Jalaur, desalination projects to expand Iloilo’s water supply

By Francis Allan L. Angelo

ILOILO CITY – Metro Pacific Water is advancing the Jalaur Water Treatment Project, expected to deliver an additional 86 million liters of water per day for Iloilo once operational, alongside a 66.5-MLD desalination facility intended to reduce the province’s dependence on its existing supplies.

Both projects fall under a capital program of approximately PHP 23 billion that the company plans to spend over the next five years across its water businesses in the Philippines and Vietnam.

Taken together, the two facilities would add 152.5 MLD to Iloilo, nearly twice the 80 MLD the province currently draws through Metro Pacific Iloilo Water and a volume that would fundamentally alter the supply picture for a metropolitan area that has rationed water through successive dry seasons.

Available supply in the province rose from 73 MLD in 2024 to 80 MLD in 2026.

Metro Pacific Water, a wholly owned subsidiary of Metro Pacific Investments Corp., announced the investment program as it marks its 15th anniversary this year.

“When we started Metro Pacific Water 15 years ago, our goal was to help build a more water-secure future for the communities we serve. That mission has only become more urgent today. Water security is economic security, and this P23-billion investment is our commitment to building the infrastructure the next generation will depend on,” said Andrew B. Pangilinan, MPW president and chief executive officer.

The Jalaur component connects the company’s plans to the long-delayed Jalaur River Multipurpose Project Stage II in Calinog, the national government’s largest water infrastructure undertaking in Panay, which was designed to serve irrigation, power, and bulk water functions for the province.

Alongside the two major facilities, MPW is pursuing modular treatment plants and other source-development initiatives in Iloilo.

The company has been deploying modular treatment technologies, including brackish water reverse osmosis and seawater reverse osmosis systems, to augment supply in water-scarce areas and in locations with difficult raw water characteristics.

These systems allow additional sources to be developed more quickly while larger, longer-term infrastructure projects are underway.

The broader investment program will fund new water sources, treatment and distribution infrastructure, network rehabilitation, non-revenue water reduction, pipeline repairs, and technologies designed to improve the reliability and efficiency of water systems.

Across its operating portfolio, MPW reported a combined installed water production and treatment capacity of approximately 798 MLD, a 20 percent increase from 667 MLD in 2025.

The company attributed the increase to rehabilitating and optimizing existing facilities, reactivating underutilized assets, and developing additional water sources.

MPW serves approximately 221,000 households across Iloilo, Dumaguete, and San Jose del Monte, Bulacan.

Through joint ventures with local water districts, the company also operates bulk water suppliers including Metro Iloilo Bulk Water Supply Corp. and Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc.

In Dumaguete City, MPW increased water production from 40.8 MLD in 2021 to 48.2 MLD in 2026.

Cagayan de Oro Bulk Water Inc. raised its available supply from 43 MLD in 2018 to 80 MLD in 2019 and has sustained that level through 2026, while retaining the potential to deliver up to 100 MLD as the city’s requirements grow.

In 2026, the City Government of San Jose del Monte appointed MPW as interim operator through Metro Pacific Bulacan Water to stabilize and rehabilitate a water system that had gone close to a decade with inadequate maintenance.

In less than three months of operations, Metro Pacific Bulacan Water repaired more than 600 pipeline leaks out of 890 verified leaks and restored production at Water Treatment Plant 2 to its 30-MLD design capacity, up from 20 MLD, after completing the cleaning of the raw water tank.

Outside the Philippines, MPW supplies water to industrial zones in Nghe An, Vietnam’s largest province, through the subsidiaries Tuan Loc Water Resources Investment Joint Stock Company and Phu Ninh Water.

“As we build stronger regional water operations in Southeast Asia, our investment improves our ability to expand capacity and pursue new opportunities where reliable water infrastructure is increasingly critical. Our cross-country experience has allowed us to combine local operating experience with technologies and solutions that can be deployed across different markets,” Pangilinan said.

Through Metro Pacific Water Solutions, the company has expanded into wastewater treatment, engineering, and water technology services.

Metro Pacific Water Solutions has completed more than 700 sewage treatment plant projects nationwide and holds a AAA license from the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board.

Its capabilities cover new water development, modular treatment systems, sewage and wastewater treatment, and other end-to-end water solutions, with a project footprint across the country.

Established in 2011, MPW has grown from a water investment platform into a diversified water infrastructure and services company spanning water production and distribution, wastewater treatment, water technologies, and other water-related solutions.