BATON ROUGE, La.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 10, 2004--The Shaw Group
Inc. (NYSE:SGR) reported today that on June 1, 2004, Shaw was notified
by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it is conducting
an informal inquiry. The SEC has not advised the Company as to either
the reason for the inquiry or its scope. However, the request for
information appears to primarily relate to the purchase method of
accounting for acquisitions, as presented in Shaw's Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended August 31, 2003.
The SEC's notice states that the notice should not be construed as
an indication of any improper or unlawful conduct. The SEC has not
issued a formal order, and Shaw Group has voluntarily agreed to
cooperate fully with the inquiry.
Robert L. Belk, Executive Vice President and Chief Financial
Officer, said, "We are confident that our accounting practices,
including the application of the purchase method of accounting, are in
accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. We have
informed the SEC that we will cooperate fully with this informal
inquiry and hope to resolve all of its questions. While this is only
an informal inquiry, we feel it is important to advise our
shareholders and others because of our commitment to the principles of
full disclosure and openness."
The Shaw Group Inc. is a leading global provider of technology,
engineering, procurement, construction, maintenance, fabrication,
manufacturing, consulting, remediation and facilities management
services for government and private sector clients in the power,
process, environmental, infrastructure and emergency response markets.
A Fortune 500 company, Shaw Group is headquartered in Baton Rouge,
Louisiana and employs approximately 17,000 people at its offices and
operations in North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East
and the Asia-Pacific region.
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a
"safe harbor" for certain forward-looking statements. 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 Statements".
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.
CONTACT: The Shaw Group Inc., Baton Rouge
Chris D. Sammons, 225-932-2500
www.shawgrp.com
SOURCE: The Shaw Group Inc.
