West Zone concessionaire Maynilad Water Services Inc. has mobilized P1.07 billion to augment the storage capacity of its main reservoir in Quezon City to address water supply constraints.

Maynilad has 39 reservoirs across its franchise area, but the Bagbag Reservoir, which can store up to 200 million liters of treated water produced by its La Mesa Treatment Plants 1 and 2, serves as its primary reservoir.

It serves around four million customers in Quezon City, Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas, Manila, Makati, Pasay, and parts of Parañaque and Cavite — representing approximately 58 percent of Maynilad's total customer base.

Maynilad said over the weekend that the expansion of Bagbag Reservoir involves the construction of a new chamber in this underground reservoir, which will add another 100 million liters to its storage capacity.

Likewise, the water company said other enhancement works on the facility, including a 1,800mm-diameter inlet and outlet pipeline installation, new tank construction, and pump upgrade to improve its operating capacity.

"Water demand has been increasing over the years due to population growth in urban areas.

By increasing our water-storage capacity, we can address water availability issues, especially during hours of peak demand when consumption can sometimes exceed our water reserves," said Maynilad President and CEO Ramoncito Fernandez.

Based on the latest timeline provided by the company, the project is scheduled to be completed by 2027.

Maynilad is the concessionaire of the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System for the West Zone of the Greater Manila Area composed of certain areas in the cities of Manila, Quezon City, Makati, Caloocan, Pasay, Parañaque, Las Piñas, Muntinlupa, Valenzuela, Navotas and Malabon.

It also operates in the cities of Cavite, Bacoor, and Imus, and the towns of Kawit, Noveleta, and Rosario.