Waste-to-Energy Firm Covanta Reports Lower Earnings, Revenue for Quarter

Waste-to-energy firm Covanta Holding Corp. posted lower net profits and revenue in its third quarter compared with a year ago.

The Morristown, N.J.-based Covanta said for the quarter ended Sept. 30 net income dropped 78.6 percent to $6 million compared with $28 million a year earlier.

Revenue for the period fell 2.6 percent to $414 million from $425 million in 2013, according to a news release.

The company said growth in North America waste-to-energy revenue was more than offset by lower construction revenue resulting from the Durham-York waste-to-energy project nearing completion.

“The business is running well and we're executing our organic growth initiatives, as demonstrated by our best ever quarterly revenue for both metal recovery and special waste,” said Anthony Orlando, Covanta president and CEO. “We're also making good progress in adding new business, with two contracts coming online soon and construction of the Dublin project now under way."

For the first nine months, the company lost $2 million compared with a loss of $35 million in 2013. Revenue climbed 3.2 percent to $1.25 billion from $1.21 billion a year earlier.

Covanta reaffirmed its guidance for 2014, including a range for adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of $470 million to $500 million.