People are thirsty for clean water
Mr. Le Minh Tuan (residing in Hoa Thuan commune, Buon Ma Thuot city) was frustrated and said that for the past week, the area where he lives has been continuously cut off from tap water at many times of the day.
"The problem is that people are thirsty for clean water but the water supply plant has not taken any action to support users" - Mr. Le Minh Tuan said.
On March 3, 2017, the Dak Lak Provincial People's Committee issued a decision approving the investment policy for the Cu Kuin District inter-commune water supply project.
This project will supplement the source of domestic water (piped) for Buon Ma Thuot city, with a capacity of 20,000 m3/day. The project is invested by Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited, with a total investment of 320 billion VND. The project officially came into operation in April 2019.
After that, this company signed a water sale contract with Dak Lak Water Supply and Construction Investment Company Limited (now Dak Lak - Dakwaco Water Supply Joint Stock Company).
According to the contract effective until 2038, Dakwaco buys 15,000m3 of water per day. However, from January 1, 2025, Dakwaco has completely stopped buying clean water from partners.
Meanwhile, as the unit covering the water supply in Buon Ma Thuot city, Dakwaco does not meet the needs of the people.
This incident has caused many households in Cu Ebur commune, Hoa Thuan... (Buon Ma Thuot city) to face a serious shortage of domestic water.
No more water to sell to the people
Faced with the lack of clean water for people, Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited proposed to resell water to Dakwaco at a price of VND 5,379/m3 (only equal to 1/3 of the price prescribed by the authorities) but failed.
Mr. Le Quoc Nam - Director of Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited - said that our plant is only operating at 15-20% capacity.
"We accept selling at a loss just to maintain operations and pay bank interest but we cannot. Investing in large factories but using them is a waste" - Mr. Nam affirmed.
Previously, in 2023, the Dak Lak Provincial People's Committee issued Document No. 3893/UBND-KT on the implementation of Dakwaco's commitment to buy water.
The Dak Lak Provincial People's Committee determined that Dakwaco's failure to purchase water from Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited did not comply with the provisions of the Price Law and the Central's guiding documents.
The Provincial People's Committee requires Dakwaco to seriously implement the purchase of water at output and price in accordance with the principle of inheriting the rights and obligations of a joint stock company converted from a state-owned enterprise.
According to research, in Buon Ma Thuot city, each cubic meter of tap water used by people costs 14,900 VND/m3 (excluding taxes and fees).
If Dakwaco approves to buy cheap water from Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited, it will benefit people in reducing costs. It is important to ensure that people will not lack water during the dry season.
Meanwhile, Mr. Do Hoang Phuc - Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dakwaco - firmly said: "The enterprise has enough water to provide for people in Buon Ma Thuot city".
"We do not need to buy more water from Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited. If the company violates the contract, Buon Ma Thuot Water Supply Company Limited can file a lawsuit" - Mr. Do Hoang Phuc resolutely.
The leader of Buon Ma Thuot City People's Committee said: "Water security is very important. Water supply enterprises must be responsible for providing enough clean water for people to do daily activities during the dry season.
People in remote areas cannot use unsanitary groundwater forever, and phenamine infection affects their health.
Currently, at the end of the network, the water supply pipeline is weak, people are lacking water. We will ask Dakwaco to study and have a plan to handle this situation".
