Largely on the strength of a string of sole-source, no-bid contracts to provide services in Iraq ranging from rebuilding the war-torn nation's oil infrastructure to feeding U.S. troops, Halliburton wracked up military contracts totaling $3.9 billion in fiscal 2003. The total made it the nation's seventh-largest military contactor.

Since the end of fiscal 2003 last September, the Pentagon has opened investigations of allegations that Halliburton overcharged the government by millions of dollars. Despite the fraud probes, the Pentagon recently awarded Halliburton another Iraq contract reportedly worth $1.2 billion.

While Halliburton employees have pleaded guilty to kickbacks involving Kuwaiti companies, the Houston-based company has denied any wrongdoing. Meanwhile, it has launched an ad campaign designed to burnish its image.

Halliburton's success in winning large DoD contracts vaulted it ahead of three other big Pentagon contractors: General Electric, Science Applications International Corp. and Computer Sciences Corp., the Defense Department said Wednesday (Feb. 11).

The rest of the top-ten list was largely unchanged. Lockheed Martin Corp. (Bethesda, Md.) again led the pack with 2003 contracts totaling $21.9 billion in fiscal 2003. Lockheed was followed by: Boeing Co. ($17.3 billion); Northrop Grumman Corp. ($11.1 billion); General Dynamics Corp. ($8.2 billion); defense electronics giant Raytheon Co. ($7.9 billion); and United Technologies Corp. ($4.5 billion).