First Balfour president and COO Anthony Fernandez (standing, right) and Chun Wo Construction & Engineering CEO Stephen Lee Ka Lun with Manila Water, MWSS, NovaBala JV Corp. and Arup officials during the contract signing for the NBAQ4 projectFirst Balfour, together with its joint venture partners CMC di Ravenna of Italy and Chun Wo Construction & Engineering of Hong Kong, entered into a contract with Manila Water to design and construct the P5.3-billion Novaliches-Balara Aqueduct 4 (NBAQ4) project.

The project is part of Manila Water’s improvement and expansion initiatives in the east concession area in coordination with the Metropolitan Waterworks and Sewerage System.

One of the largest and most important infrastructure projects First Balfour has undertaken to date, the NBAQ4 project involves the construction of a new intake facility at La Mesa reservoir, a 7.3-kilometer underground aqueduct passing under Commonwealth Avenue and an outlet facility at the Balara water treatment plant.

alara water treatment plant. The existing aqueduct system—Aqueducts 1, 2 and 3—is required to continuously deliver 1,600 million liters per day (MLD) of raw water to Balara Treatment Plants 1 and 2. Built in 1929, 1956 and 1968 respectively, these aqueducts are nearing, if not already exceeding, the service life of 50 years for concrete structures.

Through the project, the construction of a fourth aqueduct designed to conform to the latest
seismic standards will enable the assessment and rehabilitation of the existing three aqueducts.

e existing three aqueducts. Once completed and commissioned in 2021, the new aqueduct will be capable of delivering 1,000 MLD to the treatment plants, ensuring the reliability and security of its raw water transmission system.

First Balfour services four core markets: power and energy, transport infrastructure, specialized buildings and water infrastructure. The company has undertaken various projects with Manila Water including reservoirs, sewage treatment plants and other pipe-laying projects. (Story/Photos by: Dolly Pasia)