MCWD, barangay officials visit Lusaran water project

CEBU, Philippines —  Officials of barangays Lahug, Apas and Busay as well as top management of the Metropolitan Cebu Water District (MCWD) inspected the ongoing site development of the Lusaran Bulk Water Project six weeks before it will start supplying potable water to the water district.

The three barangays will directly benefit when the project is commissioned on September 4.

Engr. Joffrey Hapitan, CEO of JE Hydro and Bio-Energy Corp., the company undertaking the project, said his men are working 24/7 as he is determined to keep his promise to deliver as scheduled.

The Lusaran water project will supply 15,000 cubic meters of water a day to MCWD.

With the additional supply, the water district will be lifting the suspension of the processing of water service application from barangays Busay, Lahug, Apas, Camputhaw and Capitol Site when the Lusaran Bulk Water Project starts to deliver 15,000 cubic meters of water daily in September this year.

“Dako akong pasalamat nga hapit na gyud masulbad ang among problema. Sa dugay nga panahon, aduna na gyud kasulbaran ug kini gipangandoy sa tanan lumulopyo. Salamat GM Stephen Yee ug Chairman Daluz of MCWD ug sa JE Hydro ug ni Engr. Hapitan,” Busay baragay captain Maria Christia Famador said.

The completion of the Lusaran project also means that the water district can start serving at least nine mountain barangays in Cebu City that do not have access to MCWD water yet.

These barangays are Budlaan, Pulangbato, Binaliw, Agsungot, Guba, Malubog, Cambinocot, Lusaran and Paril.  The water district is now finalizing the detailed engineering design of the distribution line for these areas and will soon bid out the project.

The Lusaran Bulk Water Project was awarded to JE Hydro and Bio-Energy Corp. last March 4, 2021. It sources water from the Lusaran River and uses the conventional way of treating water.  MCWD is constructing a reservoir in Busay to store water from the Lusaran Bulk Water Project, which will be distributed to the consumers in Lahug, Apas, Camputhaw and Capitol Site.

The purchase of the water supply was done through competitive bidding under Republic Act 9184 or the Government Procurement Reform Act.

MCWD has doubled its efforts to establish additional water sources to address the gap between the supply and demand for potable water in Metro Cebu.

The water district has started the bidding process for the procurement of desalinated water from a plant in Cebu City South and another plant in Opao, Mandaue City through competitive bidding under RA 9184.

The desalinated bulk water supply contract will have a validity of 25 years and the winning supplier must be able to supply 10,000 cubic meters of water in the first year and 25,000 cubic meters in the succeeding years until the contract expires.

The winning supplier must ensure that they can deliver sustainable and reliable supply to MCWD throughout the contract duration.

MCWD is now producing 240,000 cubic meters of water per day from 138 wells and private bulk water suppliers covering only 32 percent of the total water demand of Metro Cebu.

These sourcing efforts will bring about a significant increase in MCWD’s total supply.  The water district targets to serve up to 70 percent of the total demand in 10 years.

MCWD is serving the cities of Cebu, Talisay, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu as well as the towns of Cordova, Consolacion, Liloan and Compostela. — PR, GMR (FREEMAN)