The World-Struggle for Oil

by Pierre Paul Ernest L'Espagnol de la Tramerye

Not content with conquering the Standard Oil on its own ground, Deterding also caused it to lose its "Algeria." Master of the Mexican Eagle, which he bought from its founder, Lord Cowdray, in 1918 for more than a thousand million francs, he controls to-day the bulk of Mexican production. By this master-stroke he increased by 50 per cent. the quantity of oil that the Royal Dutch can offer to the world.

The Americans felt the loss very keenly, for hitherto all the output of the Mexican Eagle had gone to the Standard Oil.

The Mexican Eagle had a large number of tank steamers, the acquisition of which brought up the fleet of the Royal Dutch-Shell to more than a million tons.

Moreover, the directors of the Royal Dutch do not hesitate to assert that the oil-bearing district of Venezuela, of which, since their agreements with the General Asphalt Company, they control more than 15,000 square miles, is as rich in oil as the district of Tampico. That is why they have put up enormous buildings, both warehouses and refineries, at Curaçao. The Shell, which has operated for four or five years in Venezuela, has just overcome the difficulties of approaching the coast by constructing a flotilla of tankers of very small draught, thus permitting the transport of oil from Maracaibo to Curaçao.

The Panama Canal itself is seriously menaced. The United States have spent more than 300 million dollars in constructing the canal, and now American vessels are going to be dependent upon the Royal Dutch for oil. Mr. Deterding has a depot at one end of the canal and another at the entrance to the gulf. He dominates American commerce.

This is indeed a work of conquest. Mr. Deterding follows the commercial example of Great Britain. He has stations at all the strategic points of the world. He also controls the Suez Canal at both ends. The capacity of the refinery at Suez has been increased by 7,000 barrels a day, on account of the increase in the tonnage passing through the canal during the War. Mr. Deterding is building a station on the Cape Verde Islands, situated just half-way between Africa and America. He has establishments at the Antipodes, in the East and West Indies, on the west coast of South America, on the coast of Africa, and at the Azores. The European market, in particular the French, is dependent on him. Through the instrumentality of M. Deutsch de la Meurthe, the oil deposits in Asia, owned by the Rothschilds, have come under the Royal Dutch trust, which possesses 90 per cent. of the capital of the oil companies of the Caspian and Black Seas and 25 per cent. of that of the New Russian Standard Company of Grosny. In August 1920 the Shell bought the Mantasheff and the Lianosoff, together with a 40 per cent. interest in the Tsatouroff, fearing to see the Standard Oil acquire the Nobel properties at Baku. The contract was signed in London, but was incompletely carried out, for Great Britain hoped to treat directly with the Soviets at Genoa and to have no more responsibility towards the former owners.[11]

A large part of the Rumanian production is controlled by the Royal Dutch.

In Germany the Royal Dutch-Shell has an interest in the Erdol und Kohle Veränderung Aktien Gesellschaft, the Aktien Gesellschaft für Petroleum Industrie and the Deutsche Bergin Aktien Gesellschaft.

Since 1912 it has established itself in Sweden as the Anglo-Swedish Oil Company, to drive out the Standard Oil, until then mistress of the market. Everywhere the Royal Dutch insinuates itself into the good graces of governments, thanks to its elastic methods and to the cleverness of some of its directors, such as the brilliant Armenian Gulbenkian, who has been well named the "Talleyrand of Oil." In co-operation with the Belgrade Government, it has just formed a new company at Agram, with a capital of 50 million crowns, to exploit the oil of Jugo-Slavia.

As the Financial Times wrote: "Following the creation in France of the Société Maritime des Pétroles and the Société pour l'Exploitation des Pétroles, the Royal Dutch is able to obtain from the French Government an important interest in the oil-fields which remain at its disposal."