PRESS RELEASE: March 20, 2006

J. Ray McDermott Awarded Su Tu Vang Project;

Updates J. Ray’s First Quarter 2006 Bookings to Date

McDermott International, Inc. (NYSE:MDR) (“McDermott”) announced today that a subsidiary of J. Ray McDermott, S.A. (“J. Ray”) was awarded a significant contract by Cuu Long Joint Operating Company to provide engineering, procurement, construction, installation, hook-up and commissioning services for a Central Processing and Production (“CPP”) platform with an integrated 16,400 short ton deck, and associated infield pipelines for the Su Tu Vang field, offshore Vietnam. Contracts of this type are typically valued at several hundred million dollars.

“This is a major award for J. Ray and our Asia Pacific operations, and we are honored to be selected as the contractor of choice for the Cuu Long Joint Operating Company,” said Bob Deason, President and Chief Operating Officer of J. Ray. “This project, along with our other first quarter 2006 bookings, will substantially improve J. Ray’s backlog and is a welcome addition to growing our business.”

The integrated CPP platform, to be installed in about 170 foot water depth, includes the 16,400 short ton deck, a 4,340 short ton eight-leg jacket, and piles weighing in excess of 4,100 short tons and associated pipelines. Work on the project is scheduled to start in March 2006 when J. Ray will commence engineering and procurement activities from its project office in Singapore.

The CPP platform will be fabricated at J. Ray’s recently upgraded facility on Batam Island , Indonesia. The floatover, jacket and in-field pipeline installation will be performed by J. Ray’s floatover and launch barge and a combination derrick barge. Total project completion is scheduled for the second quarter of 2008.

J. Ray has signed numerous contracts during the first quarter of 2006, including the Su Tu Vang project. The combined value of the contracts awarded thus far in the 2006 first quarter is currently in excess of $800 million.

McDermott International, Inc. is a leading worldwide energy services company. McDermott subsidiaries provide engineering, fabrication, installation, procurement, research, manufacturing, environmental systems, project management and facility management services to a variety of customers in the energy and power industries, including the U.S. Department of Energy. Additional information on McDermott can be obtained at www.mcdermott.com.

In accordance with the Safe Harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, McDermott International, Inc. cautions that statements in this press release which are forward-looking and provide other than historical information involve risks and uncertainties that may impact McDermott’s actual results of operations. The forward-looking statements in this press release include, among other things, the work scope, timing and the value of the Su Tu Vang project and the value of contracts signed thus far during the first quarter 2006. Although McDermott’s management believes that the expectations reflected in those forward-looking statements are reasonable, McDermott can give no assurance that those expectations will prove to have been correct. Those statements are made based on various underlying assumptions and are subject to numerous uncertainties and risks, including without limitation change orders and other modifications to contracts. If one or more of these risks materialize, or if underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those expected. For a more complete discussion of these risk factors, please see McDermott’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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EIB #1789

3/20/06

For more information, please contact:

Louise Denly
Director, Public Relations
J. Ray McDermott, Inc.
Houston, TX
(281) 870-5000
E-Mail:ldenly@mcdermott.com
www.mcdermott.com