From: yaser@uxh.cso.uiuc.edu (Ala)
Subject: Iranian deals lures U.S. firms (from ENR Magazine)
Organization: University of Illinois at Urbana
Date: Thu, 21 Jan 1993 23:46:24 GMT

I type this article for ahaali info only.
The view expressed in this article does not necessarily
reflect mine..

Ala


From:  Engineering News-Record (ENR), January 18, 1993



                    Iranian deals beckon U.S. firms

As U.S. engineering and construction companies scour the world for contract
opportunities, Iran beckons with petro-dollars and political risk.  At least
one firm has found work there--Ironically rebuilding an oil platform
destroyed by the U.S. Navy.  But an oil company proposing a big petrochemical
job has been temporarily grounded by the rough political climate and new U.S.
export prohibitions on sale of "dual use" technology to Iran.  Both firms
want to do more business there and say negotiations are ultra-sensitive.

A British unit of Baton Rouge-based McDermott International Inc. did most of
the repair work on the Iranian Offshore Oil Co.'s Salman platform.  Working
under a $250-million subcontract from Nippon Steel, it fabricated components
in nearby Dubai and shipped them by barge to the site.  The $350-million
project was completed in August and was part of Iran's drive to expand oil
productions and exports.

Salman was shelled by a U.S. Navy destroyer in October 1987 after Iranian
military forces used it as a staging area for gunboats attacking
international shipping.  McDermott was tapped for repairs because it built
the facility in the 1960's.  According to commerce Dept. officials, the work
was not subject to export controls because it involved standard oilfield
equipment and was done by a non-U.S. subsidiary.

The export controls are contained in the 1993 Dept. of Defense authorization
bill passed by congress in October.  It creates a "presumption of denial" for
license application on any technology that remotely could be used for
military applications, says Paul Thanos, Iran's desk chief for the Commerce
Dept.'s International Trade Administration.  "Americans can do business with
Iran but we don't recommend it or encourage it, "he says.  "They can do it as
long as it's not a controlled item."

Earlier this month, the controls and controversy deflected a deal involving
the sale of petrochemical technology by Cleveland-based BP America Inc.  It
planned to sell a proprietary acrylonitrile process technology to Iran in a
$250-million venture that included $100 million worth of U.S. goods and
services.  The remainder of the work would have been done by Italy's
Technimont SPA, says Tony Kozlowski, a spokesman for BP America.

According to Kozlowski, BP worked with government officials for 18 months on
the license application.  "When we first began .. there was no law to stop
us," he says.  "The new law changed that.  It required us to go through the
tougher process."

BP claims it has built or licensed about 95% of worldwide acrylonitrile
production capacity.  The material is a chemical used in production of rubber
and plastic, but the chemical making process also produces hydrogen cyanide
gas, which scared government officials.  "We made a strong case that hydrogen
cyanide is not a precursor to chemical weapons" and convinced technical
experts with several federal agencies that it was not, says Kozlowski.  "If
that's what Iran wanted, there were much more efficient ways to get it.  They
could built an HC plant for about $15 million.

BP decided to withdraw the application rather than have it rejected.  "It is
not just unfortunate for BP, this plant would have meant $100 million for us
and other U.S. companies," says Kozlowski.  He says BP might resubmit the
application later.

Negotiating and working in Iran "is a pretty sensitive situation, as you
could imagine, "says a McDermott spokesman.  "We are still involved in
negotiations and looking at other possibilities."  Since most of Iran's oil
facilities were built by U.S. firms in the 1960's and 70's, "I THINK THERE'S
A WHOLE LOT OF OPPORTUNITIES FOR U.S. FIRMS THERE," he adds.
Newsgroups: soc.culture.iranian