OREANDA-NEWS. Connecticut Water Service, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTWS) announced today that the State of Connecticut’s Public Utilities Regulatory Authority (PURA) has approved an application filed by Connecticut Water Service, Inc. (CTWS or Connecticut Water) on July 7, 2016, to acquire the Heritage Village Water Company (HVWC). HVWC serves about 4,700 water customers in the communities of Southbury, Middlebury and Oxford, Connecticut, and 3,000 wastewater customers in Southbury. HVWC’s wastewater system is the only private wastewater utility in Connecticut.

Eric W. Thornburg, President and CEO of Connecticut Water stated, "We are eager for Heritage Village Water Company customers to join Connecticut Water and realize the benefits of being part of a larger, regional company, which has a size and presence that provides for operational efficiencies, purchasing power and other economies of scale." Mr. Thornburg also noted that Connecticut Water has a team of experienced finance, water quality, engineering and customer service teams to support day-to-day operations for HVWC, and ready access to capital to fund projects to maintain service quality and reliability.

PURA recognized in its decision, "Connecticut Water possesses the financial, managerial and technical resources to take the actions necessary to assure the availability and potability of water and the provision of water at adequate volume and pressure to the persons served by HVWC … CTWS also has access to technologies that can better serve customers." The decision further noted, "The Authority finds a very robust financial picture for CTWS with good earnings, a strong balance sheet and good cash flow. This change of control will lead to a synergistic relationship that will benefit CTWS with added revenues and HVWC with increased access to capital by being a subsidiary of a publicly traded parent company."

CTWS has managed HVWC for more than a decade as its contract operator and has direct knowledge of Heritage Village systems and comprehensive knowledge of complex water system operations and regulations.

Connecticut Water also recognizes the importance of the Pomperaug River and will be a good steward of that natural resource. It is uniquely positioned to provide operational flexibility and opportunities to adjust the use of sources to reduce the pressure on the Pomperaug River. CTWS has previously stated that it will make available up to 0.5 million gallons of water per day to HVWC’s customers through the existing interconnection with Connecticut Water’s Naugatuck Central water system to meet the long-term water needs of customers of both systems and satisfy system demands in an environmentally sound manner.

The closing on the transaction is expected in the first quarter of 2017 and will require an approval vote by the shareholders of HVWC. Upon closing, the company will maintain its current name, HVWC, and it will become a sister company to The Connecticut Water Company and The Maine Water Company. The merger will not affect the rates or service for any of those water company customers.

When this transaction is completed, Connecticut Water will serve more than 127,000 water customers, or nearly 440,000 people in 79 communities across Connecticut and Maine, and more than 3,000 wastewater customers in Southbury, Connecticut.

Connecticut Water Service, Inc. (NASDAQ: CTWS) is one of the ten largest shareholder-owned water utilities in the country with a market capitalization of more than $620 million. Its stock trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the ticker symbol CTWS.