AZURIX CORP. EXPANDS WATER2WATER.COM TO BECOME FIRST INTERNET- BASED
VERTICAL MARKETPLACE IN THE WATER AND WASTEWATER INDUSTRY; COMPANY SIGNS
AGREEMENTS WITH LEADING TECHNOLOGY FIRMS
HOUSTON -- Azurix Corp. announced today that it will expand Water2Water.com,
an Internet site for buyers and sellers of water and related services,
to include procurement, establishing the first and only Internet-based
vertical marketplace that will serve the full spectrum of needs for water
and wastewater customers.
In addition to enabling customers to transact business relating to the
transfer and physical delivery of water and to the purchase or sale of
water storage and water quality credits, Water2Water.com will offer several
new procurement products, enabling customers to more efficiently procure
and sell water related equipment, services and chemicals. One of the first
services to be available on the expanded site is MRO Desk ™, which will
serve as an Internet-based procurement network for customers seeking maintenance,
repair and operations products. Additional products will be added throughout
the year, including the Equipment Desk ™, which will allow customers to
conduct auctions and reverse auctions for new, used and excess equipment;
Construction Desk ™, which will facilitate project management and execution
of construction projects, and WaterChem Desk ™, which will enable customers
to more efficiently buy and sell water and wastewater treatment chemicals.
Water2Water.com also will provide interactive decision support tools as
well as industry information from trade publications.
"Water2Water.com will provide value to customers by allowing buyers to
leverage purchasing power across the industry's fragmented buying base
in addition to giving customers the ability to more efficiently engage
in the transfer and physical delivery of water and related services,"
said Rebecca Mark, chairman and CEO of Azurix. "On the procurement side,
buyers will experience lower unit costs resulting from real-time competitive
bidding and access to a larger supplier base, and Water2Water.com will
serve as a new low-cost channel with which sellers can reach an expanded
buyer base. On the trading side of the business, participants now will
be able to improve market transparency and price discovery. We look forward
to bringing all segments of industry participants and information together
on Water2Water.com. It will literally change the way this industry does
business."
Azurix has signed agreements with global information services leader
EDS and other digital marketplace software providers, which will provide
leading edge technology to ensure that Water2Water.com will function as
the premier online marketplace for procurement and trading. Azurix announced
earlier this month that its trading exchange on Water2Water.com would
be built on the Ariba business-to-business eCommerce platform.
Azurix is currently beta testing both the trading and procurement segments
of Water2Water.com. The trading site, WaterSupply Desk ™, will continue
to be accessed through Water2Water.com and will be available for use in
March. The procurement functions will be available in April. Interested
parties can view the current site and the auctioning mechanisms at www.Water2Water.com.
Azurix is a global water company that owns, operates and manages water
and wastewater assets, provides water and wastewater related services
and develops and manages water resources. Azurix's Internet address is
www.azurix.com, and
the stock is traded under the ticker symbol, "AZX."
Media Contact
Diane Bazelides
(713) 345-5209
Analyst Contact
Elizabeth Ivers
(713) 646-9531
