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Most Akure homes rely on their own or a shared borehole, wells, tanker deliveries and sachet or bottled water, because public pipe-borne supply has been inadequate for decades, The Guardian reported in December 2025. Work then began on rehabilitating the Owena Dam treatment plant and new pipelines to Akure, with no completion date given. In the labelled example below, buying two tanker loads a month costs about the same as paying off a ₦1.5 million borehole over five years.
Ask anyone renting in Akure what they check first and water comes near the top. Public supply has long fallen short, so most households arrange their own. This guide explains where public supply stands, how homes actually get water, what each option costs as a labelled example, and how to keep drinking water safe.
Public supply: where it stands
The Guardian reported on 9 December 2025 that Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa performed the groundbreaking for water projects at the Owena Multipurpose Dam in Igbara-Oke, Ifedore Local Government, supported by the African Development Bank and the Agence Française de Développement. The Commissioner for Water Resources, Public Sanitation and Hygiene, Ayodele Akande, said the last major intervention for Akure was the 2009 Owena Dam project, which "never reached its potential".
The planned work includes:
- Rehabilitating the Owena water treatment plant.
- New transmission lines to Akure and surrounding towns.
- Reservoirs of 7,500 cubic metres.
- Expanded urban distribution networks.
- Areas named for the AfDB component: Akure South, Akure North, Idanre, Ifedore, Ile-Oluji/Okeigbo, Ondo East and Ondo West.
The report gave no completion date and no tariff for consumers, and did not name the utility that will bill households. Until taps run reliably on your street, plan as if you will supply yourself. If a public connection is offered, ask the state water utility in writing about the connection fee, monthly tariff and metering.
How Akure homes get water today
| Source | How it works | Main concern |
|---|---|---|
| Borehole in the compound | Pump to an overhead tank; landlord or tenants share running costs | Pump power cost, breakdowns, water quality |
| Well | Hand-drawn or pumped, common in older houses | Contamination, dries in the dry season |
| Tanker delivery | Bought by the load and pumped into your tank | Price rises in the dry season; source unknown |
| Neighbour's borehole or vendor | Paid per container | Time, reliability |
| Sachet and bottled water | For drinking | Licensing and hygiene of producers |
Labelled costs: tanker versus borehole
No body publishes Akure water prices; these are planning examples. Get real quotes from at least two tanker suppliers and two drillers.
| Item | Example cost |
|---|---|
| One tanker load (household-size) | ₦10,000 to ₦15,000 |
| Borehole drilling with pump and tank stand | ₦1,000,000 to ₦2,000,000 |
| Pump running cost (power or fuel) per month | ₦3,000 to ₦8,000 |
| Pump repair or replacement | ₦50,000 to ₦200,000 when it happens |
Worked example (labelled): a household buying two tanker loads a month at ₦12,000 each spends ₦24,000 a month, or ₦288,000 a year. A borehole costing ₦1,500,000, spread over five years, works out at ₦25,000 a month (₦1,500,000 ÷ 60), plus about ₦5,000 a month to run the pump: ₦30,000 a month. On these figures the tanker is slightly cheaper in the first five years, and the borehole wins after that, or sooner if several households share it. Who pays matters: in rented property the landlord usually drills; tenants usually share running costs.
Planning for the dry season
Water costs are not even across the year. In the dry months wells can fall, shallow boreholes can struggle, and more households turn to tankers at the same time, which pushes prices up and delivery times out. A few habits help:
- Fill storage tanks fully before the dry season starts, while prices are lower.
- Fix leaking taps and toilet cisterns, which can waste a surprising share of a tank.
- Agree with neighbours to order tankers together; one delivery to several tanks can cost less per household.
- Set aside a small monthly sum in the rainy season to cover higher dry-season costs.
- If your landlord's borehole fails, ask in writing for the repair date, and keep a record if you have to buy water meanwhile.
In the worked example above, a household that needs three tanker loads instead of two in the dry months pays ₦36,000 rather than ₦24,000 in those months, so a borehole shared with neighbours becomes more attractive.
Keeping drinking water safe
- Test a new borehole or well before drinking from it. The December 2025 groundbreaking also flagged off water-quality test kits for bacteria, acidity, turbidity, hardness and nitrates, a sign of how seriously contamination is taken.
- Boil, filter or treat water from wells and tankers before drinking.
- Clean and cover storage tanks regularly.
- Check sachet water packs for a NAFDAC number, batch number and dates. In July 2022 NAFDAC's Ondo coordinator, Benu Philip, said most pure water companies he knew in the state were operating with expired licences (Peoples Gazette).
What to check first when renting
- Is there a working borehole, and who pays to run and repair it?
- Does water reach your flat every day, or only at certain hours?
- Is there a storage tank for your flat, and when was it last cleaned?
- If you will buy tankers, how much did neighbours pay last dry season?
Water belongs on the same checklist as rent and waste: see rent in Akure by area, upfront costs of renting and waste levies in Akure. For other costs of moving in, read moving house: the full cost.
Questions people ask
Is there pipe-borne water in Akure?
Public supply has been inadequate for decades, The Guardian reported in December 2025, when work began on rehabilitating the Owena Dam plant and pipelines to Akure. No completion date was given.
How much is a water tanker in Akure?
No official price exists. As a labelled example, a household-size load might cost ₦10,000 to ₦15,000, more in the dry season. Get quotes from two suppliers.
How much does it cost to drill a borehole in Akure?
As a labelled example, ₦1 million to ₦2 million with pump and tank stand, depending on depth and equipment. Ask two drillers for written quotes.
Is Owena Dam water project completed?
Not as at the December 2025 groundbreaking reported by The Guardian, which gave no completion date. Check for later state announcements.
Sources
- The Guardian: Aiyedatiwa revives decades of stalled running tap water in Ondo (9 Dec 2025) · accessed Oct 2026
- Peoples Gazette: Most pure water companies in Ondo operating with expired licences, NAFDAC (3 Jul 2022) · accessed Oct 2026
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