New Jersey American Water, a Voorhees-based water and wastewater utility company, announced Wednesday it has agreed to acquire the wastewater assets of the Borough of Mount Ephraim for $1.4 million.
The assets currently serve approximately 1,800 customers.
The agreement follows a voter referendum in November where about 80 percent of voters approved the sale of the system to New Jersey American Water, it said.
“Water and sewer is all we do, and as Mount Ephraim’s water company for more than a decade and a water provider to the area for over 90 years, we are deeply committed to making the needed improvements to ensure the community’s sewer service is as clean, safe, reliable and affordable as the water service we provide,” Deb Degillio, president of New Jersey American Water, said.
As part of the deal, New Jersey American Water will invest more than $4 million to improve sewer systems over the next four years, including main replacements, upgrades to two pump stations, GIS mapping the pipe system and more. Sewer rates will be frozen for residents for two years, with New Jersey American Water increasing those rates by no more than 3 percent annually after that.
“This is a total win for the residents of Mount Ephraim,” Mount Ephraim Mayor Joseph Wolk said. “Not only will New Jersey American Water be investing $4 million into upgrades needed to continue to support our residents and businesses, the $1.4 million purchase price will be used to reduce the Borough’s municipal debt.”
The acquisition is expected to be complete in the first half of 2019.