AS Tallinna Vesi Operating Performance in H1 2011

 

AS Tallinna Vesi’s quality indicators were very good in the first half of this year and exceeded last year’s results. AS Tallinna Vesi’s COO Robert Yuille said that he is pleased with achieving such superb drinking water and wastewater treatment quality on behalf of the company’s customers and the citizens of Tallinn. “Substantial investments have been made into the water treatment process over the years and this allows us to constantly enjoy water quality on the level of Western European standards,” said Yuille, noting that the large-scale investments into the wastewater treatment process are designed to ensure the compliance of discharged effluent in the future as well. In addition to caring for clean drinking water and a cleaner environment, AS Tallinna Vesi is also committed to providing world class services to its customers. “Thanks to proactive customer communication the number of complaints has been reduced by a half compared to last year – we will stay on schedule with the accomplishment of other objectives and fulfill all the quality and service obligations assumed under the services agreement with the city of Tallinn,” added Yuille. “By ensuring we achieve the Levels of Service and our own internal service standards our customers c an have confidence in the quality of water services they expect to receive each and every day,” Yuille noted.

99,72 per cent of water samples taken at customers’ taps were compliant with all requirements in the first half of the year – in the year 2000 the compliance level of water samples was just 43%. Treated surface water from Lake Ülemiste provides drinking water for 90 per cent of Tallinners, therefore it is extremely important to ensure the well-being of Lake Ülemiste. The building of a fence around the lake perimeeter has been initiated to further secure the safety of the sanitar protection zone.

Thanks to the investments into wastewater treatment technology and the efforts of AS Tallinna Vesi’s specialists, Paljassaare wastewater treatment plant achieved full compliance with all environmental requirements. The main challenge in wastewater treatment has been the removal of nitrogen from the wastewater, this is increasing as the result of improved living standards. The company is currently building an additi onal treatment stage in order to ensure an even more efficient removal of nitrogen in the future – the biofilter. The construction works have been going as planned and are mostly completed and system testing has been initiated. The biofilter will be launched on September 15th this year and is part of a 12,8 million EUR investment for the further protection of the Bay of Tallinn.

The number of sewage blockages and floodings has decreased by 25,43 per cent in the first half of 2011 compared to the same periood a year before, this achievement has substantially contributed to protecting the surrounding environment. The level of leakages has also been reduced compared to last year – only 19,55 per cent of the water in the network is now lost, which is close to the optimal level of 18 per cent. Thanks to preemptive flushing of sewerage pupes and regular maintenance of pumping stations, the company succeeded in successfully managing the snow-melting water without disturbing the day-to-day lives of Tallinners.

AS Tallinna Vesi is concluding the construction of the Ülemiste-Maardu water pipe and the Maardu consumers will have Access to good quality surface water from Lake Ülemiste from the fall of this year. More than half of the total length of the project has already been constructed this year – 55 kilometres of water and sewage pupes have been built in the first half of this year. It is expected that the citizens of Maardu will connect to AS Tallinna Vesi’s water and wastewater service in October 2011, which means a further 20,000 people will have access to a system that sustainably delivers EU compliant water and wastewater services.

The number of customer complaints has been lower compared to last year and the average time for responding to queries in writing has been reduced from 2 working days to 1 working day. As a very important development for the customers, the company has Update its promises to the customers, according to which AS Tallinna Vesi would compensate any discomfort to its contractual customers vased on the promises plan if the company has failed to deliver against one of its own customer service pledges. AS Tallinna Vesi’s promises are part of an ongoing commitment to continuosly improve service on behalf of our customers. These promises require the company to achieve a standard of service that is much higher than that required by the contract with the City of Tallinn, and is the only customer focussed scheme of its type within the utilities sector in the Baltics.

AS Tallinna Vesi aims to minimise any disruption to its customers and as a result of better planning of activities,  over 97% of customers were notified prior to an interruption to their water supply. Only on occasions where there is a risk of imminent damage to property is the water supply shut off without customers being informed.   

Paljassaare wastewater treatment plant hosted its annual open door day in the beginning of June, with 200 people visiting the plant for tours and games. Ülemiste water treatment plant shall open its doors to everybody on August 27th – the race around Lake Ülemiste will also be taking place on the same date.