Mayor presses anew MPIW for ‘clear plans’ on water woes

By Rjay Zuriaga Castor

Iloilo City Mayor Raisa Treñas-Chu has renewed her call for Metro Pacific Iloilo Water (MPIW) to lay down firm and time-bound commitments to address the city’s persistent water supply issues.

Despite a series of meetings and presentations by the utility, the mayor said the city’s residents continue to suffer from unreliable and insufficient water access.

On July 18, Treñas-Chu met with Metro Pacific Water (MPW) Assistant Vice President for Business Development Jonet Salvilla to discuss MPIW’s ongoing and upcoming water projects.

MPIW is a joint venture between MPW and the Metro Iloilo Water District.

Another meeting followed on July 21 with MPIW Chief Operating Officer David Berba, who provided updates on infrastructure initiatives.

Berba also appeared before the City Council on Aug. 8 to present MPIW’s project status and annual service coverage targets.

On Monday, Aug. 18, Treñas-Chu said she sent a formal letter to Berba requesting “clear, concrete, and time-bound commitments” to solve the city’s water woes.

In the letter, the mayor emphasized that clean and safe water is a basic right essential to health, livelihood, and daily living.

“I urged MPIW to spell out, in plain and specific terms, its plans and actions to bring down non-revenue water losses,” she said.

Treñas-Chu pointed out that more than five years after MPIW began operations, Iloilo City residents should already be experiencing reliable and sufficient water service.

She added that complaints of limited or no water access have continued to reach her office just 45 days into her term.

Treñas-Chu also raised concerns about MPIW’s recent press release, which claimed an increase in water production capacity from 30 million liters per day (MLD) to 80 MLD since the start of the joint venture.

The mayor urged MPIW to make a direct and accountable pledge to reduce non-revenue water (NRW) and deliver sufficient water supply to the city.

She asked the firm to specify how many MLD it can commit to provide, along with a clear project timeline and roadmap.

“These commitments must be put in black and white, with clear targets for lowering NRW and increasing MLD supply, so the public can see and measure progress,” she said.

MPIW currently has 31% service coverage in Iloilo City and aims to reach 50% by 2027 and 90% to 100% by 2029.

Berba said MPIW is implementing major infrastructure projects to improve services, with over PHP1.3 billion allocated in 2025 for upgrades, pipe replacements, and service expansion.

The company aims to recover up to 20 MLD by reducing non-revenue water losses.

MPIW has also proposed a PHP5-billion capital expenditure plan for 2025 to 2028, covering more than 40 kilometers of pipeline works and targeting a 40% cut in water losses by next year.

To meet immediate demand, a modular treatment facility producing 5 MLD is expected to be completed by the end of 2025.

Longer-term projects include a PHP5.5-billion desalination plant in La Paz, targeted for 2027.

Berba earlier said MPIW’s goal of full service coverage by 2029 depends largely on the completion of the Jalaur River Multipurpose Project Stage II, which could supply up to 86 MLD.