Approval process for the construction of the Wawa bulk water supply project is now on its final stretch as the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) assured its proponent the government considers it as a major flagship project for Metro Manila’s water security.
Reynaldo Velasco, MWSS chairman, said the regulatory body’s board will soon give the project its final approval after receiving last November 7 the favorable opinion from the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel (OGCC) on the remaining conditions precedent to make the project fully effective.
“We are in a catch-up mode as far as water supply source is concerned. Wawa Dam, which used to be the water source for Metro Manila before Angat Dam was completed on 1967 and became operational, has been identified by water experts as the best potential water supply source for Metro Manila,” Velasco said in a statement November 8.
The supplemental agreement which was submitted last September 13 is crucial for penalties, access road responsibility and metering protocol.
It is the remaining document for the project proponent to proceed in the development work.
Wawa JV Co., the joint venture between Enrique Razon’s Prime Infra and businessman Oscar Violago’s San Lorenzo Ruiz Builders Group is developing the project which aims to supply 80 million liters per day (MLD) of water in 2021 and over 500 MLD by 2025.
Last August, an offtake agreement was signed by the JV with Manila Water Co. after a series of technical workshops and review by MWSS and the OGCC.
