Aqua signs agreement to acquire wastewater assets of DELCORA

Aqua America’s Pennsylvania subsidiary, Aqua Pennsylvania Wastewater (Aqua), has signed an asset purchase agreement with the Delaware County Regional Water Quality Control Authority (DELCORA) for the acquisition of the municipal authority’s wastewater assets for $276.5m.

The deal is subject to the approval of Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission.

DELCORA caters to a population of around 500,000 people in 42 municipalities in the southeastern part of Pennsylvania.

According to Aqua estimation, this is equivalent of 165,000 retail customers.

The customer base comprises retail, commercial, and industrial customers and large wholesale agreements with municipal authorities.

Its assets consist of 14 miles of large-diameter force mains, and a 50-million gallon-per-day wastewater treatment plant, and 168 miles of combined and separate sewer mains.

After the completion of the deal, Aqua will appoint all 136 current DELCORA employees

Philadelphia Water DepartmentWastewater treats wastewater from the eastern part of the territory.

Aqua America chairman and CEO Christopher Franklin said: “We are proud to announce that DELCORA will become the largest municipal transaction in our 133-year company history.

“Our long track record of delivering reliable water and wastewater services, and investing in infrastructure across the United States, has positioned Aqua well for this opportunity. Since 2016, Aqua America has acquired more than 30 water and wastewater systems and integrated them into our existing operations, and I’m looking forward to welcoming DELCORA’s employees and customers into our company.”

Earlier, DELCORA faced huge capital investment costs to comply with US Environmental Protection Agency mandates to resolve combined sewer overflow problems.

The cost of these projects in addition to other capital investments is estimated to be around $1.2bn through 2041.

Aqua president Marc Lucca said: “Rather than stay the course and undertake significant projects that are expected to have high costs and dramatically increase customer rates, DELCORA decided to partner with Aqua to address these challenges.

“Because of our economies of scale, technical expertise, and long-standing commitment to southeastern Pennsylvania, this partnership will benefit our current and future customers along with the region’s environment.”