By Nimfa L. Estrellado-Laurino Officials gather at the 4,250-cubic-meter Tongko Reservoir project in Tayabas City. (Lucena PIO) LUCENA ...
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| Officials gather at the 4,250-cubic-meter Tongko Reservoir project in Tayabas City. (Lucena PIO) |
LUCENA CITY — A ₱500-million overhaul of Lucena City’s water network has begun, launching 14 infrastructure projects intended to address persistent supply and distribution problems. Hiraya Water Corporation will upgrade major facilities and develop additional water sources under the citywide improvement program.
Barangay Marketview will receive new 100-millimeter and 75-millimeter pipelines serving homes and establishments across the community. The replacement is expected to improve water flow through a key section of the local network once the newly installed pipelines become fully operational.
Related work will reach the Lucena City barangays of Cotta, Gulang-Gulang, Ilayang Dupay and Mayao Crossing, along with other locations that have yet to be publicly identified. The improvements could benefit households, businesses and public institutions that rely on consistent water service for their daily activities and essential community operations.
Mayor Mark Alcala, Vice Mayor Roderick “Dondon” Alcala and Hiraya owner Lucio Co led the groundbreaking activities on July 26. Ceremonies were held in Barangay Marketview and at the Lucena City Government Complex to formally mark the beginning of construction across the project sites.
The investment responds to continuing demands from concessionaires for adequate supply, sufficient pressure and fewer water interruptions across Lucena. Those concerns have placed greater pressure on the service provider and city leaders to deliver visible improvements that residents can experience and measure at the household level.
Mayor Mark Alcala said the program would address interconnected sections of the water network instead of concentrating on a single facility or service area. He described the undertaking as a major step toward strengthening the city’s overall distribution capacity and improving the reliability of water services.
“Ang mga proyektong ito ng Hiraya Water Corporation ay isang mahalagang hakbang tungo sa mas maayos at mas matatag na water distribution system sa ating lungsod,” Mayor Alcala said.
The city government and Hiraya also signed a partnership and commitment agreement formalizing the company’s ₱500-million infrastructure allocation. The document establishes their cooperation as the individual project components proceed from initial planning and groundbreaking to full-scale construction.
Alcala said the combined works would cover how water is sourced, stored and delivered to concessionaires throughout the city. He added that each infrastructure component would address a different operational requirement within the broader distribution network.
“Sa pamamagitan ng pipe replacement, reservoir retrofitting, bypass-line construction at source development, layunin ng mga proyektong ito na mapalakas at mapabuti ang ating water system,” Mayor Alcala said.
Key implementation details, however, remain undisclosed despite the size and public importance of the announced infrastructure investment. Hiraya and the city government have not released the complete list of project sites, their individual costs or specific construction schedules.
No targets were announced for additional water production, stronger pressure, longer service hours or the number of concessionaires expected to benefit directly. Without those specific benchmarks, the public will have limited means of determining whether the completed facilities deliver the promised improvements.
The announcement also did not define the Quezon Metropolitan Water District’s role in implementing, monitoring or supervising the infrastructure work. Information on possible road disruptions, temporary water interruptions and the release of regular construction updates was likewise unavailable.
Following the agreement signing, Mayor Alcala and Vice Mayor Alcala presented Co with a miniature replica of Lucena’s historic obelisk. Co received the statue as a symbol of the city and a commemorative marker of its newly formalized partnership with the company.
The infrastructure program follows a significant change in the company’s ownership structure and corporate identity. Formerly PrimeWater Infrastructure Corporation, Hiraya adopted its new corporate name after the Securities and Exchange Commission approved the change on June 10, 2026.
The company said the renaming did not alter its registration, assets, liabilities, contracts or existing joint venture agreements with water districts. Its nationwide operations came under Co’s Crystal Bridges Holding Corporation through the acquisition of PrimeWater’s water supply, wastewater, septage and bulk-water portfolio.
The ₱500-million commitment now shifts public attention from the signing and groundbreaking ceremonies to construction, disclosure and actual project delivery. Its success will ultimately be judged by whether all 14 projects are completed and provide Lucena concessionaires with sustained and reliable water service.
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