Middlesex Water Co. Files Request To Boost Rate By 13.53%

Middlesex Water Company,

, a provider of water and wastewater and related services primarily in New Jersey and Delaware, has filed a request with the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities (NJBPU) for a general increase in water rates for its Middlesex system in New Jersey. The utility is requesting a rate adjustment of approximately 13.53%, or $9.5 million over current revenues to recover costs for repairs and upgrades to its drinking water infrastructure and to cover costs of increases in chemicals, fuel, electricity, technology, taxes, labor, benefits and other factors impacting required utility operating income. Middlesex Water operates and maintains over 740 miles of water main, as well as water production and storage facilities in eastern Middlesex County, New Jersey. Upon filing of this rate increase request, the proposal will next be reviewed, analyzed and investigated by the NJBPU and various other intervening entities. The rate setting process includes a public hearing on this matter, which will be held in the company's service area before a decision is made. If the rate increase request is approved in its entirety, the average residential customer using 17,200 gallons of water per quarter would see their bill increase by $22.76 per quarter, or less than twenty-five cents a day. "The cost to prudently maintain the integrity of the infrastructure and operations of water utilities has gained recent national attention. As a 118-year old utility, the regulatory compact and the rigorous rate-setting process in New Jersey are important elements of Middlesex Water Company's ability to continue to maintain the health, safety and reliability of the water supply at appropriate rates to our customers," said Dennis W. Doll, Middlesex Water President and CEO. Customers may obtain additional information about this rate filing on the Company's website at www.middlesexwater.com under the heading Current NJ Regulatory Filings. Middlesex Water Company (the Middlesex system), organized in 1897, presently serves 60,000 retail customers in the Townships of Woodbridge, Edison, the Borough of South Plainfield, Carteret, Metuchen, the City of South Amboy, and the Township of Clark. The Company also provides service under contract to the Borough of Highland Park, the Old Bridge Municipal Utilities Authority, the Township of Marlboro, the City of Rahway and the Township of East Brunswick. The increase will affect only the retail and contract customers listed above.