Commencement Ceremony Held for "Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (3rd Stage)"
METAWATER Co., Ltd., as the representative company, held the commencement ceremony for the "Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (3rd Stage)" on April 8th. This project comprehensively outsources Arao City's water supply business for 10 years, aiming to build a resilient and sustainable water system.
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- 📰 Published: April 23, 2026 at 23:10
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METAWATER Co., Ltd. (President: Kenji Yamaguchi, Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo) participated as the representative company in the "Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (3rd Stage)" (hereinafter, "this project"). To commemorate the commencement of operations, a ceremony hosted by the project's Special Purpose Company (SPC), "Arao Water Service Co., Ltd." (Representative Director: Tsuguo Kusano, Headquarters: Arao City, Kumamoto Prefecture, hereinafter "Arao Water Service"), was held on April 8th at the Arao City Waterworks Bureau premises.
The ceremony was attended by approximately 30 people, including Arao City Waterworks Bureau Administrator Takao Miyazaki, Arao City Waterworks Bureau Director and General Affairs Division Manager Keiji Tomiyasu, Arao Water Service Representative Director Tsuguo Kusano, METAWATER Executive Officer and PPP Division General Manager Masaaki Takahashi, and other related parties.
This project was publicly tendered as a comprehensive private consignment aimed at stably continuing Arao City's water supply business into the future and maintaining/improving water services for citizens. The "1st Stage" of this project (project period: April 2016 - March 2021 (5 years)) attracted attention as an advanced project that comprehensively outsourced water and sewerage business operations nationwide, from customer service to water facility operation/maintenance, water facility construction, and BCM*1-based crisis management. The "2nd Stage" (same period: April 2021 - March 2026 (5 years)) expanded the scope of performance standardization*2 compared to the 1st Stage.
This "3rd Stage" (same period: April 1, 2026 - March 31, 2036) responds to the requirements of the national "Water Public-Private Partnership" (formerly: Water PPP)*3 and has been extended from the previous 5 years to 10 years. The scope of operations is also diverse, covering everything from customer service such as window operations and fee collection, to water facility operation/maintenance, crisis management, and the formulation and implementation of pipeline and facility renewal plans based on asset management. In particular, a large-scale reorganization project will be implemented at the "Central Water Source," the "heart" of Arao City's water supply business, including the reconstruction of the water pump building, to build a resilient and sustainable water system.
In this project, the Arao City Waterworks Bureau is seeking a "joint partner to work towards the continuity of the city's water business." Our group responds to this by strengthening a public-private integrated growth system through joint training with city officials aimed at technical succession and joint inspections of planned construction sites.
Leveraging our accumulated achievements in public-private partnership (PPP) projects and 10 years of business operation experience in Arao City, we will continue to stably provide safe and secure water services to the citizens of Arao.
*1 BCM (Business Continuity Management). Comprehensive business continuity management, including continuous improvement activities such as formulating, introducing, operating, and reviewing BCP (Business Continuity Plan) for corporate business continuity in emergencies.
*2 Shifting from the conventional "specification-based ordering" (a method where the ordering party clearly specifies details of the order content and implementation methods) to a method where the required performance standards are clearly defined, and the process and methods are left to the business operator.
*3 This refers to expanding the introduction of public-private partnership methods (integrated management method for management and renewal) for water supply, industrial water supply, and sewerage, along with public facility operation projects, as "Water PPP" over the 10-year period of the PPP/PFI Promotion Action Plan (2022-2031), to gradually transition to concessions. (From the Cabinet Office website)
[For Reference]
Please refer to the following past news releases regarding this matter:
・"Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (3rd Stage)" service consignment contract concluded (Press release February 26, 2026)
・Commencement Ceremony Held for "Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (2nd Stage)" (Press release April 8, 2021)
・Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (2nd Stage) service consignment contract concluded (Press release March 2, 2021)
・Commencement Ceremony Held for Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (Press release April 5, 2016)
・Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment service consignment contract concluded (Press release December 9, 2015)
Scene of tape cutting
Greetings from Arao City Waterworks Bureau Administrator Miyazaki
Greetings from Arao Water Service Co., Ltd. Representative Director Kusano
Greetings from METAWATER Executive Officer and PPP Division General Manager Takahashi
Operating policy explained by Arao Water Service Co., Ltd. Director Takeda
Keywords:
The ceremony was attended by approximately 30 people, including Arao City Waterworks Bureau Administrator Takao Miyazaki, Arao City Waterworks Bureau Director and General Affairs Division Manager Keiji Tomiyasu, Arao Water Service Representative Director Tsuguo Kusano, METAWATER Executive Officer and PPP Division General Manager Masaaki Takahashi, and other related parties.
This project was publicly tendered as a comprehensive private consignment aimed at stably continuing Arao City's water supply business into the future and maintaining/improving water services for citizens. The "1st Stage" of this project (project period: April 2016 - March 2021 (5 years)) attracted attention as an advanced project that comprehensively outsourced water and sewerage business operations nationwide, from customer service to water facility operation/maintenance, water facility construction, and BCM*1-based crisis management. The "2nd Stage" (same period: April 2021 - March 2026 (5 years)) expanded the scope of performance standardization*2 compared to the 1st Stage.
This "3rd Stage" (same period: April 1, 2026 - March 31, 2036) responds to the requirements of the national "Water Public-Private Partnership" (formerly: Water PPP)*3 and has been extended from the previous 5 years to 10 years. The scope of operations is also diverse, covering everything from customer service such as window operations and fee collection, to water facility operation/maintenance, crisis management, and the formulation and implementation of pipeline and facility renewal plans based on asset management. In particular, a large-scale reorganization project will be implemented at the "Central Water Source," the "heart" of Arao City's water supply business, including the reconstruction of the water pump building, to build a resilient and sustainable water system.
In this project, the Arao City Waterworks Bureau is seeking a "joint partner to work towards the continuity of the city's water business." Our group responds to this by strengthening a public-private integrated growth system through joint training with city officials aimed at technical succession and joint inspections of planned construction sites.
Leveraging our accumulated achievements in public-private partnership (PPP) projects and 10 years of business operation experience in Arao City, we will continue to stably provide safe and secure water services to the citizens of Arao.
*1 BCM (Business Continuity Management). Comprehensive business continuity management, including continuous improvement activities such as formulating, introducing, operating, and reviewing BCP (Business Continuity Plan) for corporate business continuity in emergencies.
*2 Shifting from the conventional "specification-based ordering" (a method where the ordering party clearly specifies details of the order content and implementation methods) to a method where the required performance standards are clearly defined, and the process and methods are left to the business operator.
*3 This refers to expanding the introduction of public-private partnership methods (integrated management method for management and renewal) for water supply, industrial water supply, and sewerage, along with public facility operation projects, as "Water PPP" over the 10-year period of the PPP/PFI Promotion Action Plan (2022-2031), to gradually transition to concessions. (From the Cabinet Office website)
[For Reference]
Please refer to the following past news releases regarding this matter:
・"Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (3rd Stage)" service consignment contract concluded (Press release February 26, 2026)
・Commencement Ceremony Held for "Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (2nd Stage)" (Press release April 8, 2021)
・Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (2nd Stage) service consignment contract concluded (Press release March 2, 2021)
・Commencement Ceremony Held for Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment (Press release April 5, 2016)
・Arao City Water Supply Business Comprehensive Consignment service consignment contract concluded (Press release December 9, 2015)
Scene of tape cutting
Greetings from Arao City Waterworks Bureau Administrator Miyazaki
Greetings from Arao Water Service Co., Ltd. Representative Director Kusano
Greetings from METAWATER Executive Officer and PPP Division General Manager Takahashi
Operating policy explained by Arao Water Service Co., Ltd. Director Takeda
Keywords: