Casella acquires $525M worth of GFL assets in Mid-Atlantic states

Casella Waste Systems Inc., a Rutland, Vermont-based regional solid waste, recycling and resource management services company, acquired the Pennsylvania, Delaware and Maryland collection, transfer and recycling operations of GFL Environmental Inc., Vaughan, Ontario, June 30.

The purchase price of approximately $525 million was funded through a combination of Casella’s new $430 million Term Loan A under its existing senior secured credit facility and proceeds from its recent equity offering, which Casella says raised $517.5 million.

The acquisition includes nine hauling operations, one transfer station and one material recovery facility and is expected to generate aggregate annualized revenue of approximately $185 million, Casella says in a news release.

Casella says the acquisition provides strong strategic and financial benefits that are expected to augment the company’s growth opportunities through an expansion into adjacent markets with solid waste operations that have similar attributes to its existing operations.

“This is an exciting step forward in our company’s growth strategy as we extend our footprint into the Mid-Atlantic with a new platform for future growth,” said Casella Waste Systems CEO and Chairman John W. Casella says. “We are focused on ensuring a successful integration of these operations, providing excellent service to our new customers and communities and welcoming our new employees to our team.”

Both companies had announced plans for Casella to purchase these assets earlier this year.

This sale was the last of three transactions for GFL, which also sold assets in Nashville, Tennessee, to an undisclosed buyer and assets in Colorado and New Mexico to Phoenix-based Republic Services.

“I am very pleased to announce the completion of the sale of these three U.S. solid waste regions, one fiscal quarter ahead of plan,” GFL founder and CEO Patrick Dovigi says, anticipating CA$1.6 billion in gross proceeds from the sales. “These divestitures complete our portfolio rationalization plan. We believe our network of assets and market selection position us for high quality, organic profitability growth, and we remain focused on our [merger and acquisition] strategy of densifying our existing footprint across Canada and the United States through our robust acquisition pipeline.”