BRYN MAWR, PA — Essential Utilities Inc. (NYSE: WTRG) announced its Aqua Pennsylvania subsidiary recently signed a purchase agreement to acquire the wastewater system in Greenville, PA for $18 million. The wastewater sale is expected to close in the first quarter of 2024.
The wastewater collection network and treatment plant in Mercer County is currently operated by the Greenville Sanitation Authority and has over 2,300 customer connections, and serves over 1,700 additional customers in West Salem and Hempfield Townships.
“The reality is that our [wastewater] plant needed a $35 to $40 million rebuild, and that was beyond our means,” said Greenville Sanitary Authority Board Chair Jonathan Bailey. “Also, our strong attention to day-to-day operations doesn’t create enough improvement to satisfy the consent order we have with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. We needed an expert with the resources and expertise to fix the issues and prevent them from ever coming back. We considered a number of options — we are confident Aqua is this expert. We are now able to avoid a costly rebuild. This is an ideal solution to a very serious situation.”
The transaction builds on Essential’s regional expansion strategy, which delivers growth by investing in infrastructure that delivers clean, safe, reliable natural resources to residential and business customers, including water and wastewater services.
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