CONSIDERING THE huge financial and operational burdens of PrimeWater, a company owned by the Villar Group but has been widely criticized for inefficiency, why would retail giant, Lucio and Susan Co of Cosco Capital Inc.– who owns and operates popular supermarket brands, Puregold, S&R and Merkado – be so determined to buy a bankrupt water company?
The only thing certain is that Mr. and Mrs. Co are passionate and visionaries who would risk everything to serve a bigger base of people– especially those failed by the Villars.
NOT SO FAST
But as far as the Palace is concerned, the Villars would still have to comply with their responsibilities under the 25-year concession agreement, especially the failed systems in their concession areas.
In a press briefing, Palace Press Officer Claire Castro said PrimeWater Infrastructure Corp. must still honor its existing concession agreements and may be still held accountable for its previous lapses even under its new ownership.
Previous reports hinted that the Villar group has decided to sell PrimeWater to the Lucio Co Group, who owns the supermarket chain Puregold Price Club Inc., reads part of a report published by the Business Mirror.
UNDER PROBE
The change in PrimeWater management comes after the water concessionaire faced an extensive investigation from the Local Water Utilities Administration (LWUA) earlier this year due to its alleged unreliable and exorbitant services.
LWUA launched its probe in May after at least 20 of the water districts served by PrimeWater filed complaints on the services provided by the water concessionaire.
Aside from the water districts with whom PrimeWater has an existing Joint Venture Agreement (JVA), the Villar company has been at the receiving end of nasty remarks from consumers who felt being robbed of the limited resources they have.
“Ambilis maningil pero walang matinong serbisyo… pamilyang perwisyo,” reads one of the comments in a social media post.
MORE CONCERNS
Castro allayed concerns that the new development may lead to service disruption for PrimeWater customers.
“According to [LWUA Administrator] Jose Moises Salonga, they will come out with a memorandum circular this month to make sure the water services of the concessionaires will not be disrupted,” she said.
As for PrimeWater customers who did not receive any service from the water concessionaire, she said they should not be charged. “So let us wait for the memorandum circular which will be issued by LWUA about that,” Castro added.
Castro said the government will continue to look into PrimeWater’s alleged past lapses. The Senate said it would also investigate the sale and unresolved issues.
LOOKING BACK
Last July, Castro announced the Office of the President already started reviewing the staggering volume of pieces of evidence on PrimeWater’s alleged poor service.
She said the President concurred with LWUA’s recommendation to address the said complaints.
LWUA’s Salonga earlier said they are considering terminating the approved government agreements with PrimeWater and LWUA would temporarily provide reliable and clean water to customers failed by PrimeWater.
SILENT RICH
Interestingly, Lucio Co and wife are not even on the Forbes’ list of the world’s billionaires, but looking into web-based sources, the Co couple are worth of $3 billion as of mid 2025, making them the 9th richest in the Philippines with their wealth from retail, liquor, real estate and other businesses under Cosco Capital.
But their 100% purchase of PrimeWater, through Crystal Bridges Holding Corporation is covered by a definitive agreement and would take over in the middle of multiple investigations and local governments wanting to preterminate all over the country.
In Bacolod City, for instance, consumers are frustrated by the sale.
EASY WAY OUT
“Now that PrimeWater is in hot water, it is simply being sold to another private entity. Is this the solution? Where is the accountability? Will PrimeWater be allowed to walk away without consequences? Is this yet another attempt to fool the Bacolodnons?” the Bacolod City Water District Employees Union said in a statement.
Bacolod City just averted a major water crisis this weekend. PrimeWater had not paid three months of outstanding bills to its water supplier, and the subcontractor had threatened to cut the water line. Emergency negotiations ended in a clutch commitment by PrimeWater to pay on Saturday, December 13, or a day after the deadline, reported Rappler.
PrimeWater not paying its subcontractors is not an isolated incident with Rappler citing another contractor involved in at least two water districts.
SENATE PROBE
Aside from the LWUA, the Senate has likewise been investigating the Villar family business’ fiasco.
Senator Raffy Tulfo, chair of the Senate public works committee investigating PrimeWater’s failure of obligations in at least half of its nearly 80 joint venture agreements, had also cited another case of an unpaid contractor.
The Villar group confirmed on December 16 that 100% of PrimeWater had been acquired by Crystal Bridges Holding Corporation, the investment firm of Puregold tycoon Lucio Co., owned by Co’s children, with Puregold heir Vincent Co as chairman and president, according to the company’s 2025 general information sheet.
TRANSPARENCY
In Himamaylan, Negros Occidental, the local council wants full transparency of what the Co group’s acquisition will entail.
Vice Mayor Justin Dominic Gatuslao told Rappler that the local government was not informed beforehand, and that “it turns out even the members of the board of the water district were not aware of the transaction.”
Gatuslao said the next move of the council will be to ask the water district for the strategy with the Co group. “What are our non-negotiables and what is it that we want to push considering that we want to take this as a new opportunity, a fresh start so that we can finally take off from a solid foundation?” said Gatuslao, who described the Villar group operation as “definitely a failure.”
DISSOLVE DEAL
In San Fernando, Pampanga, Mayor Vilma Caluag told Rappler that they are not keen on giving PrimeWater a second chance even with different management. The mayor appealed to the new owners, “Palayain na nila kami, pakawalan na nila kami, nagmamakaawa ako sa kanila para naman mabawasan naman ang challenges namin sa siyudad ng San Fernando.”
Caluag unilaterally suspended PrimeWater’s business permit in her city, which is now being pitched as a blueprint for other localities that want out of the 25-year deal. The water district, which is under LWUA, had also preterminated the contract, Caluag was quoted as saying.
IMPROPER FORUM
Sen. Tulfo in a hearing said PrimeWater’s technique has always been to take to court whoever attempts to break free, and “most of the time,” they win.
Caluag said PrimeWater had been allowed three catch-up plans in San Fernando, but services did not improve. Since doing a full offensive on PrimeWater, Caluag said the constituents have experienced some relief in water services.
“We don’t want a legal battle anymore, we don’t stand a chance. So, I hope they let us go so we can move on, and we can get to work,” Caluag said.
LEGAL BATTLE
In metropolitan La Union, the water district is still locked in a legal battle over pretermination. The Water for the People Network La Union said the sale was just a “pure business transaction” that “did not answer fundamental questions” about the joint venture.
“We should not allow the Villars to get away with the damage they have caused the community. They should be made to pay damages to consumers deprived of good water service,” the group said.
Hospitality business owners in surf town San Juan, La Union, who have been impacted by the water disruptions, said that while the sale “may invite reassessment, the sale of PrimeWater does not extinguish existing service obligations.”
“Consumers must not be made to shoulder the cost of PrimeWater’s operational and management failures,” said Monalisa Luebben-Binlot, president of the San Juan Resort Restaurant and Hotel Association.
BEFORE THE SALE
Prior to the acquisition, PrimeWater was wholly- owned by Prime Asset Ventures of Manuel Paolo Villar, son of tycoon Manuel Villar and brother of senators Mark and Camille Villar.
It was during the time of Mark Villar as secretary of the Department of Public Works and Highways under the Duterte administration when PrimeWater rapidly grew, increasing its joint venture agreements by five-fold. From 15 JVAs by the end of 2015, they now have 77 JVAs nationwide.
Half have been wanting to forfeit PrimeWater’s performance bond, according to Rappler’s analysis of audit reports, and half have been wanting to preterminate the contracts, according to Tulfo’s survey of its partner water districts.
SYNDICATED ESTAFA
Kabataan Representative Renee Co told Rappler in an earlier interview that PrimeWater under Villar should be criminally investigated “for estafa, syndicated estafa, and graft, if officials are involved.”
“The government should freeze assets and require performance bonds to make sure contractors, water districts, and consumers get paid and protected,” said Co.
House Assistant Majority Leader and Las Piñas City Rep. Mark Anthony Santos expressed concern over the sale of PrimeWater Infrastructure Corporation, which controls numerous local water districts, to Crystal Bridges Holding Corp.
NO CONSULTATION
According to Santos, the sale is alarming because control of such a critical public service has shifted to a private entity through a corporate deal conducted largely outside public scrutiny, with minimal consultation with consumers or local governments.
“Let’s be clear: PrimeWater is not an ordinary company. It directly operates local water districts, which are inherently public utilities. These water districts should not be treated like shares that can be bought and sold as ordinary assets,” Santos said.
The lawmaker said that customers in the service area covered by PrimeWater have long complained about intermittent and inadequate water supply, unsafe and contaminated water, delayed or insufficient infrastructure improvements, and rising rates despite poor service.
“Now we are told there is a new owner and that improvements will automatically follow. But a change in ownership does not automatically fix the system,” he added.
NOT THE VILLAIN
Santos clarified that he is not against the private sector.
“We need investment and technical capacity in water infrastructure. But it’s a different matter when we’re talking about an essential service. When it comes to water, people have no choice. You can’t just tell them to switch providers,” he explained.
“If PrimeWater was sold for a high price, who would recover the costs? Consumers, through higher rates? Will the public pay for a corporate deal they had no say in?” Santos asked.
Santos cited that Congress must ensure the protection of consumers.
“Will long-standing joint venture contracts with known issues be reviewed? How will regulators ensure that service comes first, not profit? Do local governments and water districts still have a real voice, or are they merely signing off on boardroom decisions?” he asked.
EXPENSIVE WATER
“We are simultaneously facing climate change, aging water systems, a growing population, and communities still relying on water trucks. Yet water is being traded in corporate transactions. That is dangerous,” he added.
Santos also underscored that “Water is life. And life should not depend solely on corporate deals.”
“If this sale results in better service, more affordable rates, and wider access, then we welcome it. But if it leads to higher costs, weaker service, and reduced accountability, then Congress must act,” Santos added. “We are not here to defend conglomerates. We are here to defend every Filipino family—one faucet, one community, one right at a time.”
NOTORIOUSLY FAMOUS
Bacolod Rep. Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” Benitez said PrimeWater has been the subject of numerous complaints nationwide for its alleged poor service. It entered into a joint venture agreement (JVA) with the Bacolod City Water District (Baciwa).
The Villar Group’s water utility firm took over Baciwa’s operations in 2020 following the signing of a 25-year JVA.
In a radio interview, Benitez said that the Villar Group has sold PrimeWater and that a new owner is set to take over with the sale concluded last week.
Benitez said that when he became mayor of Bacolod, PrimeWater’s water supply was at 60 to 70 million liters per day (MLD), short of the 100 MLD target. This has since been achieved, he was quoted by Inquirer.
He noted that another major issue is the need to replace old pipes and other facilities in Bacolod’s water system.
ANYONE BUT VILLAR
Baciwa has estimated that P1.5 billion is needed for the modernization and improvement of water services in Bacolod, he said, adding that the new firm must invest in modernization.
“I told Baciwa to avoid a messy court case. It should convince the new owner of PrimeWater to improve the provisions of the JVA, which is a bit one-sided,” he added.
He said that the new owner aside from having experience in the water business also possesses the necessary technical and financial capability. “The new firm is definitely much better than PrimeWater of the Villars,” Benitez said.
Benitez also said he has no problem with other water concessionaires entering Bacolod, noting that increased competition would benefit consumers.
INTERESTED TAKERS
PrimeWater, a subsidiary of Prime Asset Ventures, Inc., serves over 1.7 million households and supplies about 500 million liters of water per day across more than 100 partnered water districts nationwide. Its operations span multiple provinces, including Bulacan, Batangas, and Laguna.
Some big companies, including Pangilinan-led Metro Pacific Investments Corp., had expressed interest to acquire the water company after billionaire Manuel B. Villar, Jr. said he wanted to dispose of PrimeWater, saying the company is “being used against us in politics” amid mounting criticism of its services.
China Bank Capital Corp. Managing Director Juan Paolo E. Colet said that the tycoon’s takeover of the water utility would work due to his resources and network.