Aqua America Inc., one of the largest U.S.-based, publicly traded water utilities, today announced it has reached its 1 million customer-connection milestone with the purchase of Peotone Village’s water and wastewater systems by subsidiary Aqua Illinois. The purchase was finalized Oct. 1 and will result in the company welcoming nearly 3,000 new customer connections.

“We are pleased to welcome the residents and businesses of Peotone to the Aqua family with this momentous occasion,” said Aqua America Chairman and CEO Christopher Franklin. “From day one, Aqua has been committed to expertly addressing the water needs of growing communities, and being a partner where we serve. We have a long history as a guardian of Earth’s most essential resource, and I congratulate our dedicated team as we reach this milestone together.”

Founded in 1886 in southeastern Pennsylvania, Aqua America and its eight state subsidiaries own and operate approximately 1,700 water and wastewater systems, many of which have been acquired in Aqua’s 300 acquisitions since 1995. In these communities, Aqua leverages its expertise in compliance, large-scale purchasing power and efficiencies to provide needed infrastructure improvements to enhance water quality and reliability. Since 2012, Aqua has invested approximately $2.2 billion to improve infrastructure in the communities it serves, with plans to invest an additional $1.4 billion through 2020.

“The growth that has led to our 1 millionth customer connection is a direct result of Aqua’s commitment to improving water quality and infrastructure in the United States,” said Franklin. “By partnering with municipalities that need help with maintaining their water and wastewater systems, we make essential infrastructure investments in the communities we serve, and that leads to improved service for our customers, regulatory compliance and environmental stewardship.”

Aqua Illinois President Craig Blanchette shared his excitement for the milestone.

“We’re excited to add Peotone’s residents and businesses as Aqua water and wastewater customers, and thrilled they can mark this important occasion with us.”

Village of Peotone Mayor Steven Cross echoed the sentiment.

“It’s wonderful for Peotone to be recognized in such a significant way and we look forward to the service Aqua will provide now and in the future.”

Aqua has several fair market value asset purchase agreements in place, including Cheltenham, East Bradford and New Garden townships in Pennsylvania. The Village of Manteno in Illinois and Limerick Township in Pennsylvania both closed in July 2018. When it completes all these acquisitions, the company will welcome approximately 23,000 new customer connections to the Aqua family. Aqua paid $12.3 million for Peotone’s systems.

Aqua America is one of the largest U.S.-based, publicly traded water utilities and serves nearly 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, or follow Aqua on Facebook at facebook.com/MyAquaAmerica and on Twitter at @MyAquaAmerica.

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