Amid controversy surrounding its White House links, Halliburton today denied it overbilled the government for military contracts in Iraq and said it took a major step toward settling costly asbestos litigation.
The Houston-based energy services company, once led by Vice President Mr Dick Cheney, announced that more than 97 per cent of asbestos claimants had accepted a $2.78 billion settlement offer, which sent Halliburton's shares up 3 per cent.
By settling with claimants, the company could avoid the risk of having to pay even bigger damages, a threat that has kept a cloud hanging over its stock for two years, industry analysts said.
"The news on the asbestos front will overpower any concerns about the overcharging," said Jefferies & Co analyst Mr Stephen Gengaro.
Despite the good news on its asbestos problems, Halliburton remains a lightning rod for critics, including leading Democrats, after the politically connected company received a no-bid contract to help rebuild Iraq.
The company has defended its Iraq contracts, saying it is uniquely qualified to provide engineering and other services to the military rapidly and often under difficult conditions.
Yesterday US Defense Department auditors said they found that Halliburton's Kellogg Brown & Root may have overcharged the government by more than $120 million for some Iraq work. The Pentagon said it found evidence the company overcharged for delivering fuel into Iraq by $61 million. The deliveries come under a contract, awarded in March with no competition, to restore Iraq's oil fields.
Halliburton also may have inflated costs for meal services by $67 million, the Pentagon said, under a 10-year military logistics contract awarded to KBR in 2001.