Water supply in the Malaysian state of Penang has been completely restored as the Penang Water Supply Corporation (PBAPP) announced that a scheduled disruption which affected early 590,000 users for four days ended on Jan 14.

The disruption, which began on Jan 10, was due to essential maintenance work at the Sungai Dua water treatment plant which involved replacing two valve units, and ancillary work at 22 other sites, Bernama reported.

The work was completed ahead of schedule on the evening of Jan 10.

The restoration process was completed in four stages. The first phase, which restored supply to 33 per cent of affected users in Seberang Perai, a city in Penang, was completed by Jan 12.

The second phase, which brought water back to 84 per cent of users, concluded on Jan 13.

Bernama reported that the final stages of the restoration involving the remaining affected users, particularly those in end-of-line and hilly areas, were completed by 6am on Jan 14.

PBAPP said on Jan 13 that 110 million litres of water per day had been lost due to a leak in the Sungai Perai underwater pipeline. The leak was discovered on Jan 12, but it was not clear for how long the pipeline had been leaking.

Emergency operations to fix the damaged pipeline are under way, with commercial divers closely monitoring the situation, PBAPP said. An interim solution proposed is the installation of a temporary pipeline, with preliminary work expected to be completed within 21 days.