District of Columbia Water and Sewer Authority Signs Agreement with United Water Subsidary for $36 Million
United Metering to install 130,000 advanced meters in Washington, DC

WASHINGTON, DC, December 11, 2001 — United Water announced today that its subsidiary, United Metering Inc., has signed a three year, $36 million contract with the Water and Sewer Authority (WASA) of Washington, D.C. to install 130,000 advanced water meters in the District. This is the largest metering installation contract ever awarded in the United States. The company will begin to replace the city’s meters in early spring of 2002.

“We’re pleased that WASA recognized our capabilities as an industry leader in the installation of automatic meter reading systems,” said Larry Edwards, vice president of United Metering. “Our ability to assemble a strong and talented team from Washington, D.C. and our past experience in the city also gave the Authority confidence in our ability to perform the necessary work.”

According to Jerry N. Johnson, general manager for WASA, this project will affect every single customer and his organization wanted to make sure they had a vendor with experience and a track record of success in similar projects. “Most of the meters in our system are near the end of their useful life and are increasingly more expensive to maintain,” he said. “Broken meters can also lead to estimated bills which result in disputes with customers. We owe it to all of our customers in the city to deliver a system that works and works well.”

To build convenience for the customer and enhance reliability of the system, WASA requested United Metering to install Hexagram automated meter reading technology along with new absolute encoder meters to be supplied by ABB. The new meters will be read daily over a cellular communication network.

WASA awarded the contract to United Metering following a competitive bidding process that factored in price, technical approach, experience, and utilization of local, disadvantaged and minority individuals and companies.

Formed in 1989, United Metering is a wholly owned subsidiary of United Water and provides a complete range of metering services to the water utility industry. In addition to Washington, D.C., United Metering has several other major contracts, including projects in New York City and throughout New Jersey, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Alabama and Georgia.

United Water, one of the largest water services companies in the U.S., provides water and wastewater service to more than 7.5 million people. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of ONDEO Services, the world’s leader in water and wastewater management services and part of the Suez Group (NYSE:SZE).

ABB is a global leader in power and automation technologies that enable utility and industrial customers to improve their performance while lowering their environmental impact. You can find more information regarding ABB on the company’s website at www.abb.com.