Ball Corp. to transfer $325 million in U.S. pension liabilities

Ball Corp., Westminster, Colo., purchased group annuity contracts from one or more insurance companies to transfer about $325 million in U.S. pension plan liabilities.

The transaction was completed in the three months ended Sept. 30, the company announced in a 10-Q filing with the SEC on Nov. 5.

The filing did not disclose the name of the insurance company and number of retirees and beneficiaries whose benefits are being transferred to the insurer.

Ball Corp. also announced a revised estimate of $215 million in total U.S. pension plan contributions for 2021 in the filing. The company in February estimated a total of $185 million in contributions for the year in its latest 10-K filing.

The pension buyout transaction is at least the third such transaction Ball Corp. has completed in the past five years.

In November 2018, Ball Corp. purchased a group annuity contract from an undisclosed insurance company to transfer about $176 million in U.S. pension plan liabilities.

In August 2017, the company purchased a group annuity contract from Prudential Insurance Co. of America to transfer about $220 million in U.S. pension plan liabilities, affecting about 11,000 U.S. retirees from both Ball Corp. and Rexam PLC, which Ball Corp. purchased in 2016.

As of Dec. 31, 2020, the company had $2.085 billion in U.S. pension plan assets, while projected benefit obligations totaled $2.752, for a funding ratio of 75.8%, according to the latest 10-K filing.

Spokesman Bradford Walton could not be immediately reached for further information.