Time to think of value of water instead of cost

Lee U-Wen, Business Times 29 Jun 09;

LOOKING at our monthly utilities bill, we all know how much a unit of water costs.

But what about the actual value of that precious resource?

That is a question Len Rodman, a 40-year veteran of the global water industry, wants more people to start thinking about as the demand for clean drinking water continues to rise sharply with the world's population.

Speaking to BT in a recent interview during Singapore International Water Week (SIWW), the president, chairman and chief executive of global engineering and construction company Black & Veatch said the cost and value of water are 'fundamentally different' things.

'Due to growth, urbanisation and more knowledge, the water in our streams is not as pure as it was many years ago. Treating water has become more important. We need to build plants to do that. It uses resources,' he said.

'There are very few pure water sources left in our environment. It's scarce; there's just not enough water to meet demand. We must start thinking about the value of water to us, rather than taking it for granted that it is always there.'

This point was echoed by Dan McCarthy, president and CEO of the company's global water business: 'The waste water industry has done itself a disservice by pricing water at its cost, rather than the value. We have to ask ourselves: Where do we get the water from? How good is the quality? How far do we have to transport it to the consumer?'

Mr Rodman, incidentally, was the most senior of the plenary speakers at this year's SIWW, which ended last Thursday.

Black & Veatch has links with Singapore's water authority dating all the way back to 1922, and he described the current relationship with water agency Public Utilities Board (PUB) as 'strong and dynamic'.

The company has been involved in a number of high-profile projects in Singapore of late - most notably the Sembcorp Changi NEWater Plant, the Marina Barrage and the SingSpring Desalination Plant.

And while Black & Veatch too has not been spared by the global economic downturn, Mr Rodman said there were still some positives.

'One good thing about the recession is that it reduced demand for water and energy,' he said. 'Many areas have received more capacity for their systems due to lower demand.'

The downside, of course, is lower revenue, he added, but the extra capacity did give utility bodies the 'perfect opportunity' to go back and think about their long-term issues and challenges.

'If the economy were going up, they'd just be so busy trying to keep up with demand. Now, in a recession, there are some terribly good buys out there. Projects are less expensive, more labour is available, and commodity prices are down,' he said.

'If you've got a sound plan or current need, now is a good time to get those projects and put them in place.'

Extra networking opportunities the hallmark of Water Week

Tangible results of these activities will be announced today
Teh Shi Ning, Business Times 29 Jun 09;

IT was fitting that the second Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) closed on Thursday night with a dinner party beside Singapore's first city reservoir, the Marina Barrage.

Michael Toh, managing director of SIWW, said it is his hope that the annual conference may one day be seen as 'the Davos of Water'.

Which is why, apart from hosting formal, high-level discussions between water industry big-wigs and ministerial officials, policymakers and academics, this year's SIWW was intentionally planned to 'create even more networking opportunities', Mr Toh said.

Even before the key Water Leaders Summit, Water Convention and Water Expo began, conference delegates got the opportunity to mingle on Sentosa Golf Club's Tanjong Course, at SIWW's Golf Classic 2009 on Monday morning.

Then there were nightly networking events, including a banquet at the Istana and the closing night's Dinner by the Bay.

'Our intention was really for Water Week to be this huge platform where buyers meet sellers, private sector meets the public sector, and officials, academics, businessmen can all meet to speak about issues and challenges facing the water industry,' Mr Toh said.

But big names alone do not make the event, and the organisers decided to tap into programming details to enhance networking opportunities.

Tea and lunch breaks were synchronised - allowing for at least eight tea networking sessions to be hosted by industry associations on the sidelines.

Each day's schedule of forums and meetings also ended earlier this year, to allow delegates to host private meetings or entertain clients and partners in the evenings.

'With corporations hosting other functions for clients at hotels, it's not just the water industry that benefits,' Mr Toh said. 'SIWW brings much value to Singapore's MICE and tourism industry too.'

SIWW was timed to coincide with the ongoing Singapore River Festival, which included a Mojito Fiesta and Cuban jazz and salsa performances, among other events.

At the Water Expo, exhibitors were encouraged to provide reception areas in their booths - many had sofas and coffee tables around which to sell their technologies to trade visitors.

Tangible results from such networking - the dollar value of deals signed - will be announced today, the organisers said. They expect to match or even exceed SIWW 2008's $367 million of water business deals.