BATAAN, Philippines — The Freeport Area of Bataan is preparing for one of its biggest utility upgrades in years, with a ₱1.358-billion public-private partnership aimed at rebuilding and expanding the economic zone’s aging water and sanitation network.
The Authority of the Freeport Area of Bataan (AFAB) has entered into a 25-year Joint Venture Agreement with a consortium composed of Tubig Pilipinas Group Inc. and FB Infrastructure Corporation, handing the private partners a long-term mandate to rehabilitate, operate, maintain, expand and manage the Freeport’s water supply and sewerage systems.
The agreement was formally signed on July 23, 2026, in Mariveles, Bataan, by AFAB Administrator and CEO Hussein P. Pangandaman, Tubig Pilipinas President Ryan Wesley T. Yapkianwee and FB Infrastructure President Francesca Kasandra T. De Jesus. Representatives of the Philippine Public-Private Partnership Center witnessed the signing.
But behind the ₱1.36-billion investment is a number that illustrates why the overhaul could be critical for the Freeport: about 51 percent of its water is currently classified as non-revenue water, according to additional reporting by InsiderPH.
Non-revenue water refers to treated water that does not generate income because it is lost through leaks, faulty meters, unauthorized connections or other system inefficiencies. The consortium intends to bring that figure down to about 20 percent by 2039.
That target means the project is not simply about finding more water. A major part of the challenge will be preventing existing supply from disappearing before reaching paying customers.
68 kilometers of pipelines, more treatment capacity
Under the modernization program, Tubig Pilipinas and FB Infrastructure are expected to rehabilitate, replace or expand approximately 68 kilometers of water pipelines across the Freeport.
The project is also expected to add roughly 27 million liters per day of treatment capacity and ultimately target full wastewater and sanitation coverage within the economic zone.
Technology will play a major role in reaching those targets.
Plans reported by InsiderPH include smart water meters, leak-detection technology, supervisory control and data acquisition or SCADA systems, and cloud-based geographic information systems that can help operators monitor infrastructure and water distribution in real time.
The PPP Center said the broader program covers rehabilitation and replacement of aging pipelines, upgrades to existing facilities, construction of new infrastructure, expansion of service coverage and implementation of a more effective sewage-management system.
Why AFAB needs the upgrade
The existing water system serving the Freeport is built around infrastructure that has been operating for decades.
Daily Tribune reported that the economic zone relies primarily on the roughly 50-year-old FAB Dam, which has a reservoir capacity of about 2.4 billion gallons and is connected to a dedicated treatment facility.
Earlier project documents from the PPP Center also identified several weaknesses in the existing system, including limited supply during drought periods, aging infrastructure, inadequate wastewater treatment, unreliable production monitoring and irregular water-meter replacement.
Those weaknesses carry implications far beyond household water supply.
Reliable water, wastewater treatment and sanitation are essential services for factories, commercial facilities and prospective investors considering locating inside an industrial economic zone.
Tubig Pilipinas President Ryan Wesley Yapkianwee said the objective is to ensure the Freeport’s water infrastructure is capable of supporting businesses, communities and future locators as economic activity expands.
Water infrastructure becomes an investment issue
The deal comes as Bataan and the broader Central Luzon region position themselves for additional industrial and infrastructure development.
Central Luzon’s economy expanded by 4.5 percent in 2025, with industry representing 41.8 percent of regional economic output, according to figures cited by InsiderPH. The Freeport’s utility modernization is therefore being positioned not only as an environmental or public-service project but also as infrastructure needed to accommodate future investment.
The project could become even more significant as other major transport infrastructure developments improve Bataan’s connectivity with surrounding economic regions.
Among them is the planned Bataan-Cavite Interlink Bridge, a proposed 32.15-kilometer connection intended to dramatically reduce travel time between the two provinces.
For industrial locators, however, faster roads and bridges are only part of the equation. Manufacturing plants and commercial facilities also require dependable power, telecommunications, water and wastewater infrastructure before large investments can be sustained.
That makes AFAB’s water deal part of a wider effort to prepare the Freeport for its next stage of expansion.
Deal went through PPP competitive process
The project originated from an unsolicited proposal submitted by the Tubig Pilipinas-FB Infrastructure consortium before undergoing evaluation, negotiations, approval and a comparative challenge process under the Philippine PPP framework.
AFAB formally issued the project’s Notice of Award on July 1, 2026, before the Joint Venture Agreement was signed later that month.
The government puts the approved project cost at approximately ₱1.36 billion, with a concession period lasting 25 years.
InsiderPH reported that after a Notice to Proceed is issued, the consortium is expected to undergo a nine-month transition period before formally taking over operations, with full operational responsibility targeted for May 2027.
The bigger test comes after the signing
The agreement gives AFAB a long-term private partner and commits substantial capital to upgrading one of the Freeport’s most essential utilities.
But signing a 25-year concession is only the beginning.
The measure of success will ultimately be whether the consortium can replace aging infrastructure while keeping services reliable, expand wastewater coverage, add the promised treatment capacity and—perhaps most importantly—bring water losses down from roughly half of the system’s supply toward the 20-percent target.
If those targets are achieved, the ₱1.36-billion investment could do more than repair pipes beneath the Freeport.
It could remove one of the infrastructure constraints standing between Bataan and its next wave of industrial growth.
WWC ONE MEDIA MJE
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