PRESS RELEASE: April 04, 2006

J. RAY MCDERMOTT AWARDED FURTHER PIPELINE INSTALLATION AND HOOK UP SUPPORT WORK IN THE CASPIAN

McDermott Caspian Contractors, Inc. (MCCI), a subsidiary of J. Ray McDermott, S.A., was recently awarded further pipeline installation work by Azerbaijan International Operating Company (AIOC) operated by BP for Phase 3 development of AIOC's Azeri, Chirag and deepwater portion of the Gunashli (ACG) fields in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea.

The existing Phase 2 contract for offshore pipelay in the West and East Azeri fields awarded to MCCI by AIOC has been extended to include engineering, procurement, fabrication, installation, and pre-commissioning of two interfield 30" oil export pipelines and one 28" gas pipeline between the Phase 3 production, compression, water injection and utilities platform and pipelines previously installed for ACG Phase and Phase 2. Both the pipelay barge Israfil Huseynov (PLBG) and the diving support vessel Tofik Ismaylov (DSV), significantly upgraded and modernized by MCCI on behalf of AIOC, will be used for the pipeline installation scheduled to commence in late March 2006.

MCCl was also awarded a contract variation by BP Shah Deniz Exploration Ltd. for the Stage 1 development of the Shah Deniz field in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea, approximately 100km to the south of Baku. MCCI will provide the PLBG as a floating hotel to support the hook up of the Shah Deniz TPG500 platform in 100 meters of water depth. This operation is scheduled to commence in April 2006.

"The Shah Deniz field is one of the largest accumulations of offshore gas in the world. We are proud to be associated with this world-class project, for which we are currently carrying out the subsea gas pipeline installation," commented Dan Houser, Vice President and General Manager, Caspian operations.. "More than 700,000 man-hours will be expended on this project, and approximately 75% of this work will be completed by local Azerbaijani craftsmen."

McDermott is a leading worldwide energy services company. McDermott's subsidiaries provide engineering, fabrication, installation, procurement, research, manufacturing, environmental systems, project management and facilities management services to a variety of customers in the energy and power industry, including the U.S. Department of Energy. Its subsidiary, J. Ray McDermott, S.A. is a leading provider of solutions for the offshore field development worldwide.

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 which 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 statements concerning the value, and project execution, of the Phase 3 AIOC project. 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 by using various underlying assumptions and are subject to numerous uncertainties and risks. 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.

McDermott Caspian Contractors Inc. (MCCI) is the Caspian operating entity, and wholly owned subsidiary, of J. Ray McDermott, S.A. MCCI provides products, services and creative solutions to the offshore oil and gas industry. These services include, but are not limited to, engineering, procurement, fabrication, construction and project management, offshore pipelay and marine construction.

Under contracts to AIOC, MCCI is fabricating integrated decks and installing subsea pipelines for Phase 1, Phase 2 and Phase 3 development of AIOC's Azeri, Chirag and deepwater portion of the Gunashli fields (ACG) in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea. MCCI has been also awarded a prestigious contract by BP Shah Deniz Exploration Ltd. (BPSD) for engineering, procurement, fabrication, pre-trenching, offshore installation and pre-commissioning of three 92km long offshore pipelines, from the Shah Deniz Alpha platform to Sangachal onshore terminal.

MCCI has established constructive working relationships with SOCAR and its subsidiaries Baku Deep Water Jacket Factory (BDJF) and the Caspian Sea Oil Fleet (CSOF). As part of its topsides fabrication contracts with AIOC, MCCI executed a comprehensive upgrade program of the BDJF facilities and established a full project infrastructure at the BDJF yard.

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

Gulia Taghiyeva
McDermott Caspian Contractors, Inc. - Public Relations
Baku, Azerbaijan, Tel: +994 12 4449944, Fax: +994 12 4449955
E-mail: gtaghiyeva@mcdermott.com

Louise Denly, PR Manager
J. Ray McDermott Middle East, Inc.
Dubai, UAE, Tel: +971 4 804 3293 Fax: +971 4 8834 330
E-mail: ldenly@mcdermott.com