PURA hears arguments on Aquarion sale to regional authority amid rate, governance and enforceability disputes

The Connecticut Public Utilities Regulatory Authority on Tuesday heard oral argument on docket 250403, the petition to transfer control of Aquarion Water Company to a new Aquarion Water Authority (AWA) affiliated with the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority (RWA). Petitioners told the authority the transaction would refinance Aquarion’s capitalization and lower long‑term customer costs, while interveners — including four municipalities, the Office of Consumer Counsel and the state attorney general — urged denial, citing governance, rates and the inability to enforce post‑closing commitments.

Attorney Humm, counsel for the joint petitioners, told PURA that the deal is essentially a refinancing and that Aquarion “is as if Aquarion is buying Aquarion,” and that AWA’s nonprofit, debt‑funded model would lower the revenue requirement for future capital spending. Humm said the record projects about $2,000,000,000 in capital investment over the next 10 years and argued that “for every dollar spent on those capital investments, it’s cheaper under AWA ownership,” estimating roughly 25% lower revenue requirement on those projects compared with investor‑owned ownership.

Why it matters: opponents told PURA the change would strip away core consumer…