Jacobs Possibly Exploring Acquisition of CH2M

According to multiple media report, Jacobs Engineering (JEC) maybe exploring an acquisition of CH2M. The Times of London reported merger talks on July 19. Both firms have operations in Greenville, SC.

“We do not comment on rumors or speculation,” said Mendi D. Head, Jacobs vice president of global communications told ENR.

CH2M is based in Colorado. While Jacobs is publicly traded. A sale could happen for as little as $1.5B despite CH2M having $5.5B in revenue, according to a Credit Suisse report.

According to an analyst’s report from Baird, chronically low margins from a bloated organization were CH2M’s history prior to the 2015 private equity investment by Apollo. In addition, a prior CEO moved the engineering-centric company into more fixed-price construction, seeking greater growth, ultimately resulting in problem projects draining cash for several years, some of which continue to plague the company today.

Neither company has discussed details of a potential transaction publicly.