Schlumberger opted out of the Iraq bid of their own option. The company felt the project was not one they wanted to undertake. No pressure, just didn't feel that they wanted the job. Most companies in this field they have planned work loads and projected project schedules that are quite full. HAL maintains emergency groups for things/situations like the Iraq project. They are also already a major player in that region. Schlumberger is not. They are heavily involved in the Russian republics. That's where they feel they have the best value return. The feeling for most of the companies in the field was that there is enough work out there without adding in the terrorist concerns in a war environment. Iraq was not of an interest to many companies for work.
Schlumberger can be contacted directly if you care to. I got the "not looking to get into the arena too heavily" info from a late night BBC news story almost a year ago. Everybody doesn't just want all the work they can book. Some feel there is too much trouble associated with the region even today. Bechtel, who quietly is in the Iraq project also, didn't take many positions that they easily have the capacity for either. They too could do much more work there but haven't been that aggressive.
Haliburton *maybe* the only company willing/able to do that work but that still doesn't explain why they're getting no-bid contracts. Nothing smells more communist than no-bid contracts. If the government has a project, why not put it up for bid? Five companies bid, HAL bids the highest, but HAL still ends up winning because other companies don't meet the expertise requirement - that's fine, at least that makes sense and there is some accountability for the decision. But clearly HAL isn't the only company willing/able to do the work because they end up subcontracting out much of the work to numerous small firms from all over the world.
You honestly can't answer that question? This is not the first time that a project like this has been let without bid. It's the government's position for these projects to put out bids to company's with track records to speculate on whether or not they can, and would, do the work. HAL, and companies like it, take on a lot of liability when they take on these types of ventures. I'm sure if you were qualified to do these types of things you'd have been on the shortlist. And you too would be one of the companies that folks would be complaining about as a monopoly.
This is a waste of my time but since it is Sunday morning, I will try again. A no bid contract is given to contractors who can produce some type of new technology that no one else can. Never in my entire career with DOD did I ever hear of a no bid contract given to transport stuff from Kuwait to Baghdad. There were several other contractors that were interviewed by the media who said that they wanted the job. Furthermore, the military spokesman who was interview on the subject had a "shit eater" grin on his face and a "screw you" attitude and that made me livid when I saw it. There is absolutely no doubt in my mine that we were ripped off big time.
Why does La Raza and MALDEF get millions of US taxpayers money from the Government to organize illegal immigrant protests? I never heard and explanation of this.