Clean Harbors (NYSE:CLH) reported second-quarter 2026 results that exceeded its prior expectations, supported by growth in its Environmental Services segment and strong market conditions in its Safety-Kleen Sustainability Solutions, or SKSS, business.
Total revenue increased 12% year over year to $1.74 billion, while adjusted EBITDA rose 22% to $409 million. The company’s adjusted EBITDA margin expanded 190 basis points to a quarterly record of 23.6%. Net income increased 34%, and earnings per share were $3.22.
Environmental Services Posts Revenue and Margin Gains
Environmental Services revenue increased by more than $100 million in the quarter. Technical services revenue rose 18%, driven by demand for disposal and recycling services, while Safety-Kleen Environmental Services revenue grew 11% on pricing and expansion in containerized waste collection and vacuum services.
Co-Chief Executive Officer Eric Gerstenberg said a large PFAS-related filtration project, which followed prior emergency response work, contributed more than $30 million in second-quarter revenue. Incineration utilization reached 91%, compared with 86% a year earlier, while landfill volumes increased 7%.
Field services revenue grew 3% despite what management described as a difficult comparison with the year-ago period. Industrial services revenue was comparable with the prior year as limited refinery downtime and turnaround activity offset growth in specialty and other services.
Environmental Services adjusted EBITDA rose 8%, and segment margin improved 10 basis points to 27.9%. Gerstenberg said the segment recorded its 17th consecutive quarter of year-over-year adjusted EBITDA margin improvement and its 19th straight quarter of EBITDA growth.
The company also announced a 10-year disposal agreement with a manufacturing customer expanding its U.S. operations. The contract has an estimated value of $600 million and is expected to begin in the fourth quarter, contributing roughly $10 million of revenue in 2026. Clean Harbors expects the agreement to reach full capacity in 2030, when it could generate an $80 million to $100 million annual revenue run rate, according to management’s comments during the call.
The work will include incineration waste and complex wastewater volumes. Gerstenberg said the company expects to add trucking, driver capacity and personnel at customer sites as the customer expands its facilities.
SKSS Benefits From Lubricant Supply Constraints
SKSS revenue increased more than 40% and adjusted EBITDA climbed 143% in the second quarter. Management attributed the performance to elevated pricing for base oils and blended products following global supply disruptions in the Middle East and Asia.
The company collected 61 million gallons of waste oil during the quarter and said it continued to generate higher revenue from its charge-for-oil program compared with a year earlier. It also increased direct blended gallons sold, which represented 11% of total volume sold in the quarter.
Mike Battles, co-CEO, said supply constraints are expected to continue into the third quarter. However, the company expects prices to begin declining during the fourth quarter under its current planning assumptions. Dugas said SKSS could produce slightly more adjusted EBITDA in the third quarter than in the second quarter before trending lower later in the year.
Management said its efforts to increase Group III product production, sell more blended volumes and expand its closed-loop offering—where it collects customer waste oil and delivers lubricants back to those customers—are intended to help reduce the business’s cyclicality over time.
Acquisitions and Data Center Expansion
Clean Harbors announced an agreement to acquire ES&H, a Gulf-region provider of field services and emergency response services, for $305 million in cash. The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory approval and other customary conditions.
ES&H operates 13 service branches across Louisiana and Texas and is expected to generate approximately $90 million in annual revenue and $30 million in adjusted EBITDA. Clean Harbors expects about $5 million in cost synergies after the first full year of operations, implying a post-synergy acquisition multiple of 8.7 times.
The company also recently completed the $30 million acquisition of Western Oil, a New England field services and waste-oil collection business expected to generate $4 million to $6 million in annual adjusted EBITDA.
Separately, Clean Harbors is building an integrated offering for data center customers, initially focused on construction-related industrial services such as mechanical flushing, chemical passivation and water filtration. Gerstenberg said the company has won work at 10 data center sites and is bidding on another dozen.
The company expects data center revenue of $15 million to $20 million this year and is targeting more than $200 million in annual revenue by 2029. It plans to invest an additional $50 million in capital expenditures over the next three years for equipment, tankage and vehicles supporting the initiative.
Raised 2026 Outlook
Clean Harbors raised its 2026 adjusted EBITDA guidance to a range of $1.35 billion to $1.41 billion, up $110 million at the midpoint from its prior forecast. The midpoint of $1.38 billion would represent approximately 18% growth from 2025.
- Environmental Services adjusted EBITDA is expected to grow 6% to 9% in 2026 at the midpoint of company guidance.
- SKSS adjusted EBITDA is now expected to total approximately $275 million, compared with the company’s prior expectation of $165 million.
- Adjusted free cash flow guidance was raised by $30 million to a range of $520 million to $580 million.
- Net capital expenditures are expected to range from $370 million to $430 million, excluding specified strategic investments.
The company ended the quarter with $517 million of cash and short-term marketable securities and a net debt-to-EBITDA ratio of about 2 times. During the quarter, Clean Harbors repurchased approximately 84,000 shares at an average price of $298 per share and had just under $550 million remaining under its repurchase authorization as of June 30.
About Clean Harbors (NYSE:CLH)
Clean Harbors, Inc is a leading provider of environmental, energy and industrial services in North America. The company specializes in the collection, transportation and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous wastes, emergency spill response and remediation, industrial cleaning and on-site field services. Its comprehensive service offering also includes chemical neutralization, drum crushing, high-pressure water blasting, tank cleaning and vacuum services designed to help customers meet stringent environmental regulations.
Founded in 1980 by Alan S.
