KBR and SOCAR Announce New Engineering Joint Venture in Azerbaijan
Houston, Texas - March 27, 2015 - KBR, Inc. (NYSE: KBR) announced today that it has signed a joint venture (JV) agreement with the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) to establish a new engineering and support services company in Azerbaijan.
With support from KBR and SOCAR, the new company will provide design, engineering, technical, procurement, construction supervision and project management service for projects across the upstream, midstream and downstream oil and gas sectors, primarily in the Republic of Azerbaijan. The company will also prepare technical requirements for all stages of a project, including project management, contract supervision, planning and cost control.
Additionally, it will train and develop the local workforce and supervise contractors throughout all stages of a project -- from startup through construction and into performance testing.
KBR has worked on various projects in Azerbaijan since 1994, achieving more than 17 million man-hours. At its peak, KBR employed nearly 400 Azerbaijani workers expending more than 4 million man-hours in country.
"KBR is proud to continue our successful history in Azerbaijan," said Stuart Bradie, KBR President and CEO. "This joint agreement represents KBR's ability to bring consistent and valuable training and educational programs to the region. We look forward to mobilizing our expertise, systems and procedures to support SOCAR's success with these new projects."
"We are confident that this strong JV will help to realise our ambition to create a world class Azerbaijan-based engineering company," added Rovnag Abdullayev, President, SOCAR.
The JV will be located in Baku. Bookings from the JV will be recognized as projects are awarded in the future.
SOCAR is a fully state-owned national oil company with its head office in Baku city. SOCAR is also one of the world's largest oil-gas companies, and it produces oil and natural gas from both onshore and also offshore fields in Azerbaijani sector of the Caspian Sea. Furthermore, SOCAR has oil and gas refineries and a number of oil and gas pipelines in the republic. SOCAR holds different assets in Azerbaijan, Georgia, Ukraine, Romania, Switzerland and other countries, including a large number of gas stations under the "SOCAR" brand.
KBR, Inc. is a global technology, engineering, procurement and construction company serving the hydrocarbons and government services industries, employing around 27,000 people worldwide with customers in more than 70 countries and operations in 40 countries across three distinct global businesses: Technology & Consulting, including proprietary technology in refining, ethylene, ammonia and fertilizers, and gasification; and niche consulting and know-how through Granherne/Energo and GVA;Engineering & Construction, including Upstream Oil & Gas; LNG/GTL; Downstream Petrochemicals and Chemicals; and differentiated EPC; and, Government Services, including program management and long term annuity contracts.
KBR is proud to work with its customers across the globe to provide technology, value-added consulting services and integrated EPC skills to ensure a consistent project delivery with predictable results. At KBR, we deliver.
Visit www.kbr.com.
Forward Looking Statement
The statements in this press release that are not historical statements, including statements regarding future financial performance, are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond the company's control that could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by the statements. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to: the outcome of and the publicity surrounding audits and investigations by domestic and foreign government agencies and legislative bodies; potential adverse proceedings by such agencies and potential adverse results and consequences from such proceedings; the scope and enforceability of the company's indemnities from its former parent; changes in capital spending by the company's customers; the company's ability to obtain contracts from existing and new customers and perform under those contracts; structural changes in the industries in which the company operates; escalating costs associated with and the performance of fixed-fee projects and the company's ability to control its cost under its contracts; claims negotiations and contract disputes with the company's customers; changes in the demand for or price of oil and/or natural gas; protection of intellectual property rights; compliance with environmental laws; changes in government regulations and regulatory requirements; compliance with laws related to income taxes; unsettled political conditions, war and the effects of terrorism; foreign operations and foreign exchange rates and controls; the development and installation of financial systems; increased competition for employees; the ability to successfully complete and integrate acquisitions; and operations of joint ventures, including joint ventures that are not controlled by the company.
KBR's most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K/A, any subsequent Form 10-Qs and 8-Ks, and other Securities and Exchange Commission filings discuss some of the important risk factors that KBR has identified that may affect the business, results of operations and financial condition. Except as required by law, KBR undertakes no obligation to revise or update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason.
For further information, please contact:
Investors
Zac Nagle
Vice President, Investor Relations
713-753-5082
investors@kbr.com
Media
Marit Babin
Director, Global Communications & Government Relations
713-753-3800
mediarelations@kbr.com