Ownership of the facilities was transferred to the municipalities, but OCWA was not sold. It was transformed into a management services organization and in 1998 won what was then Canada's largest water and wastewater operations and maintenance contract—a 10-year, $213 million deal to operate the South Peel system."OCWA beats private sector for Peel deal," Daily Commercial News and Construction Record, December 14, 1998, p.A1 By 2000, OCWA operated and maintained more than 300 municipally-owned water and sewage treatment facilities on behalf of about 200 Ontario municipalities."Key Ontario water agency listed up for grabs despite government denials," Canadian Press NewsWire, June 8, 2000
