SERIAN: The Serian Regional Water Supply Project Phase II is expected to be fully completed by April next year, benefiting nearly 10,000 residents in the area.
Utility and Telecommunication Minister Datuk Seri Julaihi Narawi said the RM260 million project involved the construction of two water storage facilities and would form part of Sarawak’s southern water grid system.
“The Phase One component includes a high-level tank with a capacity of three million litres, which will serve 825 households in 26 villages.
“The number of beneficiaries under Phase Two is expected to be almost the same as those covered by Phase One.
“Overall, close to 10,000 residents are expected to benefit from the completion of the Serian Regional Water Supply Project Phase II next year,” he said when visiting the project sites in Sabal and Melikin today (June 23).
Julaihi explained that the first phase involves the construction of a high-level tank with a capacity of three million litres at Jalan Melikin.
He said the works also include the installation of 33 kilometres of transmission pipelines and 45 kilometres of distribution pipelines, as well as the construction of a booster station.
Meanwhile, the scope of works under the second contract phase includes the construction of a 1.8 million-litre water storage tank and a booster pumping station in the Sabal area.
“This project forms part of our efforts to establish a water grid system in Sarawak, particularly in the southern region.
“We are gradually developing the southern water grid system and are now focusing on Serian division. The southern region covers Kuching, Serian, Samarahan, Sri Aman and Betong divisions.
“We hope this project will further increase rural water supply coverage, which is now approaching 72 per cent,” he added.
On the same note, Julaihi said the state government is also considering upgrading the Slabi Water Treatment Plant under the 13th Malaysia Plan (13MP) from its current capacity of 110 million litres per day (MLD) to 300 MLD.
He said Sarawak is also implementing several water supply projects in Lundu, Kuching, Sri Aman and Betong as part of efforts to strengthen the state’s water grid network.
“We hope this will further improve water supply coverage and reliability for the people,” he said.
