AECOM aims to soon divest its stake in the decommissioning contractor for the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station (SONGS) in California, Chief Financial Officer Troy Rudd said Tuesday.
“We are … continuing to progress on our plan to exit our remaining self-perform at-risk construction businesses,” Rudd said during AECOM’s conference call on its latest quarterly earnings. “We are actively negotiating with a potential buyer for our share of the San Onofre nuclear decommissioning project, which would result in a substantial milestone in our de-risking strategy.”
Rudd and other executives did not discuss the matter further during the call. The sale was also not addressed in AECOM documents for its financial second quarter.
The Los Angeles-based engineering and infrastructure giant is partnered with Salt Lake City-headquartered nuclear services firm EnergySolutions in SONGS Decommissioning Solutions. The joint venture was hired in 2016 by SONGS majority owner Southern California Edison as the general contractor for the $4.4 billion decommissioning at the plant.
Major decommissioning operations at the San Diego County facility began in February, but have been slowed by the COVID-19 pandemic. The job is scheduled to be completed by 2028.
In January, AECOM completed the sale of its Management Services branch to affiliates of two New York City investment firms. The new company, branded Amentum, owns AECOM’s contracts with the Department of Energy and other federal agencies.
