Aqua America’s Ohio Subsidiary Completes Purchase of City of Campbell Water System

BRYN MAWR, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aqua America Inc. (NYSE: WTR) announced today its Ohio subsidiary has completed the purchase of the City of Campbell’s water treatment plant and distribution system, which serves about 3,200 connections in Mahoning County, for $7.5 million. This is the first acquisition by an Aqua America subsidiary in 2020.

“Aqua’s acquisition of the Campbell water system will enable us to strengthen the community’s infrastructure and provide safe water and reliable service for the community now and in the future,” said Aqua America Chairman and CEO Christopher Franklin. “Aqua will bring benefits to Campbell residents by leveraging expertise in compliance, large-scale purchasing power and other efficiencies that can be realized with a larger, combined regional operation.”

Aqua Ohio President Ed Kolodziej said Aqua will invest an estimated $4.3 million in the water system over the next 10 years to enhance water quality, reliability, and regulatory and environmental standards.

Aqua America subsidiaries completed eight acquisitions in 2019, adding a total of 1,495 new water customer connections and 11,130 new wastewater customer connections. In September 2019, Aqua America’s Pennsylvania subsidiary announced an asset purchase agreement with DELCORA, which if approved would be the largest municipal transaction for Aqua America and the largest water/wastewater municipal transaction in Pennsylvania’s history. DELCORA serves a population of approximately 500,000 people in 42 municipalities in Southeast Pennsylvania. Aqua estimates that this represents the equivalent of 165,000 retail wastewater customers.

Aqua America received regulatory approval of its acquisition of Pittsburgh-based natural gas company Peoples for $4.275 billion at the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission’s Jan. 16 meeting. Aqua America will add 740,000 customer connections in Western Pennsylvania, Kentucky and West Virginia, while continuing to improve infrastructure reliability, quality of life and economic prosperity in these regions.

Aqua America is the second-largest publicly traded water utility based in the U.S., and serves more than 3 million people in Pennsylvania, Ohio, North Carolina, Illinois, Texas, New Jersey, Indiana and Virginia. Aqua America is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol WTR. Visit AquaAmerica.com for more information.

This release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, among others: the company’s ability to invest capital and to bring efficiencies to the City of Campbell community. There are important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements including: general economic business conditions; the receipt of governmental approvals; the successful integration of the customers and the facility; and other factors discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K, which is on file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. For more information regarding risks and uncertainties associated with Aqua America's business, please refer to Aqua America's annual, quarterly and other SEC filings. Aqua America is not under any obligation — and expressly disclaims any such obligation — to update or alter its forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

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