Halliburton moving to Dubai

[ShebaPoe]

The oil services powerhouse is moving out of the USA. I suppose the business climate of Dubai is better than ours?



BBC news

Halliburton plans move to Dubai

Halliburton, the oil services company formerly headed by US Vice-President Dick Cheney, is moving its headquarters from Texas to Dubai.
The company said it hoped the move to the United Arab Emirates would help it expand its business in the Middle East.

Halliburton won valuable contracts in Iraq following the US-led invasion of 2003, some of which were awarded without competitive bidding.

The company also has extensive operations in Saudi Arabia.

The oil giant will keep an office in Houston but the posts of chairman, president and chief executive will be based in Dubai.

Chief Executive Dave Lesar, speaking at a conference in Bahrain, confirmed that he would be relocating.

"As the CEO, I'm responsible for the global business of Halliburton in both hemispheres and I will continue to spend quite a bit of time in an airplane as I remain attentive to our customers, shareholders and employees around the world," he said.

"Yes, I will spend the majority of my time in Dubai."

In 2006, Halliburton made profits of $2.3bn on revenues of $22.6bn. Last month it announced a 40% decline in fourth-quarter profit.

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/h...ss/6440365.stm

[Guerilla poster]

Dubai makes some sense, it is more in the center of our new global corporate universe. It wouldn't surprise me that other global companies consider such a move in the future, as the connections, to Asia and Europe and US, are much more centralized. Plus, CEO types would like Dubai, it is great place for someone with alot of money.

[General Apathy]

They have that cool hotel too

[Triweasel]

and i hear Michael Jackson has set up a babysitting service, so your kids are all taken care of.

Makes perfect business sense...the US hasn't been building or upgrading refineries, and it doesn't look like anyone will start again any time soon. Better to get boots on the ground in the part of the world where their consulting is most in demand.

Hopefully they'll do a better job for their Middle Eastern clients than they have for the US military.

I heard that Dick Cheney owns stock in Halliburton that can be cashed in after he leaves office.

Anyone know if that's true?

[MountainHawk]

Originally Posted by Uma Karuna

I heard that Dick Cheney owns stock in Halliburton that can be cashed in after he leaves office.

Anyone know if that's true?

While in office, this assets are operated in a blind trust. I'm sure he had shares of Halliburton going into office, but only the person operating the trust should know what assets he currently has.

Originally Posted by MountainHawk

While in office, this assets are operated in a blind trust. I'm sure he had shares of Halliburton going into office, but only the person operating the trust should know what assets he currently has.

So it's possible that, assuming that the shares would have grown in value due to US government contracts in Iraq, Cheney will have personally profited from the war via this stock?

[MountainHawk]

Originally Posted by Uma Karuna

So it's possible that, assuming that the shares would have grown in value due to US government contracts in Iraq, Cheney will have personally profited from the war via this stock?

Yes, but I believe it's illegal for him to know what is in his investment portfolio, so he (theoretically) has no way of knowing he'll profit when making that decision.

Originally Posted by MountainHawk

Yes, but I believe it's illegal for him to know what is in his investment portfolio, so he (theoretically) has no way of knowing he'll profit when making that decision.

Assuming that the trustee is bound to operate in a manner advantageous to Cheney, I think it's safe to say that he knows damn well he's very likely to personally profit if Halliburton benefits from the war. That is, we can assume that, given Halliburton is doing well, the trustee would have no incentive to divest those shares.

Am I being overly cynical?