LOS ANGELES, March 17, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Southwest Water Co. announced that its Services Group subsidiary, Operations Technologies Inc. (OpTech) won water and wastewater operations contracts in Forsyth, Ga., and Mobile County, Ala., as well as renewal of its contract in Canton, Ga. The three contracts add about $7.1 million to Southwest Water's revenue backlog.
The 4.5-year Forsyth contract calls for OpTech to operate and maintain two water treatment facilities, two wastewater treatment plants and the city's water distribution and sewage collection pipelines. Forsyth, a town of 5,000 people, is located about 60 miles south of Atlanta.
In Mobile County, OpTech is providing wastewater treatment operations and maintenance services, primarily to industrial customers, in an area along the northern edges of Mobile Bay. The five-year contract is OpTech's second in Alabama -- the company also serves the Mobile suburb of Prichard.
OpTech won a three-year renewal of its contract to operate water and wastewater treatment plants in Canton, an Atlanta suburb of about 15,000 people. The company will continue to provide the city with water production, water distribution and sewage collection services. In recent years, Canton has experienced significant growth, and OpTech has overseen expansion of the wastewater treatment plant and sewage pumping stations. OpTech now serves nine clients in Georgia.
Anton C. Garnier, Southwest Water chairman and CEO, said, "With the new contracts in Forsyth and Mobile County, the Southwest Water footprint in the southeastern U.S. now includes about 20 client contracts in Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. In addition to the new contracts, we are proud that our high-quality service led to the renewed work in Canton. Contract renewals testify to client satisfaction and they add to our revenue backlog. Our overall contract renewal rate of 98% is among the highest in the industry."
Southwest Water Co. (www.swwc.com) provides a broad range of services Including water production, treatment and distribution; wastewater collection and treatment; utility billing and collection; utility infrastructure construction management; and public works services. Serving more than two million people from coast to coast, the company owns regulated public utilities and also serves cities, utility districts and private companies under contract.
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