Babcock & Wilcox Cuts Work Force, Plays Role in $7.4 Billion in Projects

---

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--Power technology provider Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises Incorporated (NYSE:BW) (B&W) (Charlotte, North Carolina) plans to cut 450 jobs, or about 9%, from its global workforce following steep losses attributed to its renewables division, which is focused on waste-to-energy projects. Industrial Info is tracking $7.4 billion in active projects involving Babcock & Wilcox, almost all of which are nearing or under construction.

B&W reported net losses of $114.3 million for the third quarter, compared with net income of $8.9 million in the same period last year. Revenues stood at $408.7 million, a decline of less than 1%. Net losses were driven largely by $86.9 million in non-cash goodwill impairment charges in its renewables segment and subsidiary SPIG.

The news comes just as B&W begins construction work at one of its highest-profile U.S. projects: Shell Chemical Company's (Houston, Texas) grassroot ethylene plant in Monaca, Pennsylvania. Also called the Franklin Plant, it would use ethane feedstock from the Marcellus Shale to produce at least 1.5 million metric tons per year. Shell Chemical is a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE:RDS.A). For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

The ethylene produced will be used as feedstock for three units for which B&W also is providing construction management services:

• a gas-phased high-density polyethylene (HDPE) unit; see project report
• a slurry HDPE unit; see project report
• a linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) unit; see project report

B&W also is working as a consultant on a natural gas-fired cogeneration unit in Monaca that will use three turbines to generate 250 megawatts (MW) for the facility. See project report.

B&W has struggled to stay in the black since it was spun off from parent company BWX Technologies (NYSE:BWXT) (Lynchburg, Virginia) in mid-2015. In that time, B&W acquired its SPIG, MegTec and Universal subsidiaries in a move toward the waste-to-energy renewables market. But executives are now considering a sale of MegTec and Universal next year, despite profitable results for both in the past quarter.

In a quarterly earnings-related conference call, Chief Executive Officer Jim Ferland confirmed the company expects to finish construction on several waste-to-energy projects in the U.K. in the coming months:

• Viridor Waste Management Limited's (Somerset, England) $262.7 million Oxwellmains plant in Dunbar, Scotland, which is expected to generate 30 MW from 1,250 tonnes per day of municipal solid waste; see project report
• Glennmont Partners' (London, England) $210.2 million combined heat and power plant in Port Clarence, England, which is being constructed on a former refinery site and is expected to generate 40 MW from 325,000 tons per year of waste wood; see project report
• Glennmont's $210.2 million Margam biomass plant in Port Talbot, England, which is expected to generate 40 MW from forest products and sawmill waste; see project report
• Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners' (Copenhagen, Denmark) $197 million Templeborough biomass plant in Rotherham, England, which is expected to generate 41 MW from 260,000 tons per year of waste wood; see project report

The bulk of the job cuts--about 250--will be in B&W's Volund subsidiary, which is based in Denmark and is handling the U.K. waste-to-energy projects. Ferland said about 30% of the Volund work force is likely to be cut, according to Charlotte Business Journal.

B&W's waste-to-energy problems echo its problems with coal-fired energy from last year, when the company cut about 200 jobs related to coal-power equipment manufacturing and service products, according to Charlotte Business Journal. But B&W's subsidiary in Beijing is at work on one such project that is expected to wrap up in the near future: the $600 million Zhuozhou Dongxianpo coal-fired power plant in Baoding, China. The project involves the construction of two steam turbines, for a total output of 700 MW. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, six offices in North America and 12 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities. Follow IIR on: Facebook - Twitter - LinkedIn. For more information on our coverage, send inquiries to info@industrialinfo.com or visit us online at http://www.industrialinfo.com/.