For
Sale: Anthem water company
by Kathleen Stinson
ANTHEM
– American Water, including its subsidiary Arizona American
Water which supplies Anthem, will be sold by the end
of 2007, according to an AAW official.
RWE
AG, the German company which owns American Water, plans
to divest itself of its U.S. subsidiary through a public
stock offering. American Water is the largest private
water services provider in North America.
The
stock offering is “totally unrelated” to Arizona American
Water’s application for a rate hike currently before
state utility regulators, said Kevin Tilden, vice president
of AAW. The public sale of AAW’s parent company will
not affect Anthem’s water rates because the rate process
is based on valid costs the company incurs and does
not take into consideration who owns the infrastructure.
AAW
is asking for an increase in both its water and wastewater
rates. Residential water rates, as proposed, could increase
about 68 percent.
RWE
is still waiting for California and a few other state
corporation commissions’ approval before American Water
shares can be offered for sale through a public stock
exchange, Tilden added. The Arizona Corporation Commission
gave its approval a few weeks ago.
“At
the beginning of November 2005, we took the strategic
decision to gradually withdraw from the water business
in the United Kingdom and the United States,” says a
RWE press release. “This will allow us to pool our core
competencies and focus on the converging electricity
and gas markets in Europe in the future.
“Another
important reason was the small amount of synergies between
the North American and British water business and the
European energy activities of RWE.”
Arizona
American Water will hold its first community meeting
to inform Anthem residents of the company’s reasons
for the proposed rate hike at 6 p.m. on March 22 at
Boulder Creek High School. A public hearing before the
corporation commission will be held in May.
AAW
stated in its rate case application that, as the community
reaches build‑out, the bulk of the company’s refund
payment to Anthem developer Del Webb Corp. for the cost
of infrastructure is close to coming due.
