PENSION AND POSTRETIREMENT BENEFITS (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Compensation And Retirement Disclosure [Abstract]

The following tables present information for our defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans:

Components of Net Periodic Benefit Cost

	U. S. Pension Plans									Non-U. S. Pension Plans									Other Postretirement Plans
	Year Ended December 31,									Year Ended December 31,									Year Ended December 31,
	2018			2017			2016			2018			2017			2016			2018				2017		2016
	(In millions)
Components of periodic benefit cost:
Service cost	$	-		$	-		$	-		$	8		$	-		$	-		$		-		$	-	$	-
Interest cost		18			20			21			12			1			1				1			-		-
Expected return on plan assets		(19	)		(20	)		(20	)		(17	)		(1	)		(1	)			-			-		-
Actuarial loss (gain)		15			(5	)		(4	)		33			-			(1	)		(1		)		-		-
Net periodic benefit cost (income) ^{(1) (2)}	$	14		$	(5	)	$	(3	)	$	36		$	-		$	(1	)	$	-			$	-	$	-

⁽¹⁾

^{The components of periodic benefit cost (income) other than the service cost component are included within Other non-operating expense (income) in our Statements of Operations. The service cost component is included in Cost of operations and SG&A expenses, in our Statements of Operations, along with other compensation costs rendered by the participating employees.}

⁽²⁾	^{Net periodic benefit cost for 2018 included expense of $37 million for the acquired CB&I plans from the Combination Date through December 31, 2018.}

Change in Projected Benefit Obligation and Plan Assets

	U. S. Pension Plans						Non-U. S. Pension Plans						Other Postretirement Plans
	2018			2017			2018			2017			2018			2017
	(In millions)
Change in projected benefit obligation:
Projected benefit obligation at beginning of year	$	511		$	505		$	-		$	31		$	-		$	-
Acquisition ⁽¹⁾		16			-			933			-			31			-
Service cost		-			-			8			-			-			-
Interest cost		18			20			12			1			1			-
Actuarial loss (gain) ⁽²⁾		(27	)		23			(7	)		1			(1	)		-
Prior service cost ⁽³⁾		-			-			5			-			(11	)		-
Plan participants' contribution		-			-			2			-			1			-
Benefits paid		(37	)		(37	)		(27	)		(3	)		(1	)		-
Settlements ⁽⁴⁾		-			-			-			(30	)		-			-
Currency translation ⁽⁵⁾		-			-			(24	)		-			-			-
Projected benefit obligation at end of year	$	481		$	511		$	902		$	-		$	20		$	-

Change in plan assets:
Fair value of plan assets at beginning of year	$	497		$	485		$	1		$	32		$	-		$	-
Acquisition ⁽¹⁾		12			-			763			-			-			-
Actual return (loss) on plan assets		(23	)		48			(23	)		2			-			-
Company contributions		1			1			5			-			1			-
Plan participants' contributions		-			-			2						-
Benefits paid		(37	)		(37	)		(25	)		(3	)		(1	)		-
Settlements ⁽⁴⁾		-			-			-			(30	)		-			-
Currency translation ⁽⁵⁾		-			-			(20	)		-			-			-
Fair value of plan assets at end of year		450			497			703			1			-			-
Net funded status	$	(31	)	$	(14	)	$	(199	)	$	1		$	(20	)	$	-

Amounts recognized in balance sheet consist of:
Prepaid benefit cost within Other non-current assets	$	-		$	1		$	4		$	1		$	-		$	-
Accrued benefit cost within accrued liabilities		(2	)		(1	)		(2	)		-			(2	)		-
Accrued benefit cost within Other non-current liabilities		(29	)		(14	)		(201	)		-			(18	)		-
Net funded status recognized	$	(31	)	$	(14	)	$	(199	)	$	1		$	(20	)	$	-

Unrecognized net prior service cost (credits)	$	-		$	-		$	4		$	-		$	(11	)	$	-
Accumulated other comprehensive loss (income), before taxes ⁽⁶⁾	$	-		$	-		$	4		$	-		$	(11	)	$	-

⁽¹⁾	^{Acquisition amounts include the benefit obligation and plan assets at the Combination Date associated with acquired CB&I pension plans.}

⁽²⁾	^{Actuarial gain for 2018 was primarily associated with an increase in discount rate assumptions for a qualified plan in the United States.}

⁽³⁾	^{Prior service cost for 2018 primarily related to plan changes for our plans in the U.K. and our U.S. retiree welfare plan. Prior service cost for plan changes is deferred to accumulated other comprehensive income and amortized into Other non-operating expense (income).}

⁽⁴⁾

^{In August 2017, one of our non-U.S. defined benefit plans was amended to issue lump-sum distributions of certain accrued benefits or allow transfer of such benefits into a defined contribution plan. As of December 31, 2017, all investments in the trust for the defined benefit plan were converted to cash and cash equivalents to facilitate settlements, which were substantially complete. As of December 31, 2018, total benefits remaining under the defined plan were less than $1 million.}

⁽⁵⁾	The currency translation gain for 2018 was primarily associated with the strengthening of the U.S. Dollar against the currencies associated with our international pension plans, primarily the Euro and British Pound.

⁽⁶⁾	^{During 2019, we expect to recognize approximately $0.2 and $1 million of previously unrecognized net prior service costs and credits, respectively, related to our non-U.S. and other post retirement plans, respectively.}

Summary of Defined Benefit Plans with Accumulated Benefit Obligation in Excess of Plan Assets

The following table includes summary information for those defined benefit plans with an accumulated benefit obligation in excess of plan assets:

	U. S. Pension Plans				Non-U. S. Pension Plans				Other Postretirement Plans
	2018		2017		2018		2017		2018		2017
	(In millions)
Projected benefit obligation	$	481	$	511	$	796	$	-	$	20	$	-
Accumulated benefit obligation	$	481	$	511	$	777	$	-	$	20	$	-
Fair value of plan assets	$	450	$	497	$	594	$	1	$	-	$	-

Weighted-Average Assumptions Used to Measure Defined Benefit Pension and Other Postretirement Plans and Summary of Sensitivity Changes in Certain Assumptions in Pension Plans

Plan Assumptions —The following table presents the weighted-average assumptions used to measure our defined benefit pension and other postretirement plans:

	U. S. Pension Plans						Non-U. S. Pension Plans						Other Postretirement Plans
	2018			2017			2018			2017			2018			2017
Weighted average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit obligations at December 31,
Discount rate		4.1	%		3.6	%		2.1	%		3.95	%		4.1	%	N/A
Rate of compensation increase ⁽¹⁾	N/A			N/A				1.6	%	N/A			N/A			N/A
Weighted average assumptions used to determine net periodic benefit cost:
Discount rate		3.6	%		4.1	%		2.1	%		4.1	%		4.1	%	N/A
Expected return on plan assets ⁽²⁾		4.0	%		4.2	%		3.5	%		4.7	%	N/A			N/A
Rate of compensation increase ⁽¹⁾	N/A			N/A				1.6	%	N/A			N/A			N/A

⁽¹⁾	^{The rate of compensation increase relates solely to the defined benefit plans that factor compensation increases into the valuation.}

⁽²⁾	^{The expected long-term rate of return on plan assets was derived using historical returns by asset category and expectations of future performance.}

The following table illustrates the sensitivity to changes in certain assumptions, holding all other assumptions constant, for our pension plans.

	Effect on
	Pretax Pension		Pension Benefit
	Expense in		Obligation at
	2018 ⁽¹⁾		December 31, 2018
	(in millions)
25-basis-point change in discount rate	$	48	$	46

⁽¹⁾	^{A 25-basis-point change in the expected rate of return on plan assets would not have a material impact on pretax pension expense in 2018.}

Fair Value of Plan Assets by Investment Category

The following tables present the fair values of our plan assets by investment category and valuation hierarchy level as of December 31, 2018 and 2017:

	December 31, 2018
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Asset category	(In millions)
Fixed income securities:
U.S. fixed income securities	$	148	$	223	$	6	$	377
International government bonds ⁽¹⁾		-		245		-		245
International corporate bonds ⁽²⁾		-		94		-		94
International mortgage funds ⁽³⁾		-		69		-		69
All other fixed income securities ⁽⁴⁾		-		41		-		41
Equity securities:
U.S. equities		57		-		-		57
International funds ⁽⁵⁾		-		157		-		157
Emerging markets growth funds		-		13		-		13
U.S. equity funds		-		12		-		12
Other investments:
Asset allocation funds ⁽⁶⁾		-		74		-		74
Cash and Accrued Items		14		-		-		14
Total Investments	$	219	$	928	$	6	$	1,153

	December 31, 2017
	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Asset category	(In millions)
Fixed income securities:
U.S. fixed income securities	$	160	$	246	$	5	$	411
Equity securities:
U.S. equities		73		-		-		73
Cash and Accrued Items		14		-		-		14
Total Investments	$	247	$	246	$	5	$	498

The following provides descriptions for plan asset categories with significant balances in the tables above:

⁽¹⁾	^{Investments in predominately E.U. government securities and U.K. Treasury securities, with credit ratings primarily AAA.}

⁽²⁾	^{Investments in European and U.K. fixed interest securities, with credit ratings of primarily BBB and above.}

⁽³⁾	^{Investments in international mortgage funds.}

⁽⁴⁾	^{Investments predominantly in various international fixed income obligations that are individually insignificant.}

⁽⁵⁾	^{Investments in various funds that track international indices.}

⁽⁶⁾	^{Investments in fixed income securities, equities and alternative asset classes, including commodities and property assets.}

Expected Defined Benefit and Other Postretirement Plan Payments

Benefit Payments —The following table includes the expected defined benefit and other postretirement plan payments for the next 10 years:

	U. S. Pension Plans		Non-U. S. Pension Plans		Other Postretirement Plans
	(In millions)
Expected employer contributions to trusts of defined benefit plans:
2019	$	2	$	14	$	2
Expected benefit payments:
2019	$	37	$	35	$	2
2020		37		35		2
2021		37		35		2
2022		36		36		2
2023		35		36		1
2024-2028		165		189		6

Additional Information Regarding Significant Multi-Employer Defined Benefit Pension Plans

			Pension Protection Act (% Funded) ⁽¹⁾			Total Company Contributions ⁽²⁾						Expiration Date of Collective-Bargaining Agreement ⁽³⁾
Pension Fund	EIN/Plan Number	Plan Year End	2018	2017	FIP/RP Plan	2018		2017		2016
Boilermaker-Blacksmith National Pension Trust	48-6168020-001	12/31	65%-80%	N/A	Yes	$	6	$	-	$	-	Various
Boilermakers' National Pension Plan (Canada)	366708	12/31	N/A	N/A	N/A		1		-		-	04/19
All Other ⁽⁴⁾							3		-		-
Total						$	10	$	-	$	-

(1)

Pension Protection Act Zone Status and FIP/RP plans are applicable to our U.S.-registered plans only, as these terms are not defined within Canadian pension legislation. In the United States, plans funded less than 65% are in the red zone, plans funded at least 65%, but less than 80%, are in the yellow zone, and plans funded at least 80% are in the green zone. The requirement for FIP or RP plans in the United States is based on the funding level or zone status of the applicable plan.

(2)

Our 2018 contributions as a percentage of total plan contributions were not available for any of our plans. The level of our contributions to each plan noted above varies from period to period based upon the level of work being performed that is covered under the applicable collective bargaining agreement.

(3)	The expiration dates of our labor agreements associated with the plans noted as “Various” above vary based upon the duration of the applicable projects.

(4)	Our remaining contributions in 2018 to various U.S. and Canadian plans were individually immaterial.