WSC bill collections down by $16 million

The Water and Sewerage Corporation (WSC) sustained a 30 percent hit to its collections between December 2019 and December 2020 as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic and Hurricane Dorian, the company’s Executive Chairman Adrian Gibson revealed yesterday, calling the losses “monumental”.

According to Gibson, who made his remarks in the House of Assembly yesterday, money coming into WSC from customers paying bills shrank to $37.4 million from $53.6 million during the review period.

The corporation, he said, carried out no disconnections during the pandemic, even as accounts in arrears continued to build up.

He said last month showed that figures continue to be off, with February postings showing WSC collecting $2.5 million compared $3.6 million collected in February 2020, before the onset of the pandemic.

“WSC has had a challenging year financially,” said Gibson. “Notwithstanding that, the corporation continues to strive to live up to its mandate to the Bahamian people, largely undergirded by monies from the CDB and IDB.

“We have incurred 

monumental losses over the last year. That said, contrary to fake news on social media, WSC has not disconnected a single customer since March, 2020.

“I encourage persons to come in and pay their bills or at least put something on it. This is how the corporation pays staff, is able to execute repairs and capital works, etc. You can pay via our app, our website or our various locations throughout The Bahamas.”

Hurricane Dorian destroyed some of WSC’s critical infrastructure on Abaco, leading to a huge revenue loss for the company over the past year and requiring millions in repairs and restoration.

However, Gibson showed that Abaco’s cash collection has increased 342 percent year-on-year, moving from $8,793.92 in February, 2020 to $38,909.04 last month.

“Since Hurricane Dorian impacted the island of Abaco and Grand Bahama in September of 2019, a major focus has been on the emergency response in the Abacos and cays, the restoration of the systems that were extensively damaged, system maintenance and now, system reconstruction,” Gibson said.

“To date, WSC has awarded contracts for vehicles, equipment, new facilities, restoration works and services to the tune of some $15-plus million and anticipates needing another $15 million to complete our reconstruction and restorative works in Abaco.”

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source https://thenassauguardian.com/wsc-bill-collections-down-by-16-million/