Aqua America Announces Appointment of Two New Directors; Officers of Duke Energy Carolinas and Sordoni Construction Services appointed
BRYN MAWR, Pa., Aug 01, 2006 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Aqua America, Inc. (NYSE:WTR) today announced that at its regularly scheduled Board of Directors meeting that the Board appointed two new directors - Ellen T. Ruff, 57, president of Duke Energy Carolinas, and Andrew J. Sordoni III, 63, former president and chairman of C-TEC Corporation - parent company of Commonwealth Telephone - and an officer of Sordoni Construction Services, Inc. The Board of Directors has determined that both Sordoni and Ruff are independent directors and has appointed Sordoni to the Audit Committee and Ruff to the Executive Compensation Committee of the Board.
Sordoni was appointed to the class of directors that stands for re-election at Aqua America's 2007 annual meeting. Ruff was appointed to the class of directors that stands for re-election at Aqua America's 2008 annual meeting. They replace former directors John E. Menario and John F. McCaughan who retired in 2006.
As president of Duke Energy Carolinas, Ruff directs one of the nation's leading electric utilities, which serves more than two million customers in North Carolina and South Carolina. Ruff has been with Duke Energy since 1978 when she joined the company as an attorney. A native of Hartford, Connecticut, Ruff earned a B.A. in business from Simmons College and a J.D. from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. She is a member of the Mecklenburg County Bar Association, the American Bar Association and the North Carolina State Bar.
During the 14-year period Sordoni led C-TEC Corporation, the company became one of America's best-known, diversified telecommunications companies with operations in basic telephone, cable television, cellular, paging and long-distance services. Sordoni served as a director of public companies regulated by the FCC and FDIC and numerous state regulatory commissions, including Pennsylvania Gas and Water Company. Sordoni currently serves as a director of Harsco Corporation.
"With Aqua America having grown from a regional to a national company, the Board felt that the company could benefit from the presence of directors from outside the southeastern Pennsylvania region," said Aqua America Chairman Nicholas DeBenedictis. "They add to the geographic diversity of our Board and each of them has significant experience in the utility industry. We are honored that they have agreed to serve."
Aqua America is the largest publicly-traded U.S.-based water and wastewater utility serving approximately 2.5 million residents in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Texas, New Jersey, Indiana, Virginia, Florida, North Carolina, Maine, Missouri, New York, South Carolina and Kentucky. Aqua America is listed on both the New York and Philadelphia Stock Exchanges under the ticker symbol WTR. The company has been committed to the preservation and improvement of the environment throughout its history, which spans more than 100 years.
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SOURCE: Aqua America, Inc.
Aqua America, Inc. Terry Maenza, 610-645-1175 tmmaenza@aquaamerica.com
Copyright Business Wire 2006
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