You can hardly find this article in the NYTimes, LATimes, CNN etc., yet MSNBC has it as their #1 lead story with the headline "An Insult: Outrage as Hallibuton moves HQ to Dubai."
I wonder why NBC has such a different understanding of this story?
Posted on 03/12/2007 7:02:15 AM PDT by thackney
LONDON — Texas is the can-do state. But there's no denying that Dubai has become the can-do sheikdom and a potent rival to Houston's supremacy as the center of the oil business.
The move of Halliburton's corporate base from Houston to Dubai is a stark example of the industry's shift in power from North America. The company is moving closer to the oil fields of the Middle East and Africa and its big national oil firms that control financing, exploration and production.
"The business is changing," said Amy Myers Jaffe, a fellow for energy studies at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University. "Will Houston remain the center of the energy business? I don't know."
Dubai's leaders decided decades ago to invest their limited oil revenues into building roads, airports and research parks to transform the city-state into a regional business hub. The strategy has been a runaway success, leading hundreds of international companies to relocate.
Dubai has become the jumping-off point into more troubled parts of the Middle East, offering executives a safe haven with excellent restaurants, golf courses, marinas and the like — while keeping them close to the action.
The city's constant hustle can be a shock for newcomers.
Part Las Vegas, part Miami and part New York, it has round-the-clock traffic jams, an airport that is busy even at 3 a.m, and a downtown vista that is dominated by dozens of cranes. Incredibly, more than 200 50-story buildings are under construction.
By moving to Dubai, Halliburton's senior management is following the lead of Vinson & Elkins, a Houston-based international firm that opened an office in the city more than three years ago after considering a number of locales in the region.
The firm wanted a Dubai base from which to pursue energy-related projects, said Jeffrey Eldredge, who helped open the office.
"Nobody lives in compounds, people feel safe here," said Eldredge. "What's happening here is pretty stunning. Many of our clients are setting up regional headquarters in Dubai, and their lawyers and financial types are going to the region, so it's convenient to be there and we need to be there."
Relaxed culture The Islam practiced in Dubai is generally tolerant and open to outsiders, and there are few restrictions on social behavior, which has made the city a magnet for young professionals from other Arab countries who want to pursue their careers without having to live by a strict Islamic code.
Women, whose choices are extremely limited in other parts of the Arab world, work in a wide variety of fields in Dubai. While many women wear traditional Muslim head scarves and head coverings, a large number also dress Western-style.
Halliburton's executives may be floored by the searing summer heat — it is often 110 degrees or hotter in summertime — when many local residents flee to cooler places like Lebanon, England or the French Riviera. The heat is so intense that Houston in August will seem positively temperate by comparison.
The city-state's phenomenal growth has been fueled by the sustained oil boom, which has brought in billions of petrodollars as prices have skyrocketed in the last decade. Dubai's leaders have invested heavily in building a modern, business-friendly infrastructure.
Extravagance is the rule Dubai is home to the world's largest building boom and has become one of the fastest growing luxury real estate markets on the planet. This formerly forgotten Persian Gulf city-state has in the past decade earned its place on the map by sponsoring world-class events and building stunning real estate developments.
Want the world's richest horse race? Dubai. A new, ultra-exclusive tennis tournament? Dubai. Want a deluxe real estate development so big it can be seen from space? Dubai.
And how about an indoor ski slope that provides a welcome respite from the heat? Look no further than the mall in Dubai. No need to bring a parka and skis; they'll rent them to you at the door. And just down the road is one of the world's most opulent hotels, the seven-star Burj Al Arab, with its distinctive sailboat shape.
But it is not only a luxurious lifestyle that has drawn hundreds of businesses, including large media companies and computer software giants. It also is the low taxes, the inexpensive labor costs, and the fact that the tensions roiling much of the Middle East are absent.
The city also offers state-of-the-art communications and transportation links close to the major Persian Gulf oil fields, but largely without the religious and political strife associated with the region.
Dubai is a place of superlatives. The world's tallest building is under construction, not far from where the world's largest theme park is rising from the desert sands.
Even the beautiful bay is not safe from the construction frenzy.
Land is being reclaimed at a quickening pace for new, pricey apartments.
Chronicle Washington Bureau reporter David Ivanovich contributed to this article.
Yes, at least part of what they do. Turns out it is the same company (or was)
HALLIBURTON ANNOUNCES PLANS TO COMPLETE SEPARATION FROM KBR BY MEANS OF A SPLIT-OFF EXCHANGE OFFER
http://www.halliburton.com/default/main/halliburton/eng/news/source_files/news.jsp?newsurl=/default/main/halliburton/eng/news/source_files/press_release/2007/kbrnws_022607.html
HOUSTON, Texas – Halliburton Company (NYSE: HAL) today announced that its board of directors has approved a plan under which Halliburton will dispose of its remaining interest in KBR, Inc. (NYSE: KBR) through a split-off exchange offer to Halliburton’s stockholders.
...
KBR is a global engineering, construction and services company supporting the energy, petrochemicals, government services and civil infrastructure sectors. KBR offers a wide range of services through its Energy and Chemicals and Government and Infrastructure business segments.
Schlumberger and Baker-Hughes to name two.
Proof that if you kick a dog long enough, he will run away. I wish Halliburton could never pay another dime in federal taxes, regardless where their HQ is.
I wonder what they do to keep the terrorists at bay. Perhaps it's similar to mainland China's tolerance of capitalism in Hong Kong through all their years of repressive socialism. Money does talk.
What a model for high tax places like Maryland which is also losing corporate headquarters.
I think that Tiger Woods just played in a golf tournament there. Dubai is our friend. We really acted stupid over the Dubai Ports World deal last year. They were never going to run our ports. They were going to own some of the terminals at several of our ports. Most of the workforce would have stayed exactly the same. In fact, I don't think they have resold them yet since a deal they had planned fell through.
Nice job, Dubai. You might be able to teach the world something...just be on the lookout for terrorists and socialists within.
I think you have hit the nail on the head. Also, they may be escaping the potential higher corporate taxes that are coming our way due to Soc Sec, Medicare, Medicaid, socialized medicine and the Demonuts.
If I remember, all those who were horrified, just horrified over the very idea of a foreign interest "owning" our ports, conveniently failed to mention DP World was proposing to "buy the ports" from their current owner, a British company.
....and further away from the dimocRATS and their minion.
I've never worked for Halliburton, but have trained several guys that have. They're a hard-nosed company. They pay great and expect hard work. There's no touchy-feely going on. It's basically, "Here's a great pay scale for your level of expertise and you're going to work hard for it. We go into some of the most dangerous places in the world, so understand that there's risk involved."
I find this move to be one of the most troubling economic stories I've read in a while. It means that for the guys who know, and make no mistake, the people running Halliburton KBR are some of the smartest and most plugged-in people in the world, the benefits of being headquartered in the US are no longer worth the hassles. Being closer to the primary source of oil is a benefit, no doubt, but that was NOT the only consideration that went into this move. That giant sucking sound Ross Perot talked about just got a lot bigger, but it's across the Atlantic. OTOH, in one way, this is going to create a new power class in the ME. With Dubai as a base, it's possible that the economic flow will create new cities based on something other than the "Fort Apache" mentality that exists in many of the ME areas where Americans work with the local government to open and develop oil fields.
The Dubai ports deal allowed the Rats to tub-thump and play into the legitimate concerns of Americans that we were losing our country. Played differently, the Dubai ports deal could have worked. With totally open borders and a steadfast refusal by both parties to secure the border (note: I'm not talking about a roundup and forced export, just talking about stopping the entry of new people), the Dubai ports deal was a hot button waiting for a Schumer and a Michael Savage to exploit.
Can anyone tell me if the U.S. offers the best overall package to start a business when compared with the rest of the world?
The answer is no. Heck, even the band U2 is not based out of the homeland Ireland because better tax havens exist elsewhere.
KBR is no longer part of Halliburton and will not be effected by the move to Dubai. See post #3.
" I wish Halliburton could never pay another dime in federal taxes, regardless where their HQ is."
I agree. While we're at it maybe we should cancel all our government contracts with them.
And give them to ____________ ?
You can hardly find this article in the NYTimes, LATimes, CNN etc., yet MSNBC has it as their #1 lead story with the headline "An Insult: Outrage as Hallibuton moves HQ to Dubai."
I wonder why NBC has such a different understanding of this story?
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