif Air yang membabitkan wakil negeri, persekutuan dan Syabas dan juga Jawatankuasa Teknikal bagi mengkaji setiap aspek sebelum permohonan kenaikan tarif diluluskan,” kata beliau.