Halliburton says has completed contractual obligations in Iran

New York (Platts)--9Apr2007

Oilfield services giant Halliburton said Monday it has completed its
contractual commitments in Iran and is no longer working there, more than two
years after it announced it would exit the country.

Halliburton's work in Iran has come under fire in recent years,
particularly because US companies are prohibited from investing in the country
due to sanctions imposed by Washington. But Halliburton has insisted it was in
the clear because its work in Iran was performed by offshore subsidiaries
managed and staffed by non-US personnel.

Nonetheless, the company announced in January 2005 it would accept no
further work in Iran and leave when its existing contracts expired.

"Halliburton's prior business in Iran was clearly permissible under
applicable laws and regulations," the company said in a statement Monday.

The US also has in place the Iran Sanctions Act, formerly the Iran-Libya
Sanction Act, which threatens penalties against foreign companies who invest
more than $20 million in Iran's oil and gas sector. The act has never been
enforced, however.