Northeast Region Ices $779 Million in Expected 1Q09 Capital Project Investment

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Reported by Annette Kreuger, Industrial Info Resources (Sugar Land, Texas)--It is more than snow and ice freezing in the Northeast. The harsh winds of 2009 have already blown away 11 projects with an expected construction kickoff for the first quarter. A recent survey from Industrial Info's PECWEB Direct shows the projects have a cumulative total investment value (TIV) of $779 million, resulting in an a loss of an average project TIV of a whopping $77 million each. Like a hint of spring, there is, of course, a chance that some of the projects that have been canceled will be resurrected, albeit in a different form or fashion.

Click on the image at right to see a list of canceled projects in the Northeast market region.

From an industry standpoint, the majority of project cancellations, were sourced out of the Power Industry. The group called off six construction starts with a TIV of $743 million, representing the majority of busted project investment for the quarter. The largest of these is a $350 million, 125-megawatt hydropower plant expansion that was planned for Holtwood, Pennsylvania. PPL Holtwood (Holtwood, Florida) was going to add two vertical Kaplan hydro turbine/generators after kicking off construction in March.

The Industrial Manufacturing sector called off a $5 million expansion from TDI-Enterprise Power Systems in Hackettstown, New Jersey. The company was planning to begin construction in March to add two new assembly lines to increase production capacity of modular power systems, switches and cabinets. Refining, Chemical Processing and the Pharmaceutical & Biotech industries also pulled the plug on several projects in the region. According to the Pharmaceutical Tracker - Online Database, the Pharma sector didn't take too big of a hit with SPI Pharma's (Lewes, Delaware) decision to put off investing $3 million to add an 11,000-square-foot warehouse and some process upgrades at its APIs plant in Lewes.

The region, which comprises Delaware, New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania, is currently forecasting 150 projects with a total TIV of more than $5.1 billion -- both capital and maintenance projects -- to begin construction through the end of March. Of course, with financing tight and uncertain market conditions, there is better than fair chance that a number of these projects will be delayed, put on hold or be canceled.

The Northeast currently has 3,600 operational industrial plants. The region represents a wide variety of industrial plants, with the Food & Beverage and Industrial Manufacturing plants responsible for more than 1,200 locations. The Pharmaceutical & Biotech Industry has more than 350 facilities in the region, including both manufacturing plants and research centers. Other sites in the region include approximately 400 chemical plants, 30 major petroleum refineries and nearly 500 involved in the production of metals and minerals. Key information regarding these facilities is included within Industrial Info Resources' Northeast Region Online Plant Directory.

View Plant Profile - 1055154 1051330 1518000
View Project Report - 07002403 12003984 13000770

Industrial Info Resources (IIR) is a marketing information service specializing in industrial process, energy and financial related markets with products and services ranging from industry news, analytics, forecasting, plant and project databases, as well as multimedia services.