Tenneco To Spin Off Shipbuilding Unit

Tenneco Inc. plans to spin off its Newport News Shipbuilding unit and will consider ways to split off Tenneco Energy, accelerating its transformation into a global manufacturing business.

Chairman and Chief Executive Dana Mead is completing the pruning begun by his predecessor, reducing the company’s exposure to cyclical businesses. Mead said in January that he would focus on auto parts and packaging, which have wider profit margins.

The once-sprawling Tenneco joins AT&T Corp., Sears, Roebuck & Co. and others shedding units through spinoffs.

The tax-free spinoff of Newport News, the only U.S. shipyard capable of building a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, will be completed late this year, Tenneco said.