Water rationing hits industries hard

PETALING JAYA: Industries that use large amount of water in their production are bearing the brunt of the current rationing.
Many are forced to buy water at exorbitant cost to keep their production lines running to avoid incurring even greater cost that comes with a stoppage in operation.
According to a report in Sin Chew Daily, although Syabas charges RM35 for a tanker of water (1,700 litres), factory operators have to pay RM800 to transport it and RM100 to the water supply company as testing fee.
Hulu Langat Small and Medium Industries Association president Ding Hong Sing, whose food processing factory is among those consuming large quantity of water, said he was forced to buy water from Syabas on no-water days since the end of March.
He estimated this will set him back by RM10,000 a month.
Ding said in the early days of the rationing exercise, he had problem hiring water tankers and had to close his factory for a day.
Due to the water supply woes, he had to take fewer orders, incurring tens of thousands of ringgit in lost revenue since the rationing began.
Likewise, Top Glove Corporation chairman Tan Sri Lim Wee Chai said, should the rationing continue, the glove-making company may have to forego some orders.
He told the daily that water rationing may force some factories to stop production.
He said it costs 10 times more than normal to get water from alternative sources during rationing.
He estimated that the company will incur an additional RM10 million a year in production cost, and affect its bottomline.
Meanwhile, Small & Medium Industries (SMI) Association of Malaysia national president Teh Kee Sin suggested that the state government and water concessionaires deliver water free to industrial users.
Alternatively, the state government can exempt factories from the rationing exercise, he said.