The Santa Clarita Water Division on Thursday successfully completed bond sales of $52.3 million to refund an outstanding loan, which will reduce the Division’s annual operating and debt service costs and result in savings to the ratepayers.

The annual savings will be used to fund capital improvement projects designed to maintain the water system and enhance water supply reliability while maintaining stable rates in the future.

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High competition for the bonds led to securing a low rate of 3.52 percent, which will save the Santa Clarita Water Division $3.67 million over the 17-year life of the bonds.

“While there has been a lot of volatility in the markets, our strong financial and management policies and good credit ratings helped us achieve the low rates and overall savings,” said Tom Campbell, board president of the Castaic Lake Water Agency.

The Santa Clarita Water Division holds credit ratings of AA and Aa3 from Standard and Poor’s and Moody’s Investor Services, respectively. These credit ratings are considered high quality for water utilities.