Vidler Water Company, a subsidiary of PICO Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: PICO), today announced it had reached a definitive agreement with two Scottsdale, Arizona golf courses for the sale of 1,021.1 net acres and 3,063.3 acre feet of associated groundwater rights for $9,955,725.00. The City of Scottsdale approved the transaction at the City Council meeting on December 4, 2012.

The agreement allows the Scottsdale golf courses and the City of Scottsdale to avoid the significant costs of construction of a planned pipeline, while at the same time providing a long-term groundwater supply for the golf courses, which comprise a significant economic component in the Scottsdale economy.

“The water we are able to make available for the golf courses and the community of Scottsdale provides the continued assurances that these valuable parts of Arizona’s economy will be able to stabilize their costs without impacting existing users. That makes the golf courses and Scottsdale less susceptible to drought, while protecting the larger water plans of Arizona,” noted Dorothy Timian-Palmer, President of Vidler Water Company.

The agreement is subject to certain closing conditions and a final closing is expected in the first quarter of 2013.