MWSS lines up water projects worth $2B

MANILA, Philippines—The Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System is lining up about $2 billion worth of water projects and programs, as it crafts a water road map for Metro Manila and the surrounding suburbs, MWSS chairman Ramon B. Alikpala told the Inquirer.

“We want a holistic road map. We’re considering how we can work with other agencies on anything—from watersheds to reef and saltwater issues; redundant sources; fair price for consumers; contributing to the cleanup of the Pasig River, Laguna Lake and Manila Bay. We are looking into all of these because water issues are connected,” Alikpala said.

The projects being lined up over the next four years may cost $1.5 billion to $2 billion, Alikpala said.

These are a combination of big-ticket projects to be pursued via private-public partnership (PPP) and smaller projects “with investment potential” but not under PPP, Alikpala said.

The investment estimate does not include the $3-billion sewerage investments that concessionaires Manila Water Company Inc. and Maynilad Water Services Inc. are expected to pour into their respective zones in Metro Manila and its suburbs until 2037.

The PPP Center website showed that in MWSS’ recent pipeline are three projects: the New Water Supply Source project, privatization of two 2-megawatt (MW) turbines, and development of Balara water hub as a “center for water excellence.”

The development of Balara, estimated to cost P20 billion, will involve “the construction and operationalization of an international center for water excellence” within MWSS’ Balara Compound in Quezon City. The proposed 75-hectare hub is envisioned to be a mixed-style destination for education, sports, business and recreation. The area will showcase existing eco-efficient water technology and will be equipped with entertainment facilities. It will also have open areas for large events and commercial development, according to the PPP website.

The operation and maintenance of Angat Hydroelectric Power Plant (Ahepp) Auxiliary Turbines 4&5, worth P1.6 billion, will involve the rehabilitation, operation and maintenance of the MWSS-owned facilities.

New Water Supply Source project, estimated to cost P25 billion, will involve the construction of a dam, water treatment plant and an associated main pipeline to deliver water from the project location to Metro Manila.

The government is considering developing a number of scalable water projects, including the Laiban dam project in Rizal, for which San Miguel Corp. had submitted a proposal earlier.

The initial proposal was a large-scale project involving 1,900 million liters in output capacity per day but MWSS had said that instead of doing this, several small-scale projects might be pursued.

Several other new water sources are being considered, including Pampanga River, Wawa River, Laiban included, Laguna Lake and even Sierra Madre.

Water experts have said that, from a simple water supply perspective, Metro Manila households might have access to enough water until 2029. However, from  water security perspective, there must be alternatives to Bulacan province’s Angat dam, which is near a fault line and is now supplying 97 percent of Metro Manila’s water requirement.