Google, Walmart, Total Among Latest Companies to Halt U.S. Projects Amid COVID-19

Researched by Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--The list of big-name companies opting to freeze active projects across the U.S. is growing every day, with Google parent Alphabet Incorporated (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (Mountain View, California), Walmart (NYSE:WMT) (Bentonville, Arkansas) and Total S.A. (NYSE:TOT) (Paris, France) adding several of their planned and under-construction facilities to the list. Industrial Info is tracking about $140 billion in active projects worldwide that have been affected by COVID-19, including about $35 billion in the U.S. alone.

Click here for a global list of affected projects.

Click on the image at right for a graph detailing global projects to be affected by COVID-19, by industry.

Google recently halted two high-value projects until the COVID problem recedes: the estimated $1 billion Southlands Data Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and an estimated $600 million data center in New Albany, Ohio. The projects began construction in early 2016 and mid-2019, respectively, and both were set to wrap up later this year. Each is designed to provide regional support for Google products and data services.

The news for the data center market isn't entirely glum: Despite COVID-19, market analysis and research firm Dell'Oro Group recently forecast cloud-service spending on servers will increase from 2019, accounting for 47% of the capital spending on data centers. For more information, see Industrial Info's reports on the Council Bluffs and New Albany projects.

Total S.A. announced it would suspend 18 solar-power projects designed to support Walmart until the COVID-19 situation improves. These include Total subsidiary SunPower Corporation's (NASDAQ:SPWR) (San Jose, California) estimated $3 million rooftop solar farms in Sterling, Illinois, and Spring Valley, Illinois, each of which would have helped to power Walmart distribution centers. For more information, see Industrial Info's reports on the Sterling and Spring Valley projects.

Various industries are seeing expansion and unit-addition projects put on hold, including the Pulp, Paper & Wood Industry. Georgia-Pacific Corporation (Atlanta, Georgia), a subsidiary of Koch Industries Incorporated (Wichita, Kansas), is halting a $145 million expansion of its Dixie Paper Plate & Bowls Plant in Darlington, South Carolina, which would have increased its overall size about 50% to 310,000 square feet. The project was set to begin construction in July and to be completed in June 2022. For more information, see Industrial Info's project report.

Maintenance programs also are being affected, including those in the Metals & Minerals and Chemical Processing industries. Gerdau Ameristeel North America, a subsidiary of Gerdau S.A. (NYSE:GGB) (São Paulo, Brazil), is canceling a $5 million turnaround at its long steel mill in Jackson, Tennessee, which would have spanned September and October. Nutrien Limited (NYSE:NTR) (Saskatoon, Saskatchewan) is postponing its $1 million turnaround on Nitric Acid Unit 3 at its fertilizer complex in Geismar, Louisiana, which had been expected to begin this month and end in early April. For more information, see Industrial Info's reports on the steel mill and fertilizer unit turnarounds.

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.