Water utilities improve performance - From operating costs to water without revenue. Water supply increased by 1 hour per day
Water utilities have improved performance indicators related to water supply duration, non-revenue water, coverage of operation and maintenance costs, metering level, staff efficiency or energy efficiency, while the collection rate indicator has declined.
According to official data from the Water Regulatory Authority, during 2024, the coverage of operation and maintenance costs reached 109.8%, up from 100.5% in 2023. The increase in this indicator is directly related to the financial sustainability of water supply and sewage companies, which underwent reform 2 years ago, leading to their merger and the creation of larger companies. Currently, 14 regional companies have been created, while Tirana, Vora and Kamza have not yet merged, operating as separate companies.
The duration of water supply reached 17.3 hours per day last year, from 16.3 hours per day in 2023, marking an improvement of 1 hour/day. According to the Water Regulatory Authority, there are 8 regional companies that provide Water Supply service 20 - 24 hours/day such as: UKR Korçë, Lezhë, Berat, Gjirokastër, Pogradec, Shkodër, Saranda. The companies performing worse are UK Kamzë with 4 hours/day and UK Vorë with 8 hours/day. Uninterrupted water supply 24/7 is provided only by the Regional Company UK Lezhë.
Non-revenue water for 2024 has improved significantly by about 3.6% compared to the previous year, respectively from 64.7% to 61.1%. The improvement in this indicator has come as a result of an increase in the volume of billed water by about 5.7 million m3 and a decrease in that produced by 16.5 million m3, of which about 13 million m3 with mechanical lifting. According to the WRA, almost all utilities have performed well in this regard.
The Collection Rate for 2024 has a slight decrease. The Current one to 83.2% from 83.9% and the General one to 102.4 from 103.5%. According to the WRA, the main impact on the deterioration of these indicators is given by the Tirana Water Supply Company with a decrease in the current collection rate to (-4.4%), which also constitutes the main part in the deterioration of this indicator as it remains the largest WSS company in the sector with about 36% of the total revenues of the sector.
Meanwhile, the number of connections per staff was recorded at 4.51 per 1000 connections, from 4.56 per 1000 connections in 2023, marking an improvement of 0.05%. According to the WRA, this is as a result of the increase in water connections by about 29,233 connections, as the number of staff has increased by 34 employees.
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