Citing ongoing attacks by militants, Willbros Group said Wednesday it is selling its assets and operations in Nigeria.
Willbros, which has administrative offices in Houston and headquarters in Panama, said the move is tied to an evaluation of its strategic options that started last year, which also has led it to decide to shed its Venezuelan operation.
The engineering and construction company gained attention worldwide earlier this year when nine employees were taken hostage in Nigeria. The workers were released unharmed after several weeks.
The company made the announcement in a prepared statement Wednesday that reported a net loss of $38.1 million, or $1.77 a share, including a $39 million charge for its Nigeria operations. The company’s quarterly loss compares with a loss of $9.92 million, or 47 cents, during the same period a year earlier. Revenue increased 75 percent to $119.1 million.
Willbros said its income there was reduced by about $37 million.
Mike Curran, Willbros’ chairman and chief executive, said the company will dramatically reduce its level of operations in Nigeria and focus on markets that offer better opportunities and returns, including in North America.
In its earnings report, Willbros reported the Nigeria and Venezuela assets and operations as discontinued operations.
The company said it reached a preliminary agreement to sell the Venezuelan operation in late June to an unnamed party, and it is expected to close in October. Curran said that officials concluded the spread and escalation of hostilities against oil and natural gas facilities and workers in Nigeria exceed acceptable risk levels.
“The attacks of militants have directly and indirectly affected Willbros on a continuous basis since the hostage-taking incident of Feb. 18, 2006,” he said. “However, since mid-June, the situation in Nigeria has worsened, with attacks increasing throughout the country. Additional production operations in the Delta area have been, and remain, shut in.”