Dive Brief:

• Waste Connections has announced its acquisition of American Disposal Services, one of the largest remaining private companies in the Mid-Atlantic. American is estimated to have $175 million in annual revenue.
• The company has approximately 400,000 customers across its headquarter state of Virginia, as well as in Maryland, Georgia and Colorado. It offers a range of residential, commercial and industrial services.
• "American is the market leader in Northern Virginia, where the majority of its assets are located. In addition to providing new market platforms for future growth opportunities in both Virginia and Georgia, this acquisition also enhances our market positioning in Denver, where American's collection services will be tucked into our vertically integrated operations," said Waste Connections CEO Ron Mittelstaedt in a statement. "We are excited to welcome American into the Waste Connections family."

Dive Insight:

Mittelstaedt first hinted at this deal during the company's third quarter earnings call in October, and it's become something of an open secret in the weeks since. At the time, when combined with 15 other deals in 2018, Waste Connections projected this would bring annual acquired revenue up to $360 million and make for one of the busiest years in company history.

As noted in the announcement, American's Colorado business will tuck in with existing Waste Connections disposal assets in the Denver region. While the company's Denver Regional Landfill is slated to stop taking material by the end of 2020, its adjacent Front Range Landfill is currently expected to operate through 2051. Waste Connections already had business in Maryland, though not currently in Georgia. Its Virginia presence has also been expanding, including with the recent purchase of Bay Disposal & Recycling.

During the Q3 call, Mittelstaedt described American as having an "extremely high quality of assets, phenomenal market position, number one or two in most of their markets, and very high management quality."

American Disposal Services was founded by Larry Edwards in 2001, with Paul Coury joining as a partner a few years later. The two were competitors until their respective companies were acquired by Allied Waste (now Republic Services) in 1996.