CAIRO, March 5 (Reuters) - Iraq's Oil Minister said on Tuesday that he received a message from U.S.-based engineering company KBR to join the country's Nebras petrochemical project, Iraq's state news agency said.

The announcement comes after Shell said in February that it will not proceed with the project in southern Iraq as part of its review of its operations in the sector that has seen a sharp drop in profits in recent years. (Reporting by Moayed Kanany Editing by Chris Reese)