IMPROVE WATER QUALITY | PrimeWater, Baciwa seal bulk water agreement for additional water supply

PrimeWater Bacolod, with the conformity of its joint venture partner, Bacolod City Water District (Baciwa), entered into a bulk water supply agreement with Northern Negros H20 Inc. (NNHI) to provide additional water supply to Bacolod City.

The signing of the bulk water supply agreement, which was done Tuesday, October 3, will address the increasing demand in the city by bringing in significant additional water supply of 30,000 cubic meters, or 30 million liters per day (MLD) in the first year, 40 MLD in the second year, and 50 MLD in the third year upon completion, Mona Dia Jardin, Baciwa general manager, said.

The additional supply will cover more than 30,000 households in Bacolod, particularly in the southern areas such as Barangays Handumanan, Felisa, Mansilingan, Cabug, Tangub, Taculing, Pahanocoy, Pta. Taytay, Sum-ag and Alijis, which also means more available water for customers to use, Jardin added.

"This project is part of our resolve to address the growing demand in the city, wherein we need an additional 15-20 MLD per day. Apart from the increased water supply, this project will also significantly improve water quality," Jardin also said.

As part of the agreement, Jardin said that more than 20 kilometers of pipelines, as well as new water treatment plant facility and storage tanks, will be constructed as receiving facilities to enable the operation of the incoming supply of surface water. The bulk water project targets to tap from the Sum-ag River, she added.

Upon completion, the development will potentially boost the city's economy as it will improve productivity and may later open potential economic opportunities, she said, adding that improved water quality and pressure will also enhance health and sanitation across the city and will overall improve the quality of life of the people.

PrimeWater and Baciwa have implemented water innovation initiatives since their partnership in 2020, she said, adding that continuous maintenance activities such as pipeline cleaning, leak detection, and repairs, well maintenance, reservoir and tank cleaning, as well as flushing, are also done religiously to ensure that water is sustainably managed in the city.

"This initiative strengthens our commitment to our service in the city, among the series of efforts that Baciwa-PrimeWater partnership has planned to serve our concessionaires in Bacolod," said Atty. Czar Ong, PrimeWater vice president for joint venture operations.

Meanwhile, Jardin said Baciwa welcomed the move of Bacolod City Mayor Alfredo “Albee” Benitez to accommodate investors for water providers in the city.

"Mayor Albee has discussed it with us, the Baciwa Board, and we welcome his idea. Baciwa is a government-owned and controlled- corporation, and we are both government agencies and we have one purpose, that is to serve our concessionaires well. So if the mayor sees that we need additional water providers to better serve our concessionaires, even our partner PrimeWater, we welcome any competition and the idea of the mayor," Jardin added.*