When The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) announced their Q2 earnings, which ended 28 March 2020, in the beginning of May the company was in the early stages of their shutdown due to the coronavirus.

During the call, Christine McCarthy, Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, The Walt Disney Company stated, “We also identified opportunities to reduce our capital spending, and we now expect total capex for fiscal 2020 to be about $900 million lower than our prior guidance, or $400 million below prior year, driven primarily by paused construction and refurbishment work due to the temporary closing of our parks. While it is still too early to consider more specific implications for capital spending in fiscal 2021, we remain confident in our investment decisions and the resiliency of our businesses.”

During this time Disney put a pause on all announced construction projects either in progress or in the planning stages. As the company announced the phased reopening of Walt Disney World, they confirmed that some projects at Disney Parks Worldwide were moving ahead such as the TRON Lightcycle/Run at Walt Disney World and Mickey & Minnie’s Runaway Railway at Disneyland. Other projects that were in the very early stages of construction or still on the drawing board were either cancelled or postponed like Reflections — A Disney Lakeside Lodge at the Fort Wilderness Resort & Campgrounds and various EPCOT projects including the refurbishment of Spaceship Earth and the addition of a Mary Poppins-themed section in the United Kingdom Pavilion.

This past week the company reported their Q3 earnings. This period covered April through May, when a majority of the entire company was shutdown. As McCarthy was reviewing their financial picture for the time period, towards the end of her presentation she said, “Finally, we have continued to refine our capital spending plan, and we now expect total Capex for fiscal 2020 to be approximately $700 million lower than prior year, largely due to lower spending at our domestic parks and resorts. These are certainly fluid times, and we are proud of our management team and cast members for going above and beyond to position our company well for a very exciting future.”

That $700 million number caught the attention of quite a few people. What was Disney going to do with the “extra” $200 million? It appears that Disney may now be able to spend a little more money on construction and move some other construction or refurbishment projects forward.

Then Walt Disney Company ends their fiscal year this September. Hopefully, Disney will be able to give more clarity on the status of other projects later this fall when they announce their Q4 earnings.