# GAO Recommends NSF Reevaluate Antarctica Contract

The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has formally recommended that the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) reconsider its award of an $8 billion maximum value contract to KBR Services LLC for science and engineering support services in Antarctica. The GAO identified that NSF improperly credited KBR with the experience of an affiliated company during the evaluation process, which raises concerns about the fairness and accuracy of the award decision. This recommendation calls for NSF to conduct a re-evaluation of the bids and potentially issue a new award decision to ensure compliance with procurement standards.

- **Why this matters:** Procurement professionals should note the GAO's scrutiny of evaluation criteria and experience crediting, which can impact large-scale contract awards.
- The decision highlights the importance of rigorous vetting of contractor qualifications and affiliations in complex, high-value federal procurements.
- Contractors and bidders in federal science and engineering support services should carefully document and differentiate their experience to avoid similar challenges.
- Agencies managing large indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) or services contracts may face increased oversight on evaluation methodologies following this case.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Defense & Military
**Topics:** Regulatory Compliance
**Published:** September 23, 2026

### Government Entities
- National Science Foundation (NSF)
- Government Accountability Office (GAO)

### Vendors
- KBR Services LLC (awardee)
- Battelle Memorial Institute ()

### Sources
- [Battelle Memorial Institute demonstrated that the US National Science Foundation should reconsider its decision to award KBR Services LLC an $8 billion maximum value contract for science and engineering support services in Antarctica. https://t.co/KG3UlkYvMh](https://x.com/BLaw/status/2102571178120331645) - twitter-fed-procurement