Dec. 11 (Bloomberg) — KKR & Co. and Suez Environnement
Co.’s United Water unit are forming a joint venture to manage
water and wastewater services in Middletown, Pennsylvania.
KKR and United Water are paying $43 million to the
Middletown Borough Authority and have committed an additional
$83 million for infrastructure upgrades over the life of the 50-year contract, according to a statement today. Middletown will
use the funds to eliminate existing debts and liabilities,
including pensions, and will retain ownership of the systems.
The concession arrangement begins Jan. 1 and is expected to
generate $285 million for the venture, in which KKR has a 90
percent stake and United Water owns 10 percent. The deal is
similar to one the companies executed in 2012 with Bayonne, New
Jersey.
“This partnership marks a growing trend in the U.S. for
delivering infrastructure renewal projects for essential public
services,” United Water Chief Executive Officer Bertrand Camus
said in the statement.
The venture will serve about 9,400 customers in Middletown,
a figure that may expand over the duration of the accord.
(An earlier story corrected the spelling of Suez’s company
name in first paragraph.)
To contact the reporter on this story:
Justin Doom in New York at
To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Reed Landberg at
Robin Saponar, Steven Frank