Shaw Receives Full Notice to Proceed on Duke Energy’s Dan River Combined Cycle Plant

BATON ROUGE, La. -- The Shaw Group Inc. (NYSE: SHAW) today announced it received full notice to proceed on a new gas-fired facility at Duke Energy’s Dan River Steam Station in North Carolina.

It is estimated that 99% of the earth has a temperature of more than 1,000�C. According to researchers at the Norwegian-based organization SINTEF, harnessing just a tiny fraction of this heat could theoretically provide enough energy for the entire world population.As the gradual shift from fossil fuels to renewables gets further under way, a number of researchers are beginning to look more closely at the promise of geothermal energy. While the geothermal process is not completely emission-free, the amount of greenhouse gases released is far less than that from conventional fossil fuels. Like wind and solar, heat from the earth is safer and cleaner than fossil fuels and provides an inexhaustible source of energy.Currently, most geothermal energy comes from around 200 meters deep, at temperatures of less than 10�C-which is actually not very hot when compared with the temperatures just a little further down."Geothermal energy is a unique opportunity for the oil industry to develop in a new way," says Are Lund, senior researcher at SINTEF Materials and Chemistry. "They will come to realize this, it's just a matter of time." -Aaron M. CohenIn March 2010, Duke awarded Shaw an engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning services contract for the construction of the new facility, and Shaw began working under a limited notice to proceed.Previously gum removal was a discouraging task, which was often not met with the right blend of power and temperature to get the job done right. This resulted in left-over residues and stains. Now, virtually every business and organization can keep their facilities clean with specialized gum removal equipment.The use of high steam temperatures is necessary to soften and dissolve gum on contact while sanitizing the surface. Some steam cleaners for gum removal even come with anti-bacterial technology to kill 99.9% of bacteria and other disease causing pathogens. The use of such machines will not only provide the utmost in gum removal capabilities, but will allow the user to disinfect the area once tarnished by gum and corresponding bacteria.At such high temperatures in the earth's crust, the rock is liquefied, so anything else there runs the risk of being liquefied or broken. Electronic equipment shorts out very quickly at temperatures over 200�C. New technologies are needed in order to meet those challenges.Also as a part of Duke’s long-term plan to add new generation, modernize the fleet and maintain a diverse fuel portfolio, Shaw is constructing a new 620-megawatt gas-fired unit at Duke’s Buck Steam Station in North Carolina, which is scheduled for completion in late 2011. The similarities and close timing of the two projects allow for maximum use of design replication and other synergies that are resulting in significant savings to Duke Energy.

As a result of these risks and others, actual results could vary significantly from those anticipated in this press release, and our financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. We undertake no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, the occurrence of certain events or otherwise.