THE Penang government, through the Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP), are initiating two water supply projects to mitigate water supply issues in south Seberang Perai (SPS).
Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow, who is also the Batu Kawan parliamentary constituency candidate, said the Permatang Tinggi pump station would be installed to improve the water supply pressure in areas in Mukim 5, south Seberang Perai.
“The temporary pump station will supplement the water supply to SPS, which is currently supplied from the Sungai Dua Water Treatment Plant (WTP) via the Bukit Minyak pumping station.
“This project is one of the initiatives by PBAPP under its SPS Water Supply Contingency Plan,” Chow told a press conference at the site in Permatang Tinggi today.
Chow said the project, when completed, could reduce the water supply disruption period to the affected consumers in SPS to only one to two hours daily.
PBAPP chief executive officer K. Pathmanathan said the project was scheduled to be completed by the end of November this year.
The second ongoing water supply project is the Bukit Panchor WTP upgrading project.
The Bukit Panchor WTP has been commissioned in 1997 with a maximum capacity of 11 million litres per day (MLD). It treats water from its main raw water source, Sungai Kechil, and supplies water to a small area in Nibong Tebal.
Chow said plans were ongoing to increase the water treatment output of Bukit Panchor by 10MLD.
“The plan is to construct another Dissolved Air Floatation (DAF) plant in Bukit Panchor WTP.
“It is similar to the existing DAF plant in Bukit Panchor WTP. The new DAF plant can cater for an additional 4,000 accounts and improve the water pressure in SPS,” he said.
Pathmanathan said the Bukit Panchor WTP currently supplies to Kampung Sungai Kechil, Kampung Sungai Kechil Hilir, Kampung Sungai Buaya, Kampung Besar, Perda-Tech and its surrounding areas.
“With the construction of the new 10MLD plant, the Bukit Panchor WTP will also supply to Taman Pekaka, Taman Sempadan, Taman Ilmu, Kampung Transkrian and Universiti Sains Malaysia (Engineering Campus),” he said.
He added that the project was scheduled to be completed in August of next year.
Also present at the media conference were Deputy Chief Minister II Prof Dr P. Ramasamy, Bukit Tambun assemblyman Goh Choon Aik, Machang Bubuk assemblyman Lee Khai Loon, Sungai Bakap assemblyman Datuk Dr Amar Pritpal Abdullah, Jawi assemblyman H’ng Mooi Lye, and Pakatan Harapan’s Nibong Tebal parliamentary candidate Fadhlina Sidek.
Chow and his campaign team also interacted with many constituents during their walkabout in Jalan Keruing, Taman Tangling and Jalan Bukit Tambun.
They distributed the 2023 calendars to those they met.