GEORGE TOWN: Water consumption in Penang reduced by an average of about 0.6 per cent or five million litres per day (MLD) last year compared to 2023, which is a reduction of over 1.8 million cubic metres in a year.
Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP) chief executive officer Datuk K. Pathmanathan said the number of registered water consumers served by PBAPP increased by 15,742 - from 689,786 users in 2023 to 705,528 last year.
“Domestic usage in Penang refers to the consumption by households with individual metres and water usage dropped by almost 6.4 per cent from 503 MLD in 2023 to 471 MLD in 2024.
“Non-domestic and other water usages, meanwhile, increased by about 7.2 per cent from 374 MLD in 2023 to 401 MLD last year,” he said in a statement today.
He said that PBAPP data also showed an increase in the number of consumers in every user category, with the number of domestic water consumers rising to 604,976 last year compared to 593,255 in 2023.
Pathmanathan said the number of non-domestic water users rose by 2,246 - from 94,198 in 2023 to 96,444 last year.
He added that the number of domestic bulk, religious and welfare users as well as for the shipping sector also increased by 1,775 - from 2,333 users in 2023 to 4,108 users in 2024.
He said that the data showed that last year, domestic water usage accounted for about 54 per cent of total water use, meaning that households in the state continued to use more water than all business, commercial and government premises combined.
“More domestic consumers have reduced water usage in 2024 compared to 2023, despite Penang’s population and the number of domestic users increasing year on year.
“This is possibly in response to the domestic rate revision on Jan 2 last year, increased awareness about Penang’s water status as well as domestic water conservation campaigns,” he said.
