MEF confirms US$20mn transfer to Sedapal

Sedapal, the water utility serving Peruvian capital Lima, will receive US$20mn from the economy & finance ministry (MEF) to help finance a water system expansion project, Editora Peru reported. The funds are provided courtesy of an agreement between the national government and the international reconstruction and development bank that allows the country to increase the level of its external debt by US$150mn, according to the newspaper. "The funds will be used for a project to increase the coverage of water and sewerage in periphery of Lima/Callao," Sedapal spokesman Manuel Valencia told BNamericas. "This is a very large project, funded by World Bank, that will take at least five years to complete and will benefit 250,000 people," he said. The project will extend water services to zones that are difficult to access such as mountainous areas of the metropolis. By 2010, Sedapal wants to have 100% potable water coverage (88% in 2005) and 90% sewerage coverage.