WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 4, 2004--J.M. Bernhard, Jr.,
Chairman, CEO and founder of The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE:SGR) testified
today before Congress and emphasized that the U.S. needs to remove
barriers to new nuclear generation in the United States. Bernhard
stressed the importance of nuclear energy and its contribution to the
nation's energy supply and security, and encouraged the Committee to
continue its efforts to pass a comprehensive energy bill that
addresses the importance of nuclear energy on our nation's growing
power demands.
Bernhard testified before the Subcommittee on Energy of the Senate
Committee on Energy & Natural Resources during a hearing on new
nuclear power generation in the United States. Bernhard commended
Members of the Committee for their work on the energy bill and stated,
"It is critical that an energy bill with the right mix of incentives
to promote new nuclear construction is soon passed."
The hearing also highlighted the importance of the restart of the
Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA) Unit 1 nuclear reactor at the
Browns Ferry Nuclear power plant. The Shaw Group is performing
construction restart services for the $1.8 billion project to return
Browns Ferry to operation. "It is our mission to bring about the
restart safely, with high quality and reliability, on time and on
budget," Bernhard stated. "The BF-1 restart team fully expects that
these goals will be met."
Bernhard also discussed current efforts to develop the next
generation of reactor design, known as Generation IV plants. "Such a
design will address the challenging goals of being highly economical,
with efficiency levels comparable to that of combined cycle natural
gas plants, minimum waste generation, walk-away safety features and
proliferation resistant fuel," he stated. "I am personally very
excited about the DOE's plans to build a demonstration Generation-IV
reactor at INL (Idaho National Laboratory) and to couple that project
with hydrogen generation. Just as the race to the moon in the 1960s
resulted in a myriad of offshoot technologies that we rely on today,
it is these types of grand visions that will become the basis for our
future energy infrastructure."
Shaw, through its subsidiary, Stone & Webster, Inc., is a
recognized leader in the nuclear industry. It has furnished operations
and support to more than 95 percent of the nation's nuclear facilities
and is the domestic leader in the supply of multi-station contract
maintenance and plant restart construction services.
In January 2004, The Shaw Group Inc. announced that its
subsidiary, Stone & Webster Asia, Inc., was awarded a seven-year
contract to provide engineering support services to Korea Power
Engineering Company, Inc. (KOPEC) for Shin-Kori 1 & 2 and Shin-Wolsong
1 & 2 nuclear plants to be built in the Republic of Korea. Each of the
four KOPEC units will generate 1,000 megawatts of electricity and will
implement the Korean Standard Nuclear Plant pressurized water reactor
design. Stone & Webster Asia will supply expert engineering support in
the Republic of Korea. Technical engineering services will be provided
by Stone & Webster's offices in the United States.
"Nuclear is a big part of The Shaw Group and we remain committed
to the nuclear industry," Bernhard stated. "The Shaw Group remains
ready to support new nuclear development and construction."
The Shaw Group Inc. is a leading provider of consulting,
engineering, construction, remediation, and facilities management
services to government and private sector clients in the
environmental, infrastructure, and homeland security markets. Shaw is
also a vertically integrated provider of comprehensive engineering,
consulting, procurement, pipe fabrication, construction, and
maintenance services to the power and process industries worldwide.
The Company is headquartered in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and employs
approximately 15,000 people at its offices and operations in North
America, South America, Europe, the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific
region. For further information, please visit the Company's website at
www.shawgrp.com.
For more information about the Shaw Group, please contact: Kristi
Ledford at 770-704-5439 or by email at [email protected]
The statements contained herein that are not historical facts
(including without limitation statements to the effect that the
Company or its management "believes," "expects," "anticipates,"
"plans," or other similar expressions) and statements related to
revenues, earnings, backlog, or other financial information or results
are forward-looking statements based on the Company's current
expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their
potential effects on the Company. There can be no assurance that
future developments affecting the Company will be those anticipated by
the Company. These forward-looking statements involve significant
risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and
assumptions and are subject to change based upon various factors.
Should one or more of such risks or uncertainties materialize, or
should any of our assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary
in material respects from those projected in the forward-looking
statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or
revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new
information, future events or otherwise. A description of some of the
risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from such forward-looking statements can be found in the
Company's reports and registration statements filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission, including its Form 10-K and Form
10-Q reports, and on the Company's website under the heading "Forward
Looking Statement". These documents are also available from the
Securities and Exchange Commission or from the Investor Relations
department of Shaw. For more information on the company and
announcements it makes from time to time on a regional basis visit our
website at www.shawgrp.com.
MULTIMEDIA AVAILABLE: http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/mmg.cgi?eid=4587423
CONTACT: For The Shaw Group Inc.
Kristi Ledford, 770-704-5439
Email: [email protected]
SOURCE: The Shaw Group Inc.
