Osaka stunned by anonymous gold bar gift worth US$3.6 million to fix ageing water pipes
The gold bars weighed a total of 21kg.
File photo of gold bars. (Photo: iStock)
TOKYO: Osaka has received a hefty gift of gold bars worth 560 million yen (US$3.6 million) from an anonymous donor asking for its specific use - to fix the Japanese city's dilapidated water pipes.
The gold bars weighing 21kg in total were given to the Osaka City Waterworks Bureau in November by the donor who wants to help improve ageing water pipes, Mayor Hideyuki Yokoyama told reporters Thursday (Feb 19).
“It's a staggering amount and I was speechless," Yokoyama said. “Tackling ageing water pipes requires a huge investment, and I cannot thank enough for the donation.”
The mayor said his city will respect the donor's wishes and use the gift to improve waterworks projects.
Concern over the safety of Osaka's waterworks systems grew after a massive sinkhole swallowed a truck and killed the driver last year. It was linked to a damaged sewer in Saitama, north of Tokyo. Osaka had 92 cases of water pipe leaks under city roads in the fiscal year ending March 2025, the city’s waterworks official Eiji Kotani told The Associated Press on Friday.
With a population of 2.8 million, Osaka is the country's third-largest city and serves as a western Japanese capital.
Most of Japan’s main public infrastructure was built during the rapid postwar economic growth.
Urban development in Osaka, a regional commercial hub, started earlier than many other cities and its water pipes and other infrastructure are also aging earlier, Kotani said.
Osaka needs to renew a total of 259km of water pipes, he said. Renewing a 2km segment of water pipes would cost about 500 million yen, Kotani said.
