DOCSLIB.ORG

THE COMMONWEALTH OIL REFINERIES LIMITED (C O Ni 111 O 11 \V C a I T Li Govern in Cut ;I N D a N G I O • I I a N I a N Oil C O

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
THE COMMONWEALTH OIL REFINERIES LIMITED (C O Ni 111 O 11 \V C a I T Li Govern in Cut ;I N D a N G I O • I I a N I a N Oil C O A Great National Institution The Romance of the C.O.R PREFATORY NOTE "Progress ire shall, but we must first contend; 'Tis not the fight that crowns us, but the end." TN presenting this booklet it is hoped to convey some indication of the progress and development of The Commonwealth Oil Refineries Ltd. and to make available interesting information relating to the world-wide resources of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Co. Ltd., a partner with the Commonwealth Government in the great enterprise popularly known throughout Australia as The C.O.R. The C.O.R. represents an important national institution, servicing Australia's industries, of which Australians may justly be proud, and the brief outline of its history and activities presents a picture of re- markable progress achieved in a comparatively short period. This progress has been aided and developed by the patriotic support of the Australian public and to a very large extent by the enthusiastic and effective co-operation of District Agents and Garage Proprietors throughout the Commonwealth. No story of successful enterprise would be complete without grateful acknowledgment of such loyal support. STATE LISftARY OF VICTORIA 18 FEB 1988 , . , souwr ' ; ' e ... / i • THE COMMONWEALTH OIL REFINERIES LIMITED (C o ni 111 o 11 \v c a I t li Govern in cut ;i n d A n g I o • I i a n i a n Oil C o. L t d.) Page Two mM OIL FROM IRAN. The Romantic Story of the Quest for Oil which led to the formation of the Anglo - Iranian Oil Co. Limited. AUSTRALIA is linked to the establishment and Then Fate stepped into D'Arcy's life for the second development of the great Anglo-Iranian Oil time and, by an extraordinary coincidence—bore Co. Ltd. by the colorful figure of William Knox the same name as in Rockhampton. When the D'Arcy, the son of an English solicitor who had syndicate members were discussing in London the emigrated to Queensland. As a young man D'Arcy abandonment of the enterprise, D'Arcy met a was employed in his father's office in Rockhampton French archaeologist named de Morgan, who told but had dreams beyond the law. One day chance him of rich surface indications North of Shustar. opened the door of opportunity. A client showed him a piece of rock with the remark, "There is a A few days later the journey to the site began. The mountain of that stuff back of my place." It was route taken was that trodden by pilgrims before gold, and the client was "Sandy Morgan." D'Arcy Biblical times—along the Maidan-i-Naftun (Valley became associated with Morgan and the "moun- of Oil) to an isolated spur on which crumbled the tain" speedily became world-famous as the aimost ruins of the Masjid-i-Sulaiman (Temple of Solo- fabulously rich Mt. Morgan gold mine. mon) . There, beside a ruined wall, was a small Within a few years of his acquiring an interest in spring from which oil trickled. Mount Morgan D'Arcy became a millionaire, but Meanwhile, Syndicate members in London had de- despite his extraordinary good fortune he regarded cided to cease all activities in Persia. An order to gold as merely the means by which he could realise this effect was actually despatched, but, on 2Gth his dreams. May, 1908, a few days before the Company's letter Oil was looming on the international horizon; and reached the field, a drill plunged through the rocky to D'Arcy the prospect of finding oil in Australia floor, and a black stream shot high in the air. proved all-absorbing. He commenced intensive D'Arcy's enterprise had brought in a "gusher" that study of geology and collected all available data was to prove one of the most prolific in history. on local oil traces. He travelled overseas to fur- In 1909 the Anglo-Persian Oil Company, now ther his research work and came in contact with a known as the Anglo-Iranian Oil Co. Ltd., was young Persian Prince who convinced him that oil formed to develop the field and prior to the out- abounded in Persia, whereas it had yet to be proved break of war in 1914 the British Government be- that Australia was an oil-bearing country. So came a partner in the great enterprise. D'Arcy decided to begin his quest in Persia. Ger- many and Russia had already secured mining rights in the Persian provinces, but with the help of the British Government D'Arcy eventually secured in 1901 a concession, for sixty years, of 500,000 square miles of territory. i For three years operations centred upon Chiah • ' . " ' . -I Sourkh, a hundred miles north of Bagdad without any success. In these three years D'Arcy's own con- tribution to the desert's golden thirst was £300,000. Friends tried to persuade him to cut his losses and retire, but D'Arcy remained adamant. He succeeded in forming a British syndicate to support his efforts and operations on a large scale were begun late in 1905 near Ahwaz on the Karun River. Yet it seemed that D'Arcy's luck had forsaken him utterly, for the new venture proved a A section of the vast refinery of the Anglo-Iranian greater disappointment than the first, and the syn- Oil Co. Ltd. at Abadan, about 40 miles from the dicate grew weary of the costly quest. head of the Persian Gulf. Page Four THE WORLD-WIDE ACTIVITIES OF THE ANGLO-IRANIAN OIL CO. LTD. LORD CA OHAN Mesopotamia and the plains bordering the Persian The Rt. Hon. Lord Cadman of Silverdale, G.C.M.G., D.Sc., who Gulf. Masjid-i-Sulaiman (named alter the ruins is chairman of the Anglo-Iranian ^H Oil Co. Ltd. and the Iraq Petroleum of the Temple of Solomon) is the original field Co. Ltd., one of the lead- /JH^^^^^H discovered by D'Arcy. At Haft Kel, the first well ing oil Technologists. Before and during the Great War he rendered qtfiH was brought in in 1928. From the two inland valuable scientific to Great Vf* oilfields an elaborate "Y" shaped pipe-line system, Britain and the Empire in various ' capacities, particularly when Chief ^H 130 miles long, transports the oil to the world's Petroleum Adviser to His Majesty's Government, and again when chair- largest refinery which has been erected on Abadan man of the Inter-Allied Petroleum i h ^^H Council which co-ordinated the ^^^^^^^HUMflHlfpirJ Island, some 40 miles from the head of the Persian petroleum of Britain and ^^^k Guir. Over 8,000,000 gallons of crude oil is the Allies. Lord Cadman has been associated with the Anglo-Iranian delivered by this pipe-line daily to Abadan and Oil frit as chief technical adviser, then as a the great storage tanks built on the island provide director, and from J927 as chair- capacity for 2,500,000 tons of crude oil and finished man of directors. Lord Cadman is also a Doctor of Science of Mel- products. Adjoining the refineries and storage bourne University. installations are loading jetties at which the 10,000 HP HE Anglo-Iranian Oil Company Ltd. (formerly ton tankers of the British Tanker Company load the Anglo-Persian Oil Coy. Ltd.) was estab- oil for the world's markets, their journeys amount- lished over twenty-nine years ago. In that period ing to some 6,000,000 miles a year. it has developed several major oil fields and by the The Anglo-Iranian Company has also erected, application of science to petroleum production has either directly or through associated organisations, afforded an example to the world. As a result of large refineries in Wales, Scotland and France. It scientific unit control ample supplies of crude oil has discovered improved methods of refining to are assured to meet the expanding demand of the set ure ilie most economical and effective treatment British Empire for a very great period. The Iranian of its crude oil. and has established a process for crude oil supplied to the C.O.R. Refinery at recovering valuable products from the waste gas Laverton (Victoria) is at present drawn from the of the oil-fields. The Anglo-Iranian Company has Anglo-Iranian Oil Company's two fields, Masjid-i- developed through its 38 subsidiary or associated Sulaiman and Haft Kel, situated nearly 130 miles companies marketing organisations in all the lead north-east of the head of the Persian Gulf in the ing countries of Europe and to certain areas of south-western foothills of the great mountain Africa and the East, as well as world-wide Bunker- rampart which divides the Iranian Plateau from ing facilities. Largest Tanker Fleet Afloat Operated by the British Tanker Co. Ltd. ^RUDE oils recovered by the Anglo-Iranian Oil of many of the leading shipping lines, British or Co. Ltd. are shipped by vessels of the British foreign, and its vessels are among the fastest oil Tanker Co. Ltd. to Australia for local refining. carriers in the world. Each tanker—excepting the The British Tanker Co. is a subsidiary of the Anglo- first one built—carries from 10,000 to 12,500 tons Iranian Oil Co. Ltd. (a partner in the C.O.R.) and of petroleum products, and every possible device operates the largest tanker fleet in the world. Some has been adopted for the safe carriage of the oil 95 vessels comprising a total deadweight of more and the prevention of fire. than 1,350,000 tons are constantly engaged in trans- porting high-grade crudes to Empire and other ports.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Political Attitudes to Conscription: 1914–1918
    RESEARCH PAPER SERIES, 2016–17 27 OCTOBER 2016 Political attitudes to conscription: 1914–1918 Dr Nathan Church Foreign Affairs, Defence and Security Section Contents Introduction ................................................................................................ 2 Attitudes of the Australian Labor Party ........................................................ 2 Federal government ......................................................................................... 2 New South Wales ............................................................................................. 7 Victoria ............................................................................................................. 8 Queensland ...................................................................................................... 9 Western Australia ........................................................................................... 10 South Australia ............................................................................................... 11 Political impact on the ALP ............................................................................... 11 Attitudes of the Commonwealth Liberal Party ............................................. 12 Attitudes of the Nationalist Party of Australia ............................................. 13 The second conscription plebiscite .................................................................. 14 Conclusion ................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • As It Was in the Beginning (Parliament House in 1927) ISSN 1328-7478
    Department of the INFORMATION AND RESEARCH SERVICES Parliamentary Library Research Paper No. 25 2000–01 As it was in the Beginning (Parliament House in 1927) ISSN 1328-7478 Copyright Commonwealth of Australia 2001 Except to the extent of the uses permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means including information storage and retrieval systems, without the prior written consent of the Department of the Parliamentary Library, other than by Senators and Members of the Australian Parliament in the course of their official duties. This paper has been prepared for general distribution to Senators and Members of the Australian Parliament. While great care is taken to ensure that the paper is accurate and balanced, the paper is written using information publicly available at the time of production. The views expressed are those of the author and should not be attributed to the Information and Research Services (IRS). Advice on legislation or legal policy issues contained in this paper is provided for use in parliamentary debate and for related parliamentary purposes. This paper is not professional legal opinion. Readers are reminded that the paper is not an official parliamentary or Australian government document. IRS staff are available to discuss the paper's contents with Senators and Members and their staff but not with members of the public. Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library, 2001 I NFORMATION AND R ESEARCH S ERVICES Research Paper No. 25 2000–01 As It Was In The Beginning (Parliament House in 1927) Greg McIntosh Social Policy Group April 1988 Re-released 27 March 2001 Acknowledgments The author would like to thank Vicki Haynes, Melinda King and Martin Lumb for their assistance with the re-release of this paper.
    [Show full text]
  • Australia's Awakening Thirty Years in the Life of an Australian Agitator
    Australia's Awakening Thirty Years in the Life of an Australian Agitator Spence, W G William Guthrie (1846-1926) A digital text sponsored by New South Wales Centenary of Federation Committee University of Sydney Library Sydney 2000 http://setis.library.usyd.edu.au/fed/ © University of Sydney Library. The texts and Images are not to be used for commercial purposes without permission Source Text: Prepared from the print edition published by Australia: The Worker Trustees, Sydney and Melbourne 1909 First Published: 1909 Languages: French Latin 329.994/13 Australian Etexts 1890-1909 labour history prose nonfiction federation 2001 Creagh Cole Coordinator Final Checking and Parsing Australia's Awakening Thirty Years in the Life of an Australian Agitator Sydney and Melbourne The Worker Trustees 1909 To The Tyrranical Employer and the Aggressive Fighting Trade Unionist The Author [William Guthrie Spence, M.H.R., President Australian Workers' Union] .. .. .. .. .. .. Following Page 40 Contents. Chapter. Page. I. Bedrock .. .. .. .. .. .. 11 II. Gold Digging Days .. .. .. .. 18 III. The A.M.A. .. .. .. .. .. .. 24 IV. “He vos Come Back no More” .. 37 V. The King of the North-East .. .. 45 VI. Capitalistic Intrigue .. .. .. .. 51 VII. The Wool Kings of Australia .. .. 62 VIII. Organizing the Shearers .. .. .. 68 IX. A Fighting Union .. .. .. .. 80 X. The Employers and Freedom of Contract .. .. .. .. .. .. 94 XI. The Turning Point .. .. .. .. 111 XII. Incidents of the Big Strike .. .. 137 XIII. The Industrial Fight in Queensland 145 XIV. Law and its Administration .. .. 169 XV. The Press .. .. .. .. .. .. 195 XVI. Union Outrages .. .. .. .. .. 203 XVII. Catching “Scabs” .. .. .. .. 211 XVIII. Political Action .. .. .. .. .. 220 XIX. In New South Wales .. .. .. 230 XX. Queensland .
    [Show full text]
  • Expulsion of Members of the NSW Parliament Briefing Paper No 17
    NSW PARLIAMENTARY LIBRARY RESEARCH SERVICE Expulsion of Members of the NSW Parliament by Gareth Griffith Briefing Paper No 17/2003 RELATED PUBLICATIONS • Parliamentary Privilege: Use, Misuse and Proposals for Reform by Gareth Griffith, Briefing Paper No 4/1997 ISSN 1325-4456 ISBN 0 7313 1746 7 August 2003 © 2003 Except to the extent of the uses permitted under the Copyright Act 1968, no part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means including information storage and retrieval systems, without the prior written consent from the Librarian, New South Wales Parliamentary Library, other than by Members of the New South Wales Parliament in the course of their official duties. NSW PARLIAMENTARY LIBRARY RESEARCH SERVICE David Clune (MA, PhD, Dip Lib), Manager ..............................................(02) 9230 2484 Gareth Griffith (BSc (Econ) (Hons), LLB (Hons), PhD), Senior Research Officer, Politics and Government / Law..........................(02) 9230 2356 Talina Drabsch (BA, LLB (Hons)), Research Officer, Law.......................(02) 9230 2768 Rowena Johns (BA (Hons), LLB), Research Officer, Law ........................(02) 9230 2003 Stewart Smith (BSc (Hons), MELGL), Research Officer, Environment ...(02) 9230 2798 John Wilkinson (BA (Hons), MA), Research Officer, Economics ............(02) 9230 2006 Should Members or their staff require further information about this publication please contact the author. Information about Research Publications can be found on the Internet at: www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/WEB_FEED/PHWebContent.nsf/PHPages/LibraryPublications Advice on legislation or legal policy issues contained in this paper is provided for use in parliamentary debate and for related parliamentary purposes. This paper is not professional legal opinion. CONTENTS CONTENTS ....................................................................................................................1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................1 1.
    [Show full text]
  • Aspects of the Victorian Parliament at the Exhibition Building, 1901 to 1927
    Parliament in Exile: Aspects of the Victorian Parliament at the Exhibition Building, 1901 to 1927 Victor Isaacs * For 26 years the Victorian Parliament met in the Exhibition Building in Melbourne whilst the Commonwealth Parliament temporarily occupied Parliament House in Spring Street. Especially during the early years the Victorians protested periodically about the arrangement and for a brief period returned to their own building. Much of the discontent centred on access to and use of the Library. The Federal Parliament occupied the Victorian State Parliament House at Spring Street from 1901 to 1927. Various political histories of the Commonwealth have examined Federal occupation of this building. 1 This article, however, examines the impact on the Victorian Parliament. These included an attempt by the Victorians not to leave their home, but to have the Commonwealth Parliament occupy the Exhibition Building, and an attempt by the State to occupy the Spring Street building simultaneously with the Commonwealth Parliament. The Commonwealth’s choice There was no mention of the site of the future Federal capital in the draft Federal Constitution submitted to colonial electors for approval in the 1898 referenda, and this was one of the factors leading to the failure of the referendum in New South Wales. Consequently, a Premiers’ Conference of 1899 settled this and some other contentious questions. The revised draft Constitution, in section 125, now provided that the future federal capital would be in territory granted by New South Wales, and that ‘The Parliament shall sit at Melbourne until it meet at the seat of Government.’ Both New South Welsh and Victorian honour was satisfied.
    [Show full text]
  • Hill End & Tambaroora Gathering Group Newsletter Index Issues 1 – 27
    Hill End & Tambaroora Gathering Group Newsletter Index Issues 1 – 2 7 (compiled by Alison Briggs) 1 -- March 2007 10 -- January 2012 19 -- September 2016 2 -- October 2007 11 -- August 2012 20 -- January 2017 3 -- January 2008 12 -- January 2013 21 -- September 2017 4 -- June 2008 13 -- September 2013 22 -- February 2018 5 -- January 2009 14 -- January 2014 2 3 – September 2018 6 -- January 2010 15 -- September 2014 2 4 -- February 201 9 7 -- September 2010 16 -- January 2015 2 5 – August 2019 8 -- January 2011 17 -- August 2015 2 6 -- February 20 20 9 -- September 2011 18 -- January 2016 2 7 – Sept ember 20 20 NEWSLETTER INDEX Hill End & Tambaroora Gathering Group Name or Subject Issue No, page No 1861 Census Issue 21, p2 45th Battalion Issue 16, p10 Issue 17, p6 A.C.T. (Australian Capital Territory) Issue 4, p2 A.J.S. Bank, The Issue 13, p 11 A.S.N. Co Issue 20, p9 Abbott, R.P. Issue 20, p10 Abbott, Ted Issue 4, p1 Issue 11, p16 Issue 12, p3 Issue 17, p14 Issue 18, p1 ABC Radio Issue 18, p11 Abercrombie Issue 2, p6 Issue 26, p7, p8 Aberdeen Issue 27, p8 Abernethian Issue 19, p14 Aboriginal/s Issue 3, p3 Issue 18, p13 Ackerman Cottage Issue 17, p14 Issue 21, p6 Ackerman, J. Issue 14, p9 Ackermann Issue 2, p7 Issue 4, p7 Issue 6, p6 Issue 7, p2 Issue 11, p2 Issue 12, p4 Issue 13, p1 Issue 15, p1 Issue 17, p3 Issue 18, p2 Issue 19, p1 Issue 20, p9 Issue 21, p4, p7 Issue 23, p3, p15 Issue 25, p2 Issue 27, p1 Ackermann, Clarence James Issue 9, p3 Ackermann, Cyril Alfred Love Issue 9, p3 Ackermann, Ethel May Issue 26, p14 Ackermann, H.
    [Show full text]