By Tess Stynes
Williams Cos. swung to a fourth-quarter loss as its Williams
Partners LP affiliate said its earnings fell 27% during the
period--mostly on lost production at its Geismar olefins plant and
lower natural-gas liquids margins.
Williams gathers and transports natural gas and owns most of its
namesake master limited partnership, Williams Partners.
The company, which affirmed its 2014 guidance, has been
investing to take advantage of production opportunities in the
Marcellus and Utica shale plays and other areas.
Williams Partners' Geismar plant in Louisiana exploded last June
and has been out of service since then. The company expects the
plant to remain offline until June of this year. The expected delay
in returning the plant to service resulted from a variety of
factors, including the extended loss of utilities and the
congestion and complexity from temporary utility equipment
influencing both the rebuild and expansion efforts.
Williams reported a loss of $14 million, or two cents a share,
compared with year-earlier earnings of $149 million, or 23 cents a
share, a year earlier. Excluding effects for the Geismar plant and
other items, adjusted earnings from continuing operations fell to
22 cents from 25 cents.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters recently expected per-share
profit of 22 cents.
Williams Partners reported a profit of $211 million, or 12 cents
a unit, down from $291 million, or 42 cents a unit a share, a year
earlier. Fee-based revenue rose 8.4% to $752 million.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters recently expected per-unit
profit of 39 cents.
Write to Tess Stynes at tess.stynes@wsj.com
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