NEW TEAM IN IRAQ FOR SECOND TRY.

As the U.S. administration assembles a new administrative team to oversee the reconstruction of Iraq, there are mixed reports about the level of obstacles facing those charged with the actual rebuilding. Officials from the contractor Bechtel National Inc. have awarded 10 subcontracts to seven firms to support the work of dredging the Umm Qasr seaport and to provide other supportive services. Bechtel continues evaluating power facilities, three major airports and four damaged bridges in Iraq, including Kharza Bridge near Mosul, two on the Jordan Highway and one on the Euphrates. Officials from Houston, Texas-based KBR are performing emergency restoration of Iraqi oilfields and fuel distribution systems under a contract awarded in March by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.