Bechtel
Encyclopedia
Bechtel Corporation is the largest engineering
company in the United States
, ranking as the 5th-largest privately owned company in the U.S. With headquarters in the Financial District of San Francisco, As of 2010, Bechtel had $30.8 billion in revenue and employed 49,000 workers on project
s in nearly 50 countries.
Bechtel participated in the building of Hoover Dam
in the 1930s. It has also had involvement in a number of other high profile construction engineering projects: numerous power projects such as refineries
and nuclear power plants
; transportation projects including the Channel Tunnel
, the BART system, King Fahd International Airport
in Dammam
(the largest Airport in the world by land area), Hong Kong International Airport
and the Big Dig; and other projects such as the Kingdom Centre and Tower
in Saudi Arabia, Jubail Industrial City, the rebuilding of the civil infrastructure of Iraq funded by the United States Agency for International Development
(USAID), and the hauling and installing of more than 35,000 trailer
s and mobile home
s for Hurricane Katrina
victims in Mississippi
.
The Bechtel family has owned Bechtel since incorporating the company in 1945. Bechtel's size, its political clout, and its penchant for privacy have made it a constant subject of scrutiny for journalists and politicians since the 1930s. Bechtel owns and operates power plants, oil refineries, water systems, and airports in several countries including the United States, Turkey
, and the United Kingdom
.
, started as an employee of the burgeoning United States railroad industry in 1898 after his Oklahoma
cattle ranch failed. Over the next 20 years, he built up a sizeable contracting business that specialised in railroad and highway building. One of Bechtel's earliest major contracts was grading the site of the Oroville, CA depot for the Western Pacific Railroad
, then under construction.
In 1919, Warren Bechtel and his partners (including his brother Arthur) built the Klamath Highway in California, and in 1921 Warren Bechtel partners won a contract to build the water tunnels for the Caribou Hydroelectric Facility in that state. In 1925, Warren A. Bechtel's sons Warren Jr., Stephen
, and Ken
joined him and incorporated as W.A. Bechtel Company. In 1926, the new company won its first major contract, the Bowman Lake dam in California.
", but after some controversy the structure gained the name of "Hoover Dam
" (in honor of President Herbert Hoover
). The construction involved the largest civil engineering project ever undertaken at the time.
Over the next two years several companies competed for dam-building contracts. To compete for the contract, the W.A. Bechtel Company joined with five competitors to form the Six Companies Corporation
. This partnership formed for the sole purpose of the Hoover Dam project, and their combined strength virtually guaranteed that they would submit the most competitive bid. On March 11, 1931, the United States Department of the Interior
selected the Six Companies to build the dam. Construction of the Hoover Dam began in late 1931 and finished in 1936, two years ahead of schedule.
Warren A. Bechtel died suddenly while traveling abroad in 1933, in the midst of the Hoover Dam project. His son Warren A. Bechtel, Jr. took over as president of the company and served in that position until succeeded by his brother Stephen.
After the building of Hoover Dam, Bechtel's reputation soared. However, Stephen Bechtel wanted the company to become more than just a construction firm. He pushed the W.A. Bechtel Company to undertake more complex engineering projects and oil contracts.
From 1933 to 1936, Bechtel helped build the 4.5 mile (7 km) long San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge. In 1937, Bechtel joined forces with John McCone
's engineering company to form an engineering/construction firm called the Bechtel-McCone Company.
Bechtel Shipyards in Sausalito, California
and produced hundreds of cargo ship
s and oil tanker
s for the Navy. John McCone's California Shipbuilding Company also gained many large and profitable shipbuilding contracts, starting in early 1941 and continuing through the end of World War II
.
While the United States built its "Arsenal of Democracy
", American war planners increasingly worried about what would happen if the Axis
gained control of the world's oil reserves. The Italian
invasion of Egypt
in September 1940 caused deep concern, as did the April 1941 coup in Iraq which brought the pro-German Golden Square faction to power.
Matters came to a head after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
in December 1941. War planners became concerned that the Japanese might invade Alaska
and threaten the northern oil fields, which had started to become an important part of the U.S. oil supply. In April 1942, the United States Army
authorized the creation of the ALCAN
(Alaskan-Canadian Highway) to facilitate the movement of troops and supplies to Alaska. Soon afterwards the authorities authorized the CANOL oil pipeline.
The CANOL pipeline contract went to Bechtel-Price-Callahan, a partnership formed for the purpose by the W.A. Bechtel Co., the H.C. Price Co., and the W.E. Callahan Construction Co. In June 1942, the Japanese invaded the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska, and the construction began in earnest. However, due to poor planning by the Army and mismanagement by the contractors, the CANOL project failed totally. The pipeline consumed more oil than it produced and cost taxpayers an enormous amount of money. Furthermore, as time went on, it became clear that the Japanese did not have the resources to invade Alaska. The CANOL pipeline was abandoned after a mere 11 months in operation.
During the pre-war period in late 1940 and early 1941, several scandals and allegations had surfaced involving wartime profiteering and widespread corruption at a number of defense contractors. In 1941, the U.S. Senate created the Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program at the urging of Senator Harry Truman. This committee, chaired by Truman, spent two years investigating waste and corruption in the defense industry.
In 1943, the "Truman Committee" released a scathing judgment on the $143 million CANOL project, calling it more destructive to the war effort than any act of sabotage by an enemy. The judgment singled out Bechtel-Price-Callahan for criticism for its role in the cost overruns and mismanagement that plagued the project.
's share in Bechtel-McCone and incorporated as Bechtel Corporation. John McCone went on to head the Atomic Energy Commission
and later the Central Intelligence Agency
(see below).
In 1947, Bechtel expanded its oil pipeline activities with its construction of the Trans-Arabian Pipeline in Saudi Arabia
. At over 1,000 miles (1,600 km), this comprised the longest pipeline in the world at the time. In addition to the pipeline itself, Bechtel built large parts of the modern infrastructures of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait
, including airports, sea ports, and oil refineries.
In 1946, the U.S. Congress authorized government research into nuclear power
with the Atomic Energy Act of 1946
. This act created the Atomic Energy Commission, later headed by Bechtel's former partner John McCone. Following President Eisenhower's famous Atoms for Peace
speech in 1953, commercial research into nuclear power was authorized.
In 1956, Bechtel won the right to build the world's second commercial nuclear power reactor, the Dresden-1 in Illinois
. Construction began in 1957 and the plant came fully online in 1960, four years after the first commercial nuclear power reactor, Calder Hall in Sellafield
, England.
In 1959, a Bechtel partnership called Parsons Brinckerhoff-Tudor-Bechtel gained the contract for San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)
system. The system, completed in 1972, served as a model for other urban transit systems around the world.
in California
. However the company was embarrassed in 1977 when it installed a 420-ton nuclear-reactor vessel backwards at the power plant in San Onofre.
At this time the Corporation also diversified into other areas. In the late 1960s, Bechtel launched its development, finance, and investment arm, named Bechtel Enterprises Holdings, Inc. This firm leveraged Bechtel's experience, its capital, and its government ties to help other companies compete for engineering contracts throughout the world.
In 1972, Bechtel won a $13 billion contract for the James Bay
hydroelectric project in northwest Quebec
. The project was completed in 1985 and drew criticism from the growing environment movements in the U.S. and Canada.
In 1976, Bechtel was awarded a contract to build Jubail Industrial City in Saudi Arabia
. By 1992, the 360 square mile (930 km²) city of Jubail was one of the most modern cities in Saudi Arabia, with a population of over 70,000. After the successful completion of the project in the late 1980s, Bechtel's contract was extended by the government of Saudi Arabia through 2007.
, which noted that it was Bechtel who had presented evidence of its massive layoffs to the trial court.
In 1981, Bechtel constructed the Ok Tedi Mine
, the largest mine in Papua New Guinea at the time. An engineering feat, the mine was constructed in one of the most remote and inaccessible regions in the world. Controversy would surround the major shareholder of the mining company, Broken Hill Proprietary (BHP), which is now known as BHP Billiton
, when it allowed mine waste to be dumped directly in the Ok Tedi River after a tailings dam built by Bechtel was destroyed in a landslide. The Ok Tedi Environmental Disaster
resulted from the riverine dumping of pollution.
In 1981, Bechtel bought controlling interest in Wall Street investment bank Dillon, Read & Co.
, and George Schultz joined Dillon Read's board representing Bechtel.
Bechtel's recent history has been fraught with controversy. In 1988, just after Saddam Hussein
had earned international condemnation for using poisonous gas against thousands of Kurd
s, Bechtel signed contracts with Iraq
to build a chemical plant. Bechtel never completed the project due to the onset of the first Gulf War
in 1990.
In 1989, Bechtel repaired the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge after a 30 ft (9 m) section collapsed as a result of the Loma Prieta Earthquake
.
of 1996-7 in central Africa, compiling "the most complete mineralogical and geographical data of the former Zaire ever assembled, information worth a fortune to any prospective mining or oil firm" and commissioning and paying for "U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration satellite studies of the country and for infrared maps of its mineral potential." According to government officials, some of the satellite data provided to Kabila by Bechtel was "militarily useful information."
In the late 1990s Bechtel was awarded the contract from Saudi Arabia
's Civil Aviation Authority to build Dammam
's King Fahd International Airport
, the largest airport in the world in terms of land area (780 km²), thus making it larger than the nearby country of Bahrain, that Bechtel completed later than schedule and at a cost that was over budget while bad transport roads led many locals to fly via the nearby Bahrain International Airport
.
, the elected president and former dictator of Bolivia
, to privatize the water supply in Bolivia's 3rd-largest city, Cochabamba
. The contract was officially awarded to a company named Aguas del Tunari, a consortium
in which Bechtel held a 27.5 percent interest. Shortly thereafter, claims surfaced that water rates in that city went up an average of about 50 percent and that even collection of rainwater was being made illegal as a result of the privatization contract. Both of these actions resulted in the Cochabamba protests of 2000. Many had to withdraw their children from school and stop using doctors because of higher costs for water. Martial law
was declared, and Bolivian police killed at least 6 people and injured over 170 protesters. Amidst Bolivia's nationwide economic collapse and growing national unrest over the state of the economy, the Bolivian government withdrew the water contract.
In 2001, Bechtel filed suit against the Bolivian government, citing damages of more for $25 million. Bechtel argues that its contract was only to administer the water system, which suffered from terrible internal corruption and poor service, and that the local government raised water prices. The continuing legal battle attracted attention from anti-globalization and anti-capitalist groups. This topic is explored in the 2003 documentary film
The Corporation, in the 2010 Spanish film Even the rain
by Icíar Bollaín
and on Bechtel's website. In January 2006, Bechtel and the other international partners settled the lawsuit against the Bolivian government for a reported two bolivianos, after intense protests that followed a ruling on jurisdiction favorable to Bechtel by the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes.
in Riyadh
, Saudi Arabia
. The Kingdom Centre includes a shopping centre, a Four Seasons Hotel, state-of-the-art apartments, and most importantly the Kingdom Tower, a 302 meter tower, the tallest in Saudi Arabia and the 25th tallest building in the world. The total cost of the project was 1.717 billion Saudi Arabian Riyals
and is owned by Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
PFI, Bechtel has a one third interest in Tube Lines
.
Bechtel announced in May 2010 that it has entered into an agreement to sell its one-third interest in Tube Lines to Transport for London (“TfL”) for £103 million.
, the Boston Globe launched an investigation into Bechtel's role in massive cost overruns and accounting irregularities in Boston
's Big Dig project totaling over $1 billion. Bechtel rebutted the allegations on its website. The Globe, along with the Associated Press
, filed papers requesting that Massachusetts Turnpike Authority make public the results of all Bechtel's performance audits related to the Big Dig. Bechtel sought a preliminary injunction to block the release of the documents, but the superior court judge in the case denied Bechtel's request on April 11, 2003, opening the way for public release of the documents.
Bechtel has long had close ties to the American government. From 1974 to 1982 George Schultz, former United States Secretary of Treasury and future Secretary of State
, was president and director. The late former U.S. Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger
was general counsel for Bechtel in the late 1970s. Former deputy Secretary of Energy W. Kenneth Davis was Bechtel's vice-president. Riley Bechtel, the company's chair, was on President George W. Bush's Export Council. Jack Sheehan, a former senior vice-president of Bechtel, was a member of the U.S. Defense Policy Board. The Clinton Administration also appointed senior Bechtel managers to senior positions.
Like most large American companies, Bechtel and its employees have contributed large amounts of money to United States politicians (over a million dollars in campaign contributions between 1999 and 2002).
, George W Bush, through USAID, awarded the first Iraq reconstruction contract, valued at $680 million, to Bechtel. It is alleged that some of the construction projects managed by Bechtel were either poorly implemented, failing within months of their installation, or designed in such a way that Iraqi engineers did not have the knowledge or components to fix Bechtel's proprietary technology.
On May 5, 2003, The New Yorker
ran an article revealing that the bin Laden family had passively invested several million dollars in The Fremont Group, a private equity
fund owned by the Bechtel family.
, Tennessee
's Y-12 facility after an accident caused a small explosion, a fire, and contaminated three employees.
's Tip O'Neill I-93 Tunnel, due to a contractor's failure to remove gravel or other debris before pouring concrete. Bechtel acknowledged failing to catch and correct the error. The Boston Globe also made a major issue of many leaks that sprang from gaps in the roof of the tunnel; these were later sealed by the tunnel contractors as part of the construction process.
for building the A3 freeway. The contract came under criticism from the European Union because it was awarded through negotiation, not competitive bid. In 2005, the new Romanian government held up the project to renegotiate the contract but construction is now underway.
As of January 2011, after 6 years, Transilvanian Highway is still under construction, 52 km of road finished and 1.2 billion Euro paid from Romania to Bechtel USA.
In January 2011, Bechtel announced its intention to bid for the contract for building two new reactors at the Cernavoda nuclear plant.
to install temporary housing for the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief
effort. The lack of competitive bidding for the contracts was criticized, as was the high cost of the contracts and the failure to support local, minority-owned businesses.
were responsible for building. This collapse claimed the life of Melena Del Valle, a 38 year old native of Costa Rica
. Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reily immediately designated the accident scene a crime scene. He has left open the possibility of negligent homicide charges being levied against Big Dig contractors and managers.
: Bechtel has a presence, through various partnerships, of the bulk of the US nuclear weapons facilities, including Los Alamos National Laboratory
(design and pit production), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
(design), Savannah River Site
(nuclear materials), Hanford Site
(nuclear materials), Pantex Plant (assembly/disassembly), Y-12 National Security Complex (nuclear materials), and the Nevada Test Site
(subcritical testing).
, a nuclear reactor
being designed for use by the United States Navy
to provide electricity generation
and propulsion
for the Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers.
from the National Building Museum
in 1998. At the ceremony, at which Stephen Bechtel, Jr.
and Riley P. Bechtel
accepted the award, former Secretary of State George P. Shultz
said of the corporation, "Bechtel has been a wonderful ambassador around the world... No. 1, they're always there to solve problems - the world is full of critics, and what you want is people who are constructive, who are ready to solve problems."
fined Bechtel $5,000 for hazardous waste violations on an incident where a flying drum lid barely missed two workers due to the build-up of pressure inside a drum and improper closure operations. The penalty was issued because of inadequate worker training which led to an incorrectly labeled drum. Inspections also discovered that Bechtel kept inaccurate records keeping of cleanup waste, which violated state regulations.
In 1998, Bechtel was fined $90,000 for violating water quality laws in New Hampshire for constructing a gas pipeline, which would have leaked sediments into the stream that would increase turbidity and damage wetland habitats.
On October 29, 2001, the EPA fined Bechtel $30,383 at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory for not keeping records of any service being performed or of how much refrigerant was added to the cooling systems, which could increase annualized leak rates more than 15%.
In 2009, it was announced that Bechtel would team up with BrightSource Energy
to build solar energy plants. The partnership will have Bechtel build very large solar power plants in the Mojave desert
with groundbreaking beginning in 2010. The new plants will have a field of mirrors redirecting sunlight to a tower filled with water, which will then boil and turn the turbines.
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
company in the United States
Economy of the United States
The economy of the United States is the world's largest national economy. Its nominal GDP was estimated to be nearly $14.5 trillion in 2010, approximately a quarter of nominal global GDP. The European Union has a larger collective economy, but is not a single nation...
, ranking as the 5th-largest privately owned company in the U.S. With headquarters in the Financial District of San Francisco, As of 2010, Bechtel had $30.8 billion in revenue and employed 49,000 workers on project
Project
A project in business and science is typically defined as a collaborative enterprise, frequently involving research or design, that is carefully planned to achieve a particular aim. Projects can be further defined as temporary rather than permanent social systems that are constituted by teams...
s in nearly 50 countries.
Bechtel participated in the building of Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam, once known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President...
in the 1930s. It has also had involvement in a number of other high profile construction engineering projects: numerous power projects such as refineries
Oil refinery
An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where crude oil is processed and refined into more useful petroleum products, such as gasoline, diesel fuel, asphalt base, heating oil, kerosene, and liquefied petroleum gas...
and nuclear power plants
Nuclear power plant
A nuclear power plant is a thermal power station in which the heat source is one or more nuclear reactors. As in a conventional thermal power station the heat is used to generate steam which drives a steam turbine connected to a generator which produces electricity.Nuclear power plants are usually...
; transportation projects including the Channel Tunnel
Channel Tunnel
The Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
, the BART system, King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
in Dammam
Dammam
Dammam is the capital of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the most oil-rich region in the world. The judicial and administrative bodies of the province and several government departments are located in the city. Dammam is the largest city in the Eastern Province and third largest in Saudi...
(the largest Airport in the world by land area), Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport
Hong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...
and the Big Dig; and other projects such as the Kingdom Centre and Tower
Kingdom Centre
Kingdom Centre also called Al Mamlaka Tower is a skyscraper located in the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is currently the second tallest skyscraper in Saudi Arabia with a height of . It's also the third tallest building with a hole in the world . AL-Mamlka Tower contains a total of 41 floors...
in Saudi Arabia, Jubail Industrial City, the rebuilding of the civil infrastructure of Iraq funded by the United States Agency for International Development
United States Agency for International Development
The United States Agency for International Development is the United States federal government agency primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid. President John F. Kennedy created USAID in 1961 by executive order to implement development assistance programs in the areas...
(USAID), and the hauling and installing of more than 35,000 trailer
Trailer (vehicle)
A trailer is generally an unpowered vehicle pulled by a powered vehicle. Commonly, the term trailer refers to such vehicles used for transport of goods and materials....
s and mobile home
Mobile home
Mobile homes or static caravans are prefabricated homes built in factories, rather than on site, and then taken to the place where they will be occupied...
s for Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane Katrina of the 2005 Atlantic hurricane season was a powerful Atlantic hurricane. It is the costliest natural disaster, as well as one of the five deadliest hurricanes, in the history of the United States. Among recorded Atlantic hurricanes, it was the sixth strongest overall...
victims in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
.
The Bechtel family has owned Bechtel since incorporating the company in 1945. Bechtel's size, its political clout, and its penchant for privacy have made it a constant subject of scrutiny for journalists and politicians since the 1930s. Bechtel owns and operates power plants, oil refineries, water systems, and airports in several countries including the United States, Turkey
Economy of Turkey
The economy of Turkey is defined as an emerging market economy by the IMF and is largely developed, making Turkey one of the world's newly industrialized countries. The country is among the world's leading producers of agricultural products; textiles; motor vehicles, ships and other transportation...
, and the United Kingdom
Economy of the United Kingdom
The economy of the United Kingdom is the sixth-largest national economy in the world measured by nominal GDP and seventh-largest measured by purchasing power parity , and the third-largest in Europe measured by nominal GDP and second-largest measured by PPP...
.
Early 1900s
Bechtel has always functioned as a family-owned company. Its founder, Warren A. BechtelWarren A. Bechtel
Warren A. Bechtel was the founder of the Bechtel Corporation, one of the world's largest engineering and construction services firms.-Early life:...
, started as an employee of the burgeoning United States railroad industry in 1898 after his Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
cattle ranch failed. Over the next 20 years, he built up a sizeable contracting business that specialised in railroad and highway building. One of Bechtel's earliest major contracts was grading the site of the Oroville, CA depot for the Western Pacific Railroad
Western Pacific Railroad
The Western Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was formed in 1903 as an attempt to break the near-monopoly the Southern Pacific Railroad had on rail service into northern California...
, then under construction.
In 1919, Warren Bechtel and his partners (including his brother Arthur) built the Klamath Highway in California, and in 1921 Warren Bechtel partners won a contract to build the water tunnels for the Caribou Hydroelectric Facility in that state. In 1925, Warren A. Bechtel's sons Warren Jr., Stephen
Stephen D. Bechtel, Sr.
Stephen Davison Bechtel was the son of Clara Alice West and Warren A. Bechtel, the founder of the Bechtel Corporation and the president of the company from 1933 through 1960....
, and Ken
Kenneth K. Bechtel
Kenneth Karl Bechtel was the son of Warren A. Bechtel, the founder of the Bechtel Corporation.In 1925, Ken Bechtel joined his father Warren A. Bechtel and brothers Warren Jr. and Stephen, and incorporated as W.A. Bechtel Company...
joined him and incorporated as W.A. Bechtel Company. In 1926, the new company won its first major contract, the Bowman Lake dam in California.
1930s
In 1928, the U.S. Congress passed the Boulder Canyon Project Act, which mandated the construction of a hydroelectric dam on the Colorado River. The plan used the name "Boulder DamHoover Dam
Hoover Dam, once known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President...
", but after some controversy the structure gained the name of "Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam, once known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President...
" (in honor of President Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
). The construction involved the largest civil engineering project ever undertaken at the time.
Over the next two years several companies competed for dam-building contracts. To compete for the contract, the W.A. Bechtel Company joined with five competitors to form the Six Companies Corporation
Six Companies
Six Companies, Inc. was a joint venture of construction companies that was formed to build the Hoover Dam across the Colorado River in Nevada and Arizona....
. This partnership formed for the sole purpose of the Hoover Dam project, and their combined strength virtually guaranteed that they would submit the most competitive bid. On March 11, 1931, the United States Department of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
selected the Six Companies to build the dam. Construction of the Hoover Dam began in late 1931 and finished in 1936, two years ahead of schedule.
Warren A. Bechtel died suddenly while traveling abroad in 1933, in the midst of the Hoover Dam project. His son Warren A. Bechtel, Jr. took over as president of the company and served in that position until succeeded by his brother Stephen.
After the building of Hoover Dam, Bechtel's reputation soared. However, Stephen Bechtel wanted the company to become more than just a construction firm. He pushed the W.A. Bechtel Company to undertake more complex engineering projects and oil contracts.
From 1933 to 1936, Bechtel helped build the 4.5 mile (7 km) long San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge. In 1937, Bechtel joined forces with John McCone
John McCone
John Alexander McCone was an American businessman and politician who served as Director of Central Intelligence during the height of the Cold War.- Background :...
's engineering company to form an engineering/construction firm called the Bechtel-McCone Company.
World War II
On July 19, 1940, President Roosevelt signed the Two-Ocean Naval Expansion Act, which authorized the construction of two huge fleets in both the Atlantic and Pacific theaters. The U.S. Maritime Commission selected Bechtel to build a new shipyard for the Pacific fleet. Bechtel constructed the MarinshipMarinship
Marinship Corporation was a shipbuilding company of the United States during World War II, created to build the shipping required for the war effort...
Bechtel Shipyards in Sausalito, California
Sausalito, California
Sausalito is a San Francisco Bay Area city, in Marin County, California, United States. Sausalito is south-southeast of San Rafael, at an elevation of 13 feet . The population was 7,061 as of the 2010 census. The community is situated near the northern end of the Golden Gate Bridge, and prior to...
and produced hundreds of cargo ship
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
s and oil tanker
Oil tanker
An oil tanker, also known as a petroleum tanker, is a merchant ship designed for the bulk transport of oil. There are two basic types of oil tankers: the crude tanker and the product tanker. Crude tankers move large quantities of unrefined crude oil from its point of extraction to refineries...
s for the Navy. John McCone's California Shipbuilding Company also gained many large and profitable shipbuilding contracts, starting in early 1941 and continuing through the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
While the United States built its "Arsenal of Democracy
Arsenal of Democracy
"The Arsenal of Democracy" was a propaganda slogan coined by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, in a radio broadcast delivered on December 29, 1940. Roosevelt promised to help the United Kingdom fight Nazi Germany by giving them military supplies while the United States stayed out of the actual...
", American war planners increasingly worried about what would happen if the Axis
Axis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
gained control of the world's oil reserves. The Italian
Italian Fascism
Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...
invasion of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
in September 1940 caused deep concern, as did the April 1941 coup in Iraq which brought the pro-German Golden Square faction to power.
Matters came to a head after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor
Attack on Pearl Harbor
The attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
in December 1941. War planners became concerned that the Japanese might invade Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
and threaten the northern oil fields, which had started to become an important part of the U.S. oil supply. In April 1942, the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
authorized the creation of the ALCAN
Alaska Highway
The Alaska Highway was constructed during World War II for the purpose of connecting the contiguous U.S. to Alaska through Canada. It begins at the junction with several Canadian highways in Dawson Creek, British Columbia and runs to Delta Junction, Alaska, via Whitehorse, Yukon...
(Alaskan-Canadian Highway) to facilitate the movement of troops and supplies to Alaska. Soon afterwards the authorities authorized the CANOL oil pipeline.
The CANOL pipeline contract went to Bechtel-Price-Callahan, a partnership formed for the purpose by the W.A. Bechtel Co., the H.C. Price Co., and the W.E. Callahan Construction Co. In June 1942, the Japanese invaded the Aleutian Islands off the coast of Alaska, and the construction began in earnest. However, due to poor planning by the Army and mismanagement by the contractors, the CANOL project failed totally. The pipeline consumed more oil than it produced and cost taxpayers an enormous amount of money. Furthermore, as time went on, it became clear that the Japanese did not have the resources to invade Alaska. The CANOL pipeline was abandoned after a mere 11 months in operation.
During the pre-war period in late 1940 and early 1941, several scandals and allegations had surfaced involving wartime profiteering and widespread corruption at a number of defense contractors. In 1941, the U.S. Senate created the Special Committee to Investigate the National Defense Program at the urging of Senator Harry Truman. This committee, chaired by Truman, spent two years investigating waste and corruption in the defense industry.
In 1943, the "Truman Committee" released a scathing judgment on the $143 million CANOL project, calling it more destructive to the war effort than any act of sabotage by an enemy. The judgment singled out Bechtel-Price-Callahan for criticism for its role in the cost overruns and mismanagement that plagued the project.
Post-war era: late 40s through 50s
After the war, the W.A. Bechtel Company bought out John McConeJohn McCone
John Alexander McCone was an American businessman and politician who served as Director of Central Intelligence during the height of the Cold War.- Background :...
's share in Bechtel-McCone and incorporated as Bechtel Corporation. John McCone went on to head the Atomic Energy Commission
United States Atomic Energy Commission
The United States Atomic Energy Commission was an agency of the United States government established after World War II by Congress to foster and control the peace time development of atomic science and technology. President Harry S...
and later the Central Intelligence Agency
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
(see below).
In 1947, Bechtel expanded its oil pipeline activities with its construction of the Trans-Arabian Pipeline in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. At over 1,000 miles (1,600 km), this comprised the longest pipeline in the world at the time. In addition to the pipeline itself, Bechtel built large parts of the modern infrastructures of Saudi Arabia and Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, including airports, sea ports, and oil refineries.
In 1946, the U.S. Congress authorized government research into nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
with the Atomic Energy Act of 1946
Atomic Energy Act of 1946
The Atomic Energy Act of 1946 determined how the United States federal government would control and manage the nuclear technology it had jointly developed with its wartime allies...
. This act created the Atomic Energy Commission, later headed by Bechtel's former partner John McCone. Following President Eisenhower's famous Atoms for Peace
Atoms for Peace
"Atoms for Peace" was the title of a speech delivered by U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower to the UN General Assembly in New York City on December 8, 1953....
speech in 1953, commercial research into nuclear power was authorized.
In 1956, Bechtel won the right to build the world's second commercial nuclear power reactor, the Dresden-1 in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. Construction began in 1957 and the plant came fully online in 1960, four years after the first commercial nuclear power reactor, Calder Hall in Sellafield
Sellafield
Sellafield is a nuclear reprocessing site, close to the village of Seascale on the coast of the Irish Sea in Cumbria, England. The site is served by Sellafield railway station. Sellafield is an off-shoot from the original nuclear reactor site at Windscale which is currently undergoing...
, England.
In 1959, a Bechtel partnership called Parsons Brinckerhoff-Tudor-Bechtel gained the contract for San Francisco's Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART)
Bay Area Rapid Transit
Bay Area Rapid Transit is a rapid transit system serving the San Francisco Bay Area. The heavy-rail public transit and subway system connects San Francisco with cities in the East Bay and suburbs in northern San Mateo County. BART operates five lines on of track with 44 stations in four counties...
system. The system, completed in 1972, served as a model for other urban transit systems around the world.
60s and 70s
Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, Bechtel expanded its energy engineering activities. In 1963, Bechtel began construction of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating StationSan Onofre Nuclear Generating Station
The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station is a nuclear power plant located on the Pacific coast of California. The site is in the northwestern corner of San Diego County, south of San Clemente, and surrounded by the San Onofre State Park and next to the I-5 Highway.Unit 1 is no longer in service...
in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. However the company was embarrassed in 1977 when it installed a 420-ton nuclear-reactor vessel backwards at the power plant in San Onofre.
At this time the Corporation also diversified into other areas. In the late 1960s, Bechtel launched its development, finance, and investment arm, named Bechtel Enterprises Holdings, Inc. This firm leveraged Bechtel's experience, its capital, and its government ties to help other companies compete for engineering contracts throughout the world.
In 1972, Bechtel won a $13 billion contract for the James Bay
James Bay
James Bay is a large body of water on the southern end of Hudson Bay in Canada. Both bodies of water extend from the Arctic Ocean. James Bay borders the provinces of Quebec and Ontario; islands within the bay are part of Nunavut...
hydroelectric project in northwest Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. The project was completed in 1985 and drew criticism from the growing environment movements in the U.S. and Canada.
In 1976, Bechtel was awarded a contract to build Jubail Industrial City in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. By 1992, the 360 square mile (930 km²) city of Jubail was one of the most modern cities in Saudi Arabia, with a population of over 70,000. After the successful completion of the project in the late 1980s, Bechtel's contract was extended by the government of Saudi Arabia through 2007.
1980s
The 1980s were not kind to Bechtel. Employee headcount plunged from 44,000 in 1982 to 16,000 in 1995; one of the 1995 layoffs ultimately resulted in a landmark 2000 employment law decision of the Supreme Court of CaliforniaSupreme Court of California
The Supreme Court of California is the highest state court in California. It is headquartered in San Francisco and regularly holds sessions in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Its decisions are binding on all other California state courts.-Composition:...
, which noted that it was Bechtel who had presented evidence of its massive layoffs to the trial court.
In 1981, Bechtel constructed the Ok Tedi Mine
Ok Tedi Mine
The Ok Tedi Mine is an open-pit copper and gold mine located near the headwaters of the Ok Tedi River, in the Star Mountains Rural LLG of the North Fly District of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea...
, the largest mine in Papua New Guinea at the time. An engineering feat, the mine was constructed in one of the most remote and inaccessible regions in the world. Controversy would surround the major shareholder of the mining company, Broken Hill Proprietary (BHP), which is now known as BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton
BHP Billiton is a global mining, oil and gas company headquartered in Melbourne, Australia and with a major management office in London, United Kingdom...
, when it allowed mine waste to be dumped directly in the Ok Tedi River after a tailings dam built by Bechtel was destroyed in a landslide. The Ok Tedi Environmental Disaster
Ok Tedi Environmental Disaster
The Ok Tedi environmental disaster, due to the annual discharge of millions of tons of mining waste, has harmed the environment and livelihood of 50,000 people who live on or near the Ok Tedi River in Papua New Guinea...
resulted from the riverine dumping of pollution.
In 1981, Bechtel bought controlling interest in Wall Street investment bank Dillon, Read & Co.
Dillon, Read & Co.
Dillon, Read & Co. was a prominent American investment bank from the 1920s into the 1960s.-Origins:Dillon Read traces its roots to 1832 with the founding of the Wall Street brokerage firm Carpenter & Vermilye. This firm was succeeded by Read & Company in which chief principal was William A. Read. ...
, and George Schultz joined Dillon Read's board representing Bechtel.
Bechtel's recent history has been fraught with controversy. In 1988, just after Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...
had earned international condemnation for using poisonous gas against thousands of Kurd
Kürd
Kürd or Kyurd or Kyurt may refer to:*Kürd Eldarbəyli, Azerbaijan*Kürd Mahrızlı, Azerbaijan*Kürd, Goychay, Azerbaijan*Kürd, Jalilabad, Azerbaijan*Kürd, Qabala, Azerbaijan*Qurdbayram, Azerbaijan...
s, Bechtel signed contracts with Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
to build a chemical plant. Bechtel never completed the project due to the onset of the first Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
in 1990.
In 1989, Bechtel repaired the San Francisco – Oakland Bay Bridge after a 30 ft (9 m) section collapsed as a result of the Loma Prieta Earthquake
Loma Prieta earthquake
The Loma Prieta earthquake, also known as the Quake of '89 and the World Series Earthquake, was a major earthquake that struck the San Francisco Bay Area of California on October 17, 1989, at 5:04 p.m. local time...
.
1990s
According to the Wall Street Journal, Bechtel established a strong relationship with the rebel leader Laurent Kabila during the First Congo WarFirst Congo War
The First Congo War was a revolution in Zaire that replaced President Mobutu Sésé Seko, a decades-long dictator, with rebel leader Laurent-Désiré Kabila. Destabilization in eastern Zaire that resulted from the Rwandan genocide was the final factor that caused numerous internal and external actors...
of 1996-7 in central Africa, compiling "the most complete mineralogical and geographical data of the former Zaire ever assembled, information worth a fortune to any prospective mining or oil firm" and commissioning and paying for "U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration satellite studies of the country and for infrared maps of its mineral potential." According to government officials, some of the satellite data provided to Kabila by Bechtel was "militarily useful information."
In the late 1990s Bechtel was awarded the contract from Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
's Civil Aviation Authority to build Dammam
Dammam
Dammam is the capital of the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the most oil-rich region in the world. The judicial and administrative bodies of the province and several government departments are located in the city. Dammam is the largest city in the Eastern Province and third largest in Saudi...
's King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport
King Fahd International Airport is located 20 kilometers northwest of Dammam, Saudi Arabia. It is the largest airport in the world in terms of land area . The airport's basic infrastructure was complete by the end of 1990, which allowed the Allied forces engaged in the first Gulf War in early...
, the largest airport in the world in terms of land area (780 km²), thus making it larger than the nearby country of Bahrain, that Bechtel completed later than schedule and at a cost that was over budget while bad transport roads led many locals to fly via the nearby Bahrain International Airport
Bahrain International Airport
Bahrain International Airport is an international airport located in Muharraq, an island on the northern tip of Bahrain, about northeast of the capital Manama...
.
Bolivia
In September 1999, Bechtel signed a contract with Hugo BanzerHugo Banzer
Hugo Banzer Suárez was a politician, military general, dictator and President of Bolivia. He held the Bolivian presidency twice: from August 22, 1971 to July 21, 1978, as a dictator; and then again from August 6, 1997 to August 7, 2001, as constitutional President.-Military and ideological...
, the elected president and former dictator of Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, to privatize the water supply in Bolivia's 3rd-largest city, Cochabamba
Cochabamba
Cochabamba is a city in central Bolivia, located in a valley bearing the same name in the Andes mountain range. It is the capital of the Cochabamba Department and is the fourth largest city in Bolivia with an urban population of 608,276 and a metropolitan population of more than 1,000,000 people...
. The contract was officially awarded to a company named Aguas del Tunari, a consortium
Consortium
A consortium is an association of two or more individuals, companies, organizations or governments with the objective of participating in a common activity or pooling their resources for achieving a common goal....
in which Bechtel held a 27.5 percent interest. Shortly thereafter, claims surfaced that water rates in that city went up an average of about 50 percent and that even collection of rainwater was being made illegal as a result of the privatization contract. Both of these actions resulted in the Cochabamba protests of 2000. Many had to withdraw their children from school and stop using doctors because of higher costs for water. Martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
was declared, and Bolivian police killed at least 6 people and injured over 170 protesters. Amidst Bolivia's nationwide economic collapse and growing national unrest over the state of the economy, the Bolivian government withdrew the water contract.
In 2001, Bechtel filed suit against the Bolivian government, citing damages of more for $25 million. Bechtel argues that its contract was only to administer the water system, which suffered from terrible internal corruption and poor service, and that the local government raised water prices. The continuing legal battle attracted attention from anti-globalization and anti-capitalist groups. This topic is explored in the 2003 documentary film
Documentary film
Documentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
The Corporation, in the 2010 Spanish film Even the rain
Even the Rain
Even the Rain is a 2010 Spanish drama film directed by Icíar Bollaín about Spanish director Sebastián and executive producer Costa who travel to Bolivia to shoot a film depicting Christopher Columbus’s conquest...
by Icíar Bollaín
Icíar Bollaín
Icíar Bollaín Pérez-Mínguez is a Spanish actress, director and writer.Her father was an aeronautical engineer and her mother was a music teacher. She made her début when she was 15 years old. She is a member of the Academia Española de Cinematografía.She began her work in cinema at the age of...
and on Bechtel's website. In January 2006, Bechtel and the other international partners settled the lawsuit against the Bolivian government for a reported two bolivianos, after intense protests that followed a ruling on jurisdiction favorable to Bechtel by the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes.
Saudi Arabia
In 2002, Bechtel finished work on the Kingdom CentreKingdom Centre
Kingdom Centre also called Al Mamlaka Tower is a skyscraper located in the city of Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It is currently the second tallest skyscraper in Saudi Arabia with a height of . It's also the third tallest building with a hole in the world . AL-Mamlka Tower contains a total of 41 floors...
in Riyadh
Riyadh
Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of Riyadh Province, and belongs to the historical regions of Najd and Al-Yamama. It is situated in the center of the Arabian Peninsula on a large plateau, and is home to 5,254,560 people, and the urban center of a...
, Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. The Kingdom Centre includes a shopping centre, a Four Seasons Hotel, state-of-the-art apartments, and most importantly the Kingdom Tower, a 302 meter tower, the tallest in Saudi Arabia and the 25th tallest building in the world. The total cost of the project was 1.717 billion Saudi Arabian Riyals
Saudi riyal
The Riyal is the currency of Saudi Arabia. It is abbreviated as ر.س or SR . It is subdivided into 100 Halalas . The Saudi Ghirsh is 5 Halalas.-History:...
and is owned by Alwaleed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz Al Saud.
London
In January 2003 as part of the 30 year London UndergroundLondon Underground
The London Underground is a rapid transit system serving a large part of Greater London and some parts of Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Essex in England...
PFI, Bechtel has a one third interest in Tube Lines
Tube Lines
Tube Lines Limited, initially known as 'Infraco JNP', has been a wholly owned subsidiary of Transport for London since May 2010. Tube Lines is an asset-management company responsible for the maintenance, renewal and upgrade of the infrastructure, including track, trains, signals, civil work and...
.
Bechtel announced in May 2010 that it has entered into an agreement to sell its one-third interest in Tube Lines to Transport for London (“TfL”) for £103 million.
Boston
In early 2003January 2003
January 2003: ← – January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – December-Events:-January 1, 2003:...
, the Boston Globe launched an investigation into Bechtel's role in massive cost overruns and accounting irregularities in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
's Big Dig project totaling over $1 billion. Bechtel rebutted the allegations on its website. The Globe, along with the Associated Press
Associated Press
The Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
, filed papers requesting that Massachusetts Turnpike Authority make public the results of all Bechtel's performance audits related to the Big Dig. Bechtel sought a preliminary injunction to block the release of the documents, but the superior court judge in the case denied Bechtel's request on April 11, 2003, opening the way for public release of the documents.
Bechtel has long had close ties to the American government. From 1974 to 1982 George Schultz, former United States Secretary of Treasury and future Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
, was president and director. The late former U.S. Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger
Caspar Weinberger
Caspar Willard "Cap" Weinberger , was an American politician, vice president and general counsel of Bechtel Corporation, and Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan from January 21, 1981, until November 23, 1987, making him the third longest-serving defense secretary to date, after...
was general counsel for Bechtel in the late 1970s. Former deputy Secretary of Energy W. Kenneth Davis was Bechtel's vice-president. Riley Bechtel, the company's chair, was on President George W. Bush's Export Council. Jack Sheehan, a former senior vice-president of Bechtel, was a member of the U.S. Defense Policy Board. The Clinton Administration also appointed senior Bechtel managers to senior positions.
Like most large American companies, Bechtel and its employees have contributed large amounts of money to United States politicians (over a million dollars in campaign contributions between 1999 and 2002).
Iraq
On April 17, 2003, following the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
, George W Bush, through USAID, awarded the first Iraq reconstruction contract, valued at $680 million, to Bechtel. It is alleged that some of the construction projects managed by Bechtel were either poorly implemented, failing within months of their installation, or designed in such a way that Iraqi engineers did not have the knowledge or components to fix Bechtel's proprietary technology.
On May 5, 2003, The New Yorker
The New Yorker
The New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
ran an article revealing that the bin Laden family had passively invested several million dollars in The Fremont Group, a private equity
Private equity
Private equity, in finance, is an asset class consisting of equity securities in operating companies that are not publicly traded on a stock exchange....
fund owned by the Bechtel family.
Oak Ridge
In 2004 BWXT, a partnership of BWX Technologies and Bechtel National are fined $82,500 for a February, 2003 accident at Oak RidgeOak Ridge, Tennessee
Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 27,387 at the 2000 census...
, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
's Y-12 facility after an accident caused a small explosion, a fire, and contaminated three employees.
Boston
In late 2004, a significant leak sprouted in the Big DigBig Dig
The Central Artery/Tunnel Project , known unofficially as the Big Dig and as the Big Dug since completion, was a megaproject in Boston that rerouted the Central Artery , the chief highway through the heart of the city, into a 3.5-mile tunnel...
's Tip O'Neill I-93 Tunnel, due to a contractor's failure to remove gravel or other debris before pouring concrete. Bechtel acknowledged failing to catch and correct the error. The Boston Globe also made a major issue of many leaks that sprang from gaps in the roof of the tunnel; these were later sealed by the tunnel contractors as part of the construction process.
Romania
In 2004, a contract was awarded to Bechtel in RomaniaRomania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
for building the A3 freeway. The contract came under criticism from the European Union because it was awarded through negotiation, not competitive bid. In 2005, the new Romanian government held up the project to renegotiate the contract but construction is now underway.
As of January 2011, after 6 years, Transilvanian Highway is still under construction, 52 km of road finished and 1.2 billion Euro paid from Romania to Bechtel USA.
In January 2011, Bechtel announced its intention to bid for the contract for building two new reactors at the Cernavoda nuclear plant.
Harrison County, Mississippi
In 2005, Bechtel was awarded a no-bid contract by the Federal Emergency Management AgencyFederal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders...
to install temporary housing for the Hurricane Katrina disaster relief
Hurricane Katrina disaster relief
The disaster recovery response to Hurricane Katrina included federal government agencies suchas the Federal Emergency Management Agency , state and local-level agencies, federal and National Guard soldiers, non-governmental organizations, charities, and private individuals...
effort. The lack of competitive bidding for the contracts was criticized, as was the high cost of the contracts and the failure to support local, minority-owned businesses.
Boston
On July 10, 2006 a three ton section of concrete suspended ceiling crashed in the east bound lanes of the Massachusetts Turnpike I-90, in Boston. This tunnel ceiling collapse was in the Big Dig which Bechtel along with Parsons BrinckerhoffParsons Brinckerhoff
Parsons Brinckerhoff is a professional services firm with 14,000 employees in 150 offices providing construction and operation management, planning, design, engineering, program management, strategic consulting, environmental and sustainability services for clients and communities in the Americas,...
were responsible for building. This collapse claimed the life of Melena Del Valle, a 38 year old native of Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
. Massachusetts Attorney General Tom Reily immediately designated the accident scene a crime scene. He has left open the possibility of negligent homicide charges being levied against Big Dig contractors and managers.
U.S. Department of Energy
Effective October 1, 2007, the US Department of Energy awarded Bechtel partnership LLNS LLC the contract to operate Lawrence Livermore National LaboratoryLawrence Livermore National Laboratory
The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory , just outside Livermore, California, is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center founded by the University of California in 1952...
: Bechtel has a presence, through various partnerships, of the bulk of the US nuclear weapons facilities, including Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory
Los Alamos National Laboratory is a United States Department of Energy national laboratory, managed and operated by Los Alamos National Security , located in Los Alamos, New Mexico...
(design and pit production), Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory
The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory , just outside Livermore, California, is a Federally Funded Research and Development Center founded by the University of California in 1952...
(design), Savannah River Site
Savannah River Site
The Savannah River Site is a nuclear reservation in the United States in the state of South Carolina, located on land in Aiken, Allendale and Barnwell Counties adjacent to the Savannah River, southeast of Augusta, Georgia. The site was built during the 1950s to refine nuclear materials for...
(nuclear materials), Hanford Site
Hanford Site
The Hanford Site is a mostly decommissioned nuclear production complex on the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington, operated by the United States federal government. The site has been known by many names, including Hanford Works, Hanford Engineer Works or HEW, Hanford Nuclear Reservation...
(nuclear materials), Pantex Plant (assembly/disassembly), Y-12 National Security Complex (nuclear materials), and the Nevada Test Site
Nevada Test Site
The Nevada National Security Site , previously the Nevada Test Site , is a United States Department of Energy reservation located in southeastern Nye County, Nevada, about northwest of the city of Las Vegas...
(subcritical testing).
U.S. Navy
Bechtel is under contract for the new A1B reactorA1B reactor
The A1B reactor is a nuclear reactor being designed for use by the United States Navy to provide electricity generation and propulsion for the Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers...
, a nuclear reactor
United States Naval reactor
United States Naval reactor refers to nuclear reactors used by the United States Navy aboard certain ships to produce power for propulsion, electric power, catapulting airplanes in aircraft carriers, and a few more minor uses. Such Naval nuclear reactors have a complete power plant associated with...
being designed for use by the United States Navy
United States Navy
The United States Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the seven uniformed services of the United States. The U.S. Navy is the largest in the world; its battle fleet tonnage is greater than that of the next 13 largest navies combined. The U.S...
to provide electricity generation
Electricity generation
Electricity generation is the process of generating electric energy from other forms of energy.The fundamental principles of electricity generation were discovered during the 1820s and early 1830s by the British scientist Michael Faraday...
and propulsion
Nuclear marine propulsion
Nuclear marine propulsion is propulsion of a ship by a nuclear reactor. Naval nuclear propulsion is propulsion that specifically refers to naval warships...
for the Gerald R. Ford-class aircraft carriers.
Executives
- Riley P. BechtelRiley P. BechtelRiley P. Bechtel is the chairman and CEO of the Bechtel Corporation. He is the great-grandson of Warren A. Bechtel, the founder of the company. His parents are Elizabeth Hogan and Stephen Bechtel, Jr., the former chairman and CEO of the company.-Biography:He received a bachelor's degree in...
is the CEO of Bechtel. With a net worth of $3.2 billion, he is the 50th wealthiest person in the U.S. and the 127th richest in the world. In February 2003, he was appointed by President George W. BushGeorge W. BushGeorge Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
to the Export Council, which advises the president on international trade issues. He served for one year. - David O'ReillyDavid J. O'ReillyDavid J. O'Reilly , is former chairman and CEO of Chevron Corporation. In 1968, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from University College, Dublin, from which he also received an honorary doctor of science degree in June 2002. He began his career with Chevron Research...
serves on the Bechtel Group, Inc. board of directors and is the former chairman & CEO of Chevron. - George P. ShultzGeorge P. ShultzGeorge Pratt Shultz is an American economist, statesman, and businessman. He served as the United States Secretary of Labor from 1969 to 1970, as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from 1972 to 1974, and as the U.S. Secretary of State from 1982 to 1989...
is the former U.S. Secretary of State under Ronald ReaganRonald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, former president of Bechtel, and a former Bechtel director. He is a former member of the board of Dillon, Read & Co. Inc. - The late Caspar WeinbergerCaspar WeinbergerCaspar Willard "Cap" Weinberger , was an American politician, vice president and general counsel of Bechtel Corporation, and Secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan from January 21, 1981, until November 23, 1987, making him the third longest-serving defense secretary to date, after...
served as the United States Secretary of Defense under Ronald Reagan. Prior to holding this position, Weinberger was the Vice President, Director, and General Counsel of the Bechtel Group of companies. - Gen. John J. SheehanJohn J. SheehanGeneral John J. "Jack" Sheehan is a retired United States Marine Corps general. His final active duty commands, culminating 35 years of service in the Marine Corps, were as the Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic for NATO and as Commander-in-Chief for the U.S...
, USMC (ret.) is the former NATO Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic and the former Special Advisor to Asia for the U.S. Defense Department and the former General Manager of the Petroleum and Chemical Business Unit for Europe/Africa/Middle East/South West Asia and was also a Bechtel partner. He was also a member of the Defense Policy BoardDefense Policy Board Advisory CommitteeThe Defense Policy Board Advisory Committee, also referred to as the Defense Policy Board is a federal advisory committee to the United States Department of Defense. Their charter is available online through the office of the Director of Administration and Management of the Department of Defense...
. - Ross J. ConnellyRoss J. ConnellyRoss J. Connelly is the former Executive Vice President and COO of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation. Prior to OPIC, Connelly worked for Bechtel Corporation; he was an executive and later a senior principal with Bechtel Investments and the President of Bechtel Energy Resources, Inc....
is the former CEO of Bechtel Energy Resources Corporation. He served on the Overseas Private Investment CorporationOverseas Private Investment CorporationThe Overseas Private Investment Corporation is an independent agency of the United States Government that mobilizes U.S. private sector investment in new and emerging markets overseas in order to support both the sustainable economic development of those markets and the creation of American jobs...
under George W. Bush. - W. Kenneth Davis is a former Bechtel senior vice-president and is the former U.S. Deputy Energy SecretaryUnited States Department of EnergyThe United States Department of Energy is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government concerned with the United States' policies regarding energy and safety in handling nuclear material...
. - David WelchDavid WelchCharles David Welch is an American diplomat who served as Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs in the United States Department of State from 2005 through 2008...
former assistant secretary of state under George W Bush.
Joint ventures and subsidiaries
- Aguas del Tunari
- Airport Group International Holdings, LLC
- Alterra Partners
- Alliance Bechtel-Linde
- Alterra Partners (UK)
- Amey inc (Tube Lines)
- Arabian Bechtel Corporation
- Bantrel Co.Bantrel Co.Bantrel Co. is a Canadian private corporation owned by Bechtel Corporation and McCaig Investments. Bantrel's core business is in Engineering, Procurement, and Construction Management in the petroleum industry. Bantrel is active in Canada's energy sector, and is a supplier of engineering services to...
(CalgaryCalgaryCalgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
) - BCN Data Systems (UK)
- Bechtel Babcock and Wilcox Idaho, LLC
- Bechtel Bettis, Inc.
- Bechtel Canada, Inc.
- Bechtel Capital Partners LLC
- Bechtel China, Inc.
- Bechtel CITIC Engineering, Inc. (ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
) - Bechtel COSAPI (PeruPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
) - Bechtel Constructors Corporation
- Bechtel Enterprises Holdings, Inc. (BEn)
- Bechtel Financing Services, LLC
- Power Generation Engineering and Services Co. (PGESCo) (EgyptEgyptEgypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
) - Bechtel Great Britain Ltd. (UK)
- Bechtel Infrastructure Corporation (BINFRA)
- Bechtel Jacobs Company LLC
- Bechtel Hanford Inc.
- Bechtel McCone Parsons Corporation; Engineers, Constructors
- Bechtel Metodo Telecomunicacoes Ltda. (BMT) (BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
) - Bechtel National Inc.
- Bechtel Nevada Corporation
- Bechtel Northern Corporation
- Bechtel Overseas Corporation
- Bechtel/Parsons Brinkerhoff joint venture
- Bechtel Petroleum, Inc. (U.S.A.)
- Bechtel Plant Machinery, Inc.
- Bechtel Power Corp. (U.S.A.)
- Bechtel SAIC LLC
- Bechtel Savannah River, Inc.
- Bechtel-Sigdo KoppersSigdo KoppersSigdo Koppers is one of the most important Chilean conglomerates with operations in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. SK activities are organized in three areas: In the Service Area are construction and industrial erection and transport and logistics business; in the Industrial Area are the...
joint venture (ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
) - Bechtel-Technip Joint Venture
- Becon Construction Company, Inc.
- BPR-Bechtel
- Bechtel Telecommunications
- Cimtas Pipe Fab. & Trading Ltd. Co. Bechtel-ENKAEnka Insaat ve Sanayi A.S.Enka İnşaat ve Sanayi A.Ş. is a Turkish construction conglomerate based in Istanbul. Enka has 37 subsidiaries engaged in a diverse range of construction activities including power generation, airports, petroleum, and roadways...
Joint Venture (TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
) - Cliffwood-Blue Moon Joint Venture, Inc.
- Colstrip Energy LP
- Dabhol Power CompanyDabhol Power CompanyThe Dabhol Power Company was a company based in India, formed to manage and operate the Dabhol Power Plant. The Dabhol plant was built through the combined effort of Enron, GE, and Bechtel...
(DBC), joint venture with General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
and EnronEnronEnron Corporation was an American energy, commodities, and services company based in Houston, Texas. Before its bankruptcy on December 2, 2001, Enron employed approximately 22,000 staff and was one of the world's leading electricity, natural gas, communications, and pulp and paper companies, with...
(IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
) - Dual Drilling Company
- Eastern Bechtel Co. Ltd.
- EnergyWorks LLC
- The Fremont Group
- Incepta Group PLC
- InterGen (joint venture with Royal Dutch ShellRoyal Dutch ShellRoyal Dutch Shell plc , commonly known as Shell, is a global oil and gas company headquartered in The Hague, Netherlands and with its registered office in London, United Kingdom. It is the fifth-largest company in the world according to a composite measure by Forbes magazine and one of the six...
) - International Water
- IPSI LLC
- Knolls Atomic Power LaboratoryKnolls Atomic Power LaboratoryKnolls Atomic Power Laboratory is a research and development facility dedicated to the support of the US Naval Nuclear Propulsion Program. KAPL is a government-owned, contractor operated laboratory run by Bechtel Marine Propulsion Corporation for the United States Department of Energy. KAPL is...
- Lawrence Livermore National Security LLC
- Lectrix
- Lima Airport PartnersLima Airport PartnersLima Airport Partners S.R.L. is a Limited liability company that operates Peru's main airport: the Jorge Chávez International Airport in Callao, near Lima. It was founded in February 2001 and holds a 30 year concession to operate the airport....
- Los Alamos National Security, LLC
- Marathon OilMarathon OilMarathon Oil Corporation is a United States-based oil and natural gas exploration and production company. Principal exploration activities are in the United States, Norway, Equatorial Guinea, Angola and Canada. Principal development activities are in the United States, the United Kingdom, Norway,...
Equatorial Guinea LNGEG LNGEG LNG is a LNG company that operates a liquid natural gas terminal and plant in Malabo, Bioko Island, Equatorial Guinea. The LNG plant began operation in 2007 and the first cargo of LNG was delivered on 24 May 2007.... - NetCon Thailand (joint venture with Lucent)
- PSG International (partnership with General ElectricGeneral ElectricGeneral Electric Company , or GE, is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady, New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut, United States...
) - Saudi Arabian Bechtel Company (Saudi Arabia)
- Sequoia Ventures, Inc.
- Spruce Limited Partnership
- United Infrastructure Company (ChicagoChicagoChicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
) (before Bechtel bought out its partner's share in 1998) - Technology Ventures Group
- USGen Power Services, LP
Major projects
- Hoover DamHoover DamHoover Dam, once known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the US states of Arizona and Nevada. It was constructed between 1931 and 1936 during the Great Depression and was dedicated on September 30, 1935, by President...
completed in 1936 - Bekme hydroelectric dam in TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
completed in 1991 - Petrochemical plants in IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
completed in 1991 - Dabhol Power ProjectDabhol Power CompanyThe Dabhol Power Company was a company based in India, formed to manage and operate the Dabhol Power Plant. The Dabhol plant was built through the combined effort of Enron, GE, and Bechtel...
Phase 1 completed in 1992 - KuwaitKuwaitThe State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
reconstruction after the Gulf WarGulf WarThe Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
completed in 1993 - Channel TunnelChannel TunnelThe Channel Tunnel is a undersea rail tunnel linking Folkestone, Kent in the United Kingdom with Coquelles, Pas-de-Calais near Calais in northern France beneath the English Channel at the Strait of Dover. At its lowest point, it is deep...
completed in 1994 - Hong Kong International AirportHong Kong International AirportHong Kong International Airport is the main airport in Hong Kong. It is colloquially known as Chek Lap Kok Airport , being built on the island of Chek Lap Kok by land reclamation, and also to distinguish it from its predecessor, the closed Kai Tak Airport.The airport opened for commercial...
completed in 1998 - Tengiz FieldTengiz FieldTengiz field is an oil and gas field located in northwestern Kazakhstan's low-lying wetlands along the northeast shores of the Caspian Sea...
expansion in KazakhstanKazakhstanKazakhstan , officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country in Central Asia and Eastern Europe. Ranked as the ninth largest country in the world, it is also the world's largest landlocked country; its territory of is greater than Western Europe...
completed in 1999 - Chemical weapons disposal facility in Anniston, AlabamaAnniston, AlabamaAnniston is a city in Calhoun County in the state of Alabama, United States.As of the 2000 census, the population of the city is 24,276. According to the 2005 U.S. Census estimates, the city had a population of 23,741...
completed in 2001 - Three natural gas power plants in TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
completed in 2002 - Fissile Materials Storage Facility at MayakMayakMayak Production Association refers to an industrial complex that is one of the biggest nuclear facilities in the Russian Federation. It housed plutonium production reactors and a reprocessing plant...
, OzerskOzyorsk, Chelyabinsk OblastOzyorsk or Ozersk is a closed town in Chelyabinsk Oblast, Russia. Population: It was founded on the shore of the Irtyash Lake in 1945...
, Russian Federation completed in 2002 - AraucáriaAraucáriaAraucária is a city in Paraná, Brazil. It is located at around ....
Power project, BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
completed in 2003 - Jorge Chávez International AirportJorge Chávez International AirportJorge Chávez International Airport , known as Aeropuerto Internacional Jorge Chávez in Spanish, is Peru's main international and domestic airport. It is located in Callao, 11 kilometers from the Historic Centre of Lima and 17 km from Miraflores. Callao is the port city now fully...
expansion in Lima, PeruPeruPeru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
completed in 2005 - Big Dig completed in 2007
- Rebuilding of sections of CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n highway between ZagrebZagrebZagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
and SplitSplit (city)Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
completed in 2008 - The Y-12Y-12 National Security ComplexThe Y-12 National Security Complex is a United States Department of Energy National Nuclear Security Administration facility located in Oak Ridge, Tennessee, near the Oak Ridge National Laboratory...
nuclear weapons plant and enriched uranium storage facility in Oak Ridge, TennesseeOak Ridge, TennesseeOak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 27,387 at the 2000 census...
completed in 2009 - Rrëshen-Kalimash HighwayA1 motorway (Albania)The A1 motorway refers to the segment between the towns of Rrëshen and Kalimash in Northern Albania. It is part of the greater Albania-Kosovo Highway stretching in Albania, from the Adriatic port city of Durrës to the border town of Kukës with Kosovo. The preceding and following segments are...
in AlbaniaAlbaniaAlbania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
completed in 2010 - New Doha International AirportNew Doha International AirportNew Doha International Airport is an international airport currently under construction in Doha, capital of Qatar. NDIA was slated to replace the old Doha International Airport as Qatar's only international airport in 2009. Current estimates have a completion date of 2011/2012...
due to be completed in 2011 - New Muscat International Airport Terminal due to be completed in 2014
- Transylvania Motorway due to be completed in 2016
- Dulles Metrorail Extension due to be completed in 2016
Awards
For its contributions to the U.S.'s built environment, the company was presented with the Honor AwardHonor Award
The National Building Museum promotes excellence in architecture, engineering, construction, planning, and design. In furtherance of that mission, the Museum instituted an annual Honor Award in 1986 to recognize individuals and organizations that have made important contributions to the U.S.'s...
from the National Building Museum
National Building Museum
The National Builders Museum, in Washington, D.C., United States, is a museum of "architecture, design, engineering, construction, and urban planning"...
in 1998. At the ceremony, at which Stephen Bechtel, Jr.
Stephen Bechtel, Jr.
Stephen D. Bechtel, Jr. is, with his son Riley, co-owner of the Bechtel Corporation. He is the son of Stephen David Bechtel, Sr. and grandson of Warren A. Bechtel who founded the Bechtel Corporation.-Education:...
and Riley P. Bechtel
Riley P. Bechtel
Riley P. Bechtel is the chairman and CEO of the Bechtel Corporation. He is the great-grandson of Warren A. Bechtel, the founder of the company. His parents are Elizabeth Hogan and Stephen Bechtel, Jr., the former chairman and CEO of the company.-Biography:He received a bachelor's degree in...
accepted the award, former Secretary of State George P. Shultz
George P. Shultz
George Pratt Shultz is an American economist, statesman, and businessman. He served as the United States Secretary of Labor from 1969 to 1970, as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury from 1972 to 1974, and as the U.S. Secretary of State from 1982 to 1989...
said of the corporation, "Bechtel has been a wonderful ambassador around the world... No. 1, they're always there to solve problems - the world is full of critics, and what you want is people who are constructive, who are ready to solve problems."
Environmental record
On January 23, 1996, the Washington Department of EcologyWashington Department of Ecology
The Washington Department of Ecology, or simply, Ecology, is an environmental regulatory agency for the State of Washington. The department administers laws and regulations pertaining to the areas of water quality, water rights and water resources, shoreline management, toxics clean-up, nuclear...
fined Bechtel $5,000 for hazardous waste violations on an incident where a flying drum lid barely missed two workers due to the build-up of pressure inside a drum and improper closure operations. The penalty was issued because of inadequate worker training which led to an incorrectly labeled drum. Inspections also discovered that Bechtel kept inaccurate records keeping of cleanup waste, which violated state regulations.
In 1998, Bechtel was fined $90,000 for violating water quality laws in New Hampshire for constructing a gas pipeline, which would have leaked sediments into the stream that would increase turbidity and damage wetland habitats.
On October 29, 2001, the EPA fined Bechtel $30,383 at the Idaho National Engineering and Environmental Laboratory for not keeping records of any service being performed or of how much refrigerant was added to the cooling systems, which could increase annualized leak rates more than 15%.
In 2009, it was announced that Bechtel would team up with BrightSource Energy
BrightSource Energy
BrightSource Energy is an Oakland, California, corporation that designs, builds, finances and operates utility-scale solar power plants that deliver clean, low-cost solar energy to utility and industrial customers worldwide at prices that compete with fossil fuels.Greentech Media ranked...
to build solar energy plants. The partnership will have Bechtel build very large solar power plants in the Mojave desert
Mojave Desert
The Mojave Desert occupies a significant portion of southeastern California and smaller parts of central California, southern Nevada, southwestern Utah and northwestern Arizona, in the United States...
with groundbreaking beginning in 2010. The new plants will have a field of mirrors redirecting sunlight to a tower filled with water, which will then boil and turn the turbines.
See also
- Big Dig
- Cochabamba protests of 2000
- List of United States companies
- Top 100 US Federal ContractorsTop 100 US Federal ContractorsThe Top 100 Contractors Report is a list developed annually by the U.S. General Services Administration as part of its tracking of U.S. federal government procurement....
External links
- Bechtel company website
- War for human rights
- Welcome Aboard the Iraq Gravy Train, an editorial by Terry Jones, April 12, 2003.
- Bechtel v. Bolivia: The Bolivian Water Revolt, anti-globalisation viewpoint on Bechtel's involvement in Bolivia
- The Bechtel-bin Laden connection, CNN/Money Magazine, May 5, 2003.
- Bechtel's roots in the Mideast, San Francisco Chronicle, May 4, 2003
- Forbes List of Largest Companies
- St. Clair, Jeffrey, "More Powerful Than the US Army: Straight to Bechtel"
- Center For Responsive Politics