Metro Iloilo Water District (MIWD) water distribution is scheduled to be turned over to private firm Metro Pacific Iloilo Water Inc. (MIW) in June. MIW is a joint venture between MIWD and the Metro Pacific Water Investments Corporation (MetroPac).

“The tentative date of turnover will be [the] first week of June,” affirmed Engr. Arnold Laurente, who chairs the Joint Venture Selection Committee. “We expect, by that time, the management and operation of the distribution of water will be done by our private partner, Metro Pacific Iloilo Water.”

MIWD and MetroPac signed a joint venture agreement back in 2013, which included the rehabilitation, replacement, upgrade, operation, maintenance, and expansion of MIWD’s existing water production and distribution network in Iloilo as a means to improve the delivery of treated water.

The agreement also seeks to upgrade the billing and collection system.

“The operation of water distribution system will now be done by [the] private sector,” Laurente explained. “Sila na ang maga conduct sang meter reading, compute sang bill, deliver sang bill (They will read meters, compute bills, and deliver the said bills).”

Among the prerequisites for consumers includes completing a new water service contract in order to transfer service to the new entity./WDJ