BY MA. THERESA LADIAO
ILOILO City – An additional 30 million liters of potable water a day could begin flowing into parts of Iloilo City by December 2027 as the city’s major desalination facility moves into construction, potentially expanding water service coverage from the current 30 percent to about 40 percent.
The initial output would come from the partial operation of the seawater desalination plant being developed in Barangay Ingore, La Paz district, which is designed to eventually produce about 66.5 million liters per day (MLD) at full capacity.
Once fully operational, the facility could further increase water service coverage to about 50 percent of Iloilo City, although officials stressed that the project by itself would not immediately provide round-the-clock water supply to the entire city.
“Kung 30 MLD, at least magiging 40 percent service coverage na kami sa Iloilo City alone. Kasi nga additional 10 percent ‘yan sa service coverage namin,” said David Berba, chief executive officer of Metro Iloilo Water Pacific Inc. (MPIW).
“It will jump to 50 if full na, na 66.5 MLD,” he added.
Berba said the company is committing to Mayor Raisa Treñas to partially energize the facility by December 2027 and initially put at least half of its designed capacity into operation.
“Target namin magkaroon ng partial energization ng December of 2027. That’s 65 million liters per day. At least maka-energize man lang kami ng kalahati, yun yung kino-commit namin kay Mayor Raisa Treñas,” Berba said during a press conference.
Construction has already started, with contractors deployed to the project site.
“Nag-deploy na kami onsite so nag-grading na ‘yung contractor namin, SUEZ and JEMCO,” Berba said.
The company is also working through the permitting requirements for the facility.
“Meron naman kami nakuhang ilang permit. Napakarami niyan eh. Kumbaga sa local government pa lang, meron kaming sampung permit diyan, per facility yan,” he said.
Berba said the company continues to coordinate with Treñas and provide updates on the project’s permitting and construction progress.
“This should be a priority project not only by MPIW but also the city government,” he said.
Parallel distribution projects are also underway to ensure that water produced by the desalination facility can reach targeted communities.
Portions of the network in Nabitasan have already been developed, with water expected to flow westward toward Iloilo City Proper and the port area.
“Ongoing din yung mga projects namin. Kaya kung may mapapansin kayo, may mga ginawa sa City Proper,” Berba said.
“From Nabitasan, may ginawa sa portion niyan. Water will flow westward. Lahat ng tatakbuhan niyan papuntang City Proper hanggang sa port area, ‘yan beneficiary ‘yan,” he added.
Pipelines have also been laid under the Iloilo City Proper Phase 2 project, while about 11 more projects are in the pipeline. Around 22 projects are being concentrated within areas expected to benefit from the desalination facility.
The desalination project was first announced in 2024 as an additional and more reliable water source for Iloilo City amid increasing demand.
Metro Pacific Water partnered with French water company SUEZ for the project, which was initially estimated to cost about P5 billion. The facility broke ground in Barangay Ingore in February 2025, with the investment later reported at around P5.5 billion.
The plant will use seawater reverse osmosis technology, which removes salt and other impurities from seawater to produce potable water./PN
