Pamana Water: Mr. Puregold Lucio Co’s low-profile water business

Last week, Chinese-Filipino tycoon Lucio Co pulled a surprise by acquiring 100% of Manny Villar’s troubled PrimeWater Infrastructure Corporation, one of the Philippines’ largest water utility firms, covering 1.7 million households. 

The transaction surprised many since it had been reported weeks earlier that PrimeWater had been in talks with Maynilad parent firm, Metro Pacific Investments Corporation headed by Manny V. Pangilinan. No less than the Maynilad chairman had confirmed the talks, telling reporters in Hong Kong, “I think if it works for us, if it’s commercially feasible for the group, then obviously we will take a look at it more seriously.” (READ: What’s next for Maynilad after its stock market debut?)

Lucio and wife Susan are well-known for being the couple behind the “grocery of the masses” —  Puregold — which grew from a single store in Mandaluyong City in 1998 to 511 stores, as of December 2024, mostly in Luzon. Puregold Price Club Inc. is now the second largest Philippine retailer in terms of revenues, next to the Sy family’s SM Retail. 

While Puregold caters to the lower-income classes, the Cos also own the high-end S&R Membership Shopping Warehouse. The Co family bought this in 2006 and has steadily grown the retail chain that caters to the upper-income classes. From only six stores in 2011, there are now 29 S&R stores that sell mostly imported goods, largely from the US. 

They also own Office Warehouse, a retail chain that focuses on selling office and school items. 

The Cos’ other high-profile businesses that consumers may know are: 

• S&R New York Style Pizza, a fast-food pizza chain with 62 stores nationwide 
• Merkado, a mall-based hypermart owned by AyaGold, a joint venture between the Cos’ Puregold and the Ayala Group. 
• Harbor Point Mall in Subic Bay
• 999 Shopping Mall in Binondo, Manila
• Keepers Holdings, liquor distributor which sells imported spirits, such as Alfonso I Light Brandy, Johnnie Walker, Jim Beam, Jose Cuervo, and Jinro (soju).  

These business ventures have largely made Lucio and Susan among the richest Filipinos on the Forbes’ World’s Billionaires list.

But there’s one family business that’s not been widely mentioned as being part of Lucio Co’s business empire: his water utility business. 

Co owns Pamana Water Corporation, a water utility firm with around 15 branches in six provinces: Pangasinan, Tarlac, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Bulacan, Laguna, and Pagadian City in Zamboanga del Sur. Co’s publicly listed conglomerate Cosco Capital Incorporated lists the 71-year-old businessman as a member of the board of directors of Pamana Water. 

Pamana started in 2017 or eight years ago, promising its customers that it was “committed to be one of the best utility companies in the country by providing and maintaining clean, safe and adqquate water supply.” 

Mr. Co has chosen to play a visible role in Pamana’s biggest branch, in Dagupan City, Pangasinan. Pamana Water District Dagupan City recently posted a Facebook reel showing its “chairman Lucio Co” visiting the branch and even joining the employees and some customers in a boodle fight. It’s one of the rare public appearances of Co that’s accessible on the web.

Pamana Water’s joint venture with Dagupan City dates back to 2020, and the utility firm claims to have expanded its service there from 27,677 concessioners in 2020 to 32,181 in 2025. It has laid out an additional 20,310 meters of pipes and increased its pumping stations from 18 to 24 over the five-year period.

Pamana Water Dagupan City says Co’s visit reinforces the “high quality of service being provided to all customers and ensuring continued operational excellence.” 

Pamana Water’s joint venture with Dagupan City was inked on December 4, 2020, with Co himself present during the signing in his PBCOM Tower, one of the tallest commercial buildings in the Philippines.

He has also graced joint venture agreement signings with other water districts, such as the one with Candaba Water District, Pampanga, in 2021 or during the COVID-19 pandemic. 

The anti-privatization group Water for the People Network (WPN), in a December 18 statement, says Pamana Water has 15 joint venture agreements in the provinces where they operate. 

It also criticized PrimeWater’s sale to Co’s Crystal Bridges, claiming Pamana Water hasn’t been a good partner for water districts, citing alleged “consumer complaints” in Nueva Ecija and Tarlac. 

Play Video

“Pamana is no saint. Like PrimeWater, consumers have criticized Co’s firm for entering previously well-performing water districts, delivering low to no water in Nueva Ecija, and providing dirty or yellowish water in Tarlac, all while imposing rate hikes such as those seen in Pangasinan,” said WPN spokesperson Leo Espelimbergo. 

Pamana Water, however, has claimed to be the “preferred water provider” in areas in Nueva Ecija, Tarlac, as well as in Pangasinan, Pampanga, and Laguna. 

Like many Tsinoys, Co and his wife Susan are media-shy, with hardly any press interviews. He was even absent when his friend, then-Bacolod mayor Albee Benitez, conferred on Co the title of “adopted son and honorary mayor of Bacolod City in February 2024. Co’s daughter Camille Clarisse Co-Lao and her husband Michael Stephen Lao represented Co in the ceremony. (READ: Lucio Co’s takeover of PrimeWater ‘injustice’ for Bacolod consumers – watchdogs)

“The title of Honorary Mayor serves as a distinguished recognition for individuals who have made exceptional contributions to the city’s economic growth and progress,” the city said, citing Co’s projects, such as the Bredco port facilities, Puregold, and the S&R Membership Shopping. 

Lucio Co will probably have to be more transparent and accessbile to the public after buying PrimeWater, what with the numerous complaints from consumers and lapses confirmed by regulators. As Rappler’s business columnist Val Villanueva says, when consumers’ trust is lost, the new owner must work hard to rebuild it, starting by being more transparent and open in its dealings. (READ: [Vantage Point] PrimeWater’s sellout: A ghost buyer and a broken utility) – Rappler.com