South Australia is currently stuck with years of advanced planning by KBR, and we're going to pay dearly in tax dollars for the privilege.

I wouldn't like to be a South Australian politician looking at the international Hallburton news at the moment.. I'd be wondering how to afford to get my roads built and my warships made

We're hearing locally of cost blow-outs in our road plans.  Costs for scheduled tunnels to make a fast road from the southern suburbs to Port Adelaide have exceeded all expectations  before the first hole is dug, and now the proposed new Northern Expressway (six lane accessibility to the mines) is also in financial crisis, with calls being made this week for a Federal bail-out.

Our minster for transport and infrastructure says he's investigating how the costs have gotten so high.  Here's a clue.  He uses a major company to draft his plans.

Stuart Brown, the U.S. special inspector-general for Iraq has filed a report on how KBR spent US$76 million on completing only a quarter of a job.

America's Defence Contract Audit Agency has reported a billion dollars worh of "questionable and unsupportable costs" in the company's defence dealings.

The company tried to spin off from it's parent this year and float independantly on the stock exchange.  Nobody was interested in touching them.  The plan to float was cancelled.

Last month Halliburton reported a 51 per cent increase in second-quarter profits to $US591m

Getting the picture?