BACOLOD City – The city government has successfully intervened in a brewing dispute between bulk water supplier Bacolod Bulk Water Inc. (BBWI) and water distribution utility PrimeWater–Bacolod City Water District (PrimeWater–BACIWA), averting a potential water shortage that could have affected thousands of residents.
The conflict stemmed from BBWI’s final notice to pay, issued over unpaid invoices from May to June 2025. BBWI, which supplies 40 percent of BACIWA–PrimeWater’s total water capacity through its Granada and Sum-ag treatment plants, had warned of shutting down its Sum-ag Water Treatment Plant in Barangay Salvacion, Murcia, Negros Occidental.
A shutdown would have severely impacted eight barangays — Sum-ag, Cabug, Felisa, Handumanan, Mansilingan, Punta Taytay, Pahanocoy, and Tangub — dependent on the Mansilingan Reservoir.
Mayor Greg Gasataya said representatives of both companies paid a courtesy visit to his office at the Bacolod City Government Center on Monday, August 11, where they discussed and resolved the issue.
“The effect on the city would have been severe. We already had a water turbidity problem, and if there had been a cutoff, it would have created an even bigger problem,” Gasataya said, recalling BBWI’s warning last week.
Under the emergency agreement, PrimeWater committed to settling its outstanding obligations, while both parties agreed to establish long-term payment protocols to prevent similar disputes in the future, BACIWA General Manager Mona Jardin said.
“Moving forward, there will be steps undertaken to ensure these things won’t happen again,” Gasataya added./PN
