The National Water Commission (NWC) has lost an estimated $185 m in revenue over the last seven months, as a result of leaks mostly within the Corporate Area.

In his state of the nation address in the Senate today (Feb 8), Senator Aubyn Hill, who is Chairman of the NWC’s board, noted that in addition to the lost revenues, the commission has spent millions repairing breaks in pipelines between June 2018 and January 2019.

In addition to repairs, senator hill said, that since the major break in the eighteen inch pipeline along the ferry main road, trucking costs have gone-up significantly.

Since the ferry main broke on December 8 last year, the NWC has reportedly trucked more than 770,000 gallons of water weekly to residents of the Kingston Metropolitan Area.

Meantime, Hill says the Andrew Holness-led administration will need to convert the National Water Commission into an independent commercial company.

This as he says the current model of the NWC is untenable.

In his state of the nation address in the Senate today, Hill said the NWC will need some US $3.5 b in the next five years, to improve its operations.

He said bringing on an international partner will improve the operations of the commission and reduce the cost of water to the population.