Illinois American Water Acquires Village of Fisher Water and Wastewater Systems

Acquisition adds about 850 water and wastewater customers in
Champaign County service area

FISHER, Ill.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Illinois American Water President Bruce Hauk today announced the
Company’s acquisition of the Village of Fisher’s water and wastewater
systems. The purchase of the system adds approximately 850 new water and
wastewater customers to the Company’s customer base in the Champaign
County District and serves a population of nearly 2,000 residents.

The Village of Fisher Board voted in favor of the sale in July 2017. The
Illinois Commerce Commission (ICC) approved the sale for $6.8 million on
March 7, 2018.

“We look forward to investing in the Village of Fisher and ensuring
quality water and reliable wastewater service to our new customers,”
said Hauk.

Village of Fisher Mayor Michael Bayler also supports the acquisition. He
said, “We are looking forward to Illinois American Water joining our
community and helping us meet our water and wastewater needs. Their
knowledge and ability to provide reliable service to our residents is an
investment in our public health and economic future.”

Illinois American Water will invest $2.9 million in the first five years
of ownership including security upgrades, meter replacements, wastewater
plant improvements for regulatory compliance, and inflow and
infiltration upgrades.

According to Dave Farrar, sr. manager of field operations and production
for Illinois American Water’s Champaign County District, the company
will also repair and paint the Fisher water tower. Farrar, a resident of
Fisher, said, “We are committed to keeping the Fisher water tower
painted orange to show community pride for residents and visitors of
Fisher. The improvements planned will also enhance service, public
health and fire protection to Fisher.”

New customers will soon receive an Illinois American Water welcome
packet in the mail. This packet includes information about online
account management, billing, payment options and more. A payment drop
box will be placed at the Fisher water treatment plant located at 110
West Front Street in Fisher. Payments will be picked up regularly.

The appraisal process used for the Fisher water and wastewater systems
was conducted under the supervision of the ICC and established as part
of the Illinois Water Systems Viability Act. According to Hauk, this law
gives communities an alternative to value their water and/or wastewater
system when considering being acquired by an investor-owned water
utility. He said, “Previous law only allowed the investor-owned water or
sewer utility to pay the original cost minus depreciation to acquire a
small system, public or private. Because of this, systems were deprived
of receiving adequate value for their system.”

The Village of Fisher will be incorporated into Illinois American
Water’s Champaign County District, which currently serves residents in
Champaign, Urbana, Sadorus, Savoy, St. Joseph, Bondville and Pesotum.

About Illinois American Water – Illinois American Water, a
subsidiary of American Water (NYSE: AWK), is the largest investor-owned
water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water
and/or wastewater services to approximately 1.3 million people. American
Water also operates a customer service center in Alton and a quality
control and research laboratory in Belleville. With a history dating
back to 1886, American Water is the largest and most geographically
diverse U.S. publicly traded water and wastewater utility company. The
company employs more than 6,900 dedicated professionals who provide
regulated and market-based drinking water, wastewater and other related
services to an estimated 15 million people in 46 states and Ontario,
Canada. American Water provides safe, clean, affordable and reliable
water services to our customers to make sure we keep their lives
flowing. For more information, visit amwater.com
and follow American Water on Twitter,
Facebook
and LinkedIn.

Contacts

Illinois American Water
Terry Mackin, 618-910-7221
External
Affairs Director