Business Consolidation and Other Activities

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2021

Business Consolidation and Other Activities

Business Consolidation and Other Activities

6. Business Consolidation and Other Activities

Following is a summary of business consolidation and other activity (charges) income included in the consolidated statements of earnings:

	Years Ended December 31,
($ in millions)	2021		2020		2019
Beverage packaging, North and Central America	$	(6)	$	(5)	$	(14)
Beverage packaging, EMEA		(7)		(10)		(39)
Beverage packaging, South America		9		1		15
Other		(138)		(248)		(206)
	$	(142)	$	(262)	$	(244)

2021

Beverage Packaging, North and Central America

During 2021, the company recorded charges of $4 million resulting from damage to plant assets, less anticipated insurance receipts, sustained when the southeastern U.S. was impacted by tornadoes. Additional charges were $2 million for individually insignificant activities.

Beverage Packaging, EMEA

During 2021, the company recorded charges of $6 million in connection with previously announced plant closures and $1 million for individually insignificant activities.

Beverage Packaging, South America

During 2021, the company recorded a $22 million gain related to indirect tax gain contingencies in Brazil as these amounts are now estimable and realizable. The company’s Brazilian subsidiaries filed lawsuits in 2014 and 2015 to challenge the Brazilian tax authorities regarding the computation of certain indirect taxes, claiming amounts were overpaid to the tax authorities because the tax base included a “tax on tax” component. The amounts recorded in business consolidation and other activities relate to periods prior to 2019. See Note 22 for further details. Additional charges were $4 million in connection with previously announced plant closures and $9 million for individually insignificant activities.

Other

During 2021, the company recorded the following amounts:

● A non-cash settlement loss of $135 million related to the purchase of non-participating group annuity contracts and lump-sum payments to settle the projected pension benefit obligations for certain of Ball’s U.S. defined benefit pension plans, which triggered settlement accounting. The settlement loss primarily reflects recognition of unamortized actuarial losses in these U.S. pension plans. See Note 17 for further details.

● A loss of $5 million related to the sale of Ball’s minority-owned investment in South Korea. See Note 4 for further details.

● Income of $6 million resulting from revisions to the estimate of contingent consideration related to the 2020 acquisition of Tubex Industria E Comercio de Embalagens Ltda in Brazil. See Note 4 for further details.

● Charges of $4 million for individually insignificant activities.

2020

Beverage Packaging, North and Central America

During 2020, the company recorded charges of $5 million for individually insignificant activities in connection with previously announced closures of certain beverage can and end manufacturing facilities and other activities.

Beverage Packaging, EMEA

During 2020, the company recorded charges of $10 million for individually insignificant activities in connection with previously announced plant closures, restructuring and other activities.

Beverage Packaging, South America

During 2020, the company recorded credits of $1 million for individually insignificant activities.

Other

During 2020, the company recorded the following amounts:

● Non-cash settlement losses of $120 million related to the purchase of non-participating group annuity contracts and lump-sum payments to settle the projected pension benefit obligations for certain of Ball’s U.S. defined benefit pension plans, which triggered settlement accounting. The settlement losses primarily reflect the recognition of aggregated unamortized actuarial losses in these U.S. pension plans. See Note 17 for further details.

● A non-cash impairment charge of $62 million related to the goodwill of the new beverage packaging, other, operating segment. See Note 11 for further details.

● A non-cash charge of $23 million resulting from the recent deterioration of China’s real estate market, which led the company to reduce the value of potential future consideration due as part of the sale of its China beverage packaging business.

● Charges of $15 million resulting from an adjustment to the selling price of the company’s steel food and aerosol business.

● A credit of $11 million related to the reversal of reserves against working capital recorded in the fourth quarter of 2019 in the new beverage packaging, other, segment, as previously at-risk balances were subsequently collected.

● Charges of $6 million for long-term incentive and other compensation arrangements associated with the 2016 Rexam acquisition.

● Charges of $33 million for individually insignificant activities.

2019

Beverage Packaging, North and Central America

During 2019, the company recorded charges of $8 million for revised estimates of charges recorded in prior periods in connection with the 2018 closures of its beverage can manufacturing facilities in Chatsworth, California, and Longview, Texas, and its beverage end manufacturing facility in Birmingham, Alabama.

Other income and charges in 2019 included $6 million of expense for individually insignificant activities.

Beverage Packaging, EMEA

During 2019, the company recorded charges of $26 million for asset impairments, accelerated depreciation and inventory impairments related to previously announced plant closures and restructuring activities.

Other charges in 2019 included $13 million of expense for individually insignificant activities.

Beverage Packaging, South America

During 2019, the company recorded a $57 million gain related to indirect tax gain contingencies in Brazil as these amounts were determined to be estimable and realizable. The company’s Brazilian subsidiaries filed lawsuits in 2014 and 2015 to challenge the Brazilian tax authorities regarding the computation of certain indirect taxes, claiming amounts were overpaid to the tax authorities because the tax base included a “tax on tax” component. See Note 22 for further details. The amounts recorded in business consolidation and other activities relate to periods prior to 2019.

The company recorded charges of $29 million in 2019 related to asset impairments, accelerated depreciation and inventory impairments related to plant closures and restructuring activities.

Other charges in 2019 included $13 million of expense for individually insignificant activities.

Other

During 2019, the company recorded the following amounts:

● A $45 million loss on the sale of the metal beverage packaging business in China and charges of $18 million for estimated employee severance costs and professional services associated with the sale.

● A loss of $52 million related to the sale of the Argentina steel aerosol packaging business, including $45 million related to cumulative translation adjustments previously recorded in accumulated other comprehensive earnings.

● A $64 million impairment charge related to certain property, plant and equipment, intangible assets and other assets of the company’s Saudi Arabian beverage packaging business (of which Ball owns 51 percent).

● A settlement loss of $8 million primarily related to the purchase of non-participating group annuity contracts to settle the projected pension benefit obligations in Ball’s Canadian defined benefit pension plan, which triggered settlement accounting. The settlement loss primarily represents the aggregate unamortized actuarial loss in this pension plan.

● Charges of $19 million for individually insignificant activities.