THE government has welcomed Banks DIH Limited’s announcement of a suggested retail price of $100 for its 500ml Rainforest Waters, as efforts continue to make bottled water more affordable and improve access to drinking water for consumers.
Minister of Public Utilities and Aviation, Deodat Indar, in a social media post, said the company had issued a suggested retail price for its 500ml bottled water and urged supermarkets and retail outlets to take note of the price.
“Banks DIH has issued a suggested retail price for 500 ML bottle of water. I hope all supermarkets and retail shops take note and comply for all other brands of water carried on the shelf,” Indar said.
The Ministry of Public Utilities and Aviation, in a separate post, indicated that the announcement comes as it continues engagements with the Private Sector Commission (PSC), Guyana Water Incorporated (GWI) and bottled-water producers on affordability, local production and greater access to drinking water for consumers.
Banks DIH, in a public notice published in the daily newspapers on Friday, advised customers and consumers across Guyana of its suggested retail price for Rainforest Waters, placing the price at $100 for the 500ml bottle.
The development follows recent discussions between government, the PSC, GWI and major bottled-water manufacturers on measures to reduce the cost of bottled water, while lowering production expenses, strengthening local manufacturing and ensuring savings reach consumers.
The ministry also highlighted the government’s allocation of $496.3 million for a state-owned water-bottling initiative under GWI.
During a follow-up engagement with the PSC and industry stakeholders earlier this week, Indar reaffirmed that the initiative is not intended to compete with existing producers.
Those discussions had identified production costs and distribution margins as two major factors contributing to the prices consumers currently pay for bottled water.
The private sector has proposed a two-phase approach to addressing the issue, including standardising PET preforms used by local manufacturers, where technically feasible, while exploring the establishment of local PET preform manufacturing capacity.
Stakeholders have also identified environmental tax, VAT, distribution arrangements and retailer mark-ups as areas that could be examined to achieve meaningful reductions in consumer prices.
The PSC had cautioned that reducing manufacturing costs alone may not necessarily translate into lower prices if significant distribution and retail margins remain within the supply chain.
Indar had previously indicated that government would examine the movement of bottled water through the supply chain, including distributors, supermarkets and other intermediaries, as well as the margins applied at various stages.
The private sector is expected to submit formal proposals outlining the manufacturers that would participate in the initiative, opportunities for PET preform standardisation and local production, recommendations on environmental tax and VAT, distribution arrangements and a framework for the eventual transition or withdrawal of government involvement.
The proposals will subsequently be submitted to Cabinet for consideration.
The recent engagement included representatives of major bottled-water manufacturers, including Blue Spring Waters, Clear Waters, Pure Waters, Aquafina and Banks DIH Limited.
The PSC has said that the central objective of the initiative is to lower the cost of bottled water for consumers, while supporting manufacturers already investing, producing and creating employment within the local industry.
