Worley Secures $9.8B in Bookings as Major LNG and Mining Wins Accelerate
Worley delivers resilient half-year performance as major project wins accelerate
Worley has reported aggregated revenue of $6,312m for H1 FY26, representing 5.4% growth on the prior corresponding period. The global engineering and professional services firm recorded underlying EBITA of $377m, up 0.3% on H1 FY25, while underlying EBITA margin (excluding procurement) improved to 8.8% from 8.4%. The company declared an interim dividend of 25 cents per share, underpinned by normalised cash conversion of 95.5%.
The Worley Half Year 2026 Results demonstrate operational resilience despite softer conditions in some segments, with the company reporting bookings of $9.8b during the period. This represents a 63% increase on H2 FY25 and signals strengthening momentum in major project awards. Management has reconfirmed guidance for moderate aggregated revenue and underlying EBITA growth in FY26, with the underlying EBITA margin (excluding procurement) expected to be within a range of 9.0% to 9.5%.
| Metric | H1 FY26 | H1 FY25 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aggregated revenue | $6,312m | $5,989m | +5.4% |
| Underlying EBITA | $377m | $376m | +0.3% |
| Underlying EBITA margin (excl procurement) | 8.8% | 8.4% | +0.4pp |
| Normalised cash conversion | 95.5% | 116.2% | -20.7pp |
| Bookings | $9.8b | N/A | +63% vs H2 FY25 |
| Interim dividend | 25 cents | 25 cents | – |
What does EBITA margin (excluding procurement) mean for investors?
The underlying EBITA margin (excluding procurement) provides a clearer view of Worley’s core earnings quality by removing the impact of pass-through procurement revenue. Procurement work generates minimal margin, so isolating it reveals the true profitability of the company’s professional services, engineering, and construction management activities. For H1 FY26, this metric stood at 8.8%, up from 8.4% in the prior period.
This 40 basis point improvement reflects successful rate negotiations with customers and disciplined cost management. Investors tracking (ASX: WOR) operational efficiency should focus on this margin rather than the headline EBITA percentage, as it better represents the quality and sustainability of earnings from Worley’s core consulting and engineering capabilities.
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Strategic wins position Worley for sustained growth
Worley secured major project wins across its Energy, Chemicals, and Resources sectors during H1 FY26, with 48% of bookings sole-sourced (up from 45% at FY25). This shift indicates strengthening customer confidence and reduces competitive pricing pressure. The company’s backlog now stands at $16.7b, with over 53% scheduled for delivery within the next 12 months, providing clear revenue visibility into FY27.
Notable project awards include:
- Venture Global CP2 LNG – Phase 1 Full Notice to Proceed (US) – EPC execution phase commencement for the CP2 LNG export facility
- Rio Tinto Brockman Syncline 1 – Iron Ore EPCM (Australia) – EPCM services for the Pilbara iron ore development
- Heidelberg Materials – Cement Carbon Capture EPCM (UK) – EPCM delivery for the UK’s first full-scale cement carbon capture and storage facility
- ExxonMobil Baytown – Reconfiguration construction (US) – Construction services for major reconfiguration of ExxonMobil’s Baytown integrated complex
The consulting pipeline has grown 24% since July 2025, with opportunities well diversified across sectors and regions. Management is focusing on early-stage consulting work to position for value chain pull-through, leveraging the firm’s front-end capabilities to secure downstream execution contracts.
Cost-out programme targeting $100m+ in annualised savings
Worley incurred $82m in transformation and restructuring costs during H1 FY26, predominantly in Western Europe where local labour protections drove elevated expenses. These one-off costs have been excluded from underlying earnings. The restructuring programme focuses on repositioning capacity to higher-growth regions, rationalising office footprints, and embedding artificial intelligence across operations.
Management is targeting annualised cost savings of over $100m from FY27 onwards. The initiatives include increased utilisation of enterprise service centres, rationalisation of third-party contracts, and office network optimisation. The cost base reset is designed to strengthen earnings quality and margin resilience as revenue scales, positioning Worley to deliver consistently at scale.
Sector performance reveals energy strength, chemicals softness
Energy aggregated revenue increased 8.8% to $3,183m, driven by major projects entering execution phase and lifting construction and procurement volumes. However, segment margin declined due to the lower-margin mix of construction and procurement work relative to professional services. The diversified global Energy market continues to support sustained project activity, with demand underpinned by integrated gas, oil, and power generation requirements.
Chemicals aggregated revenue declined 9.0% to $1,330m, reflecting project cancellations in Western Europe and lower professional services activity in APAC and EMEA. The global Chemicals market remains structurally significant but faces near-term challenges from regional imbalances and capacity shifts. Global overcapacity is driving Western Europe closures, while new capacity in the Middle East and China reshapes supply dynamics.
Resources aggregated revenue grew 12.3% to $1,799m, supported by construction and procurement activity on major projects. Segment margin benefited from improved execution performance. Looking ahead, activity is expected to be supported by increasing demand across fertilisers, copper, and battery materials, alongside steady investment in iron ore.
| Sector | Revenue H1 FY26 | Change vs H1 FY25 | Segment Margin (excl procurement) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | $3,183m | +8.8% | 11.4% |
| Chemicals | $1,330m | -9.0% | 9.4% |
| Resources | $1,799m | +12.3% | 15.0% |
Sustainability-related revenue reaches 69%
Sustainability-related revenue accounted for 69% of aggregated revenue in H1 FY26, up from 58% in the prior corresponding period. Worley categorises work as sustainability-related if it falls under Sustainable or Transitional market segments, including LNG, carbon capture utilisation and storage, renewables, energy transition minerals, and low-carbon fuels. This classification reflects the company’s strategic positioning within the global energy transition.
The increase demonstrates Worley’s revenue mix is increasingly aligned with global decarbonisation investment, reducing exposure to purely traditional hydrocarbon markets. As customer capital flows toward commercially viable, mandate-backed assets with secured offtake, Worley’s capability in energy transition minerals, hydrogen, and CCUS positions the firm to capture long-term growth opportunities.
Balance sheet strength supports growth and shareholder returns
Worley reported leverage of 1.5x at 31 December 2025, comfortably within the target of less than 2.0x. This provides capacity for investment while maintaining disciplined capital management. Liquidity stood at $2,253m, supported by unrestricted cash and undrawn committed debt facilities. Days sales outstanding improved to 46.2 days, down from 52.0 days at FY25, reflecting tighter working capital management.
The company has made steady progress on its share buyback programme, purchasing over 24 million shares for a total consideration of $324m since March 2025. The programme, capped at $500m, is dependent on prevailing market conditions, share price, and other factors. The buyback reduces share count and supports earnings per share growth, while the interim dividend of 25 cents per share maintains the target payout ratio of 50% to 70% of underlying NPATA.
Key balance sheet metrics include:
- Weighted average cost of debt: 4.4%
- Interest cover: 9.7 times
- Net debt: $1,686m
- Gearing ratio: 24.0%
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FY26 outlook reconfirmed with moderate growth expected
Management has reconfirmed guidance for the current financial year, targeting higher aggregated revenue growth than FY25, growth in underlying EBITA, and an underlying EBITA margin (excluding procurement) within the range of 9.0% to 9.5%. This outlook is supported by favourable long-term macro trends, including energy security, electrification, and artificial intelligence-driven power demand.
The company benefits from a diversified global business, broad and deep capabilities, and strong customer relationships. The backlog of $16.7b provides visibility into H2 FY26 and FY27, while the cost-out programme is expected to deliver annualised savings of over $100m from FY27 onwards. Worley has identified high-growth adjacent markets to support expansion beyond FY26, with further detail on growth strategy scheduled for release at the Investor Day on 14 May 2026.
Chris Ashton, Chief Executive Officer
“We have the agility to adapt to changing market dynamics to meet the needs of our customers. We are seeing momentum building as we win a greater share of major projects in areas that we have identified as growth markets.”
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