Water PNG Limited is considering collaboration with independent water producers, including Edevu Water Limited, to help meet Port Moresby’s growing water demand, but only after thorough consultation, technical assessment and due diligence, a senior official told PNG SUN.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) James Young made the above comment when responding to our question on independent water supply options available.
Mr Young confirmed that Water PNG has commissioned an independent review of Edevu Water Limited’s proposal for a 130-megalitre-per-day water supply scheme.
The review recommends further due diligence on costing, process, water quality assessment and risk management before any major commitment is made.
“Our position is clear,” Mr Young said.
“We will consider credible private or independent supply options, but they must be properly engineered, independently verified, and commercially and legally sound, because this is critical infrastructure for the nation’s capital.”
CEO Young said parts of Port Moresby’s raw water supply system are currently shared with PNG Power infrastructure, including assets linked to the Rouna system, which is owned by PNG Power.
He said Water PNG’s technical assessments have identified reliability risks arising from this shared infrastructure.
“Maintenance or problems on the power side can disrupt water flows or affect raw water quality,” Mr Young said.
He cited a recent PNG Power maintenance activity that led to a major turbidity spike in raw water, creating significant treatment challenges and increasing outage risk due to the city’s limited water storage buffer.
Mr Young said Water PNG cannot duplicate infrastructure overnight, but the utility is focused on building resilience into the system.
“We are upgrading treatment capability, increasing storage, and removing single points of failure so that planned works or unexpected shocks have less impact on water supply,” he said.
According to Mr Young, the most cost-effective solutions for Port Moresby include reducing water losses, increasing storage capacity, and augmenting the existing Eriama water supply scheme.
He noted that the engineering behind the Eriama scheme, developed in 1963, followed world best practice and remains the most economical option for modern needs due to its 100 per cent gravity-fed design, which keeps costs low for consumers.