Codgers, young native residents and officials in Calumpang — this is a generic place: it could be in Tayabas, Quezon, Marikina City or Batangas — wonder why their native villages which used to have free-flowing water from fresh springs in nearby forested mountains just as we have been used to in my native Paete, Laguna, are now having trouble with water for drinking, cooking and general household use.
The problem can be traced to the burgeoning population in these once rustic rural towns, which necessitated the entry of developers of water facilities (read: big business) who have taken control of this precious natural resource and packaged them as a commodity for marketing and distribution.
Thus our water is collected, refined, treated and sold by entities like PrimeWater of the Villar family; Manila Water of Trident Water Holdings Co. owned by the Enrique Razon-controlled Prime Infrastructure Capital; Maynilad of the Metro Pacific Investments Corp., DMCI and Marubeni, and Aboitiz InfraCapital which operates Apo Agua and Lima Water Corp.
Well, these are the biggest water providers in the country, aside from the local water districts which sometimes strike a deal with them through joint ventures.
The local government units have a big say on this water contracts, so that when things like service go wrong, the mayor and the councilors may decide to end the water arrangements, such like in San Pedro City in Laguna.
City mayors and other officials should be wary, therefore, about private sector offers to run their water systems.
A case in point is in Iloilo City, now headed by Mayor Raisa Maria Lourdes Treñas-Chu.
A source said Aboitiz InfraCapital’s unsolicited proposal for the Jalaur bulk water project may be framed as a solution to Iloilo’s water woes, but a closer look reveals a deal that burdens both the city government and consumers.
He is bothered by the project’s alleged “long-term costs, technical inefficiencies, and troubling legal overreach.”
At the core of this proposal is a raw water intake facility and a 23-kilometer high-line canal, for which the National Irrigation Administration (NIA) would be forced to pay the nearly ₱27 billion in total “availability payments” over 33 years — even if no one uses the water. This is a blatant “take-or-pay” scheme that transfers virtually all financial risk to the government, while guaranteeing profits for the proponent.
Despite the government’s massive payment of ₱27 billion, Aboitiz plans to charge ₱40 per cubic meter (VAT exclusive and in today’s prices) for bulk water. At the consumer level, this translates to an estimated ₱80 per cubic meter, which is double the current rate paid by Iloilo City households.
This proposal would make Aboitiz’s bulk water supply—sourced from a river—the most expensive in the country. In the end, both the government and ordinary Ilonggos will bear the cost. Critics also flag the raw water intake facility as “unnecessary” — a white elephant in the water treatment process that will eventually be turned over to NIA only after 32 years, long after it has depreciated and lost operational value.
This corner advises Mayor Treñas and the city council to study the Aboitiz proposal well before deciding on what is best for the residents and business community of Iloilo City.
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