Oil and water

Summary

ABSTRACT.The exploitation of mineral oil on a world scale has been made possible by the development of tanker shipping, without which the international oil trade would scarcely exist. This sea-borne oil trade has radically transformed the shape of the world economy, and the wealth of particular countries.

RÉSUMÉ.C'est l'essor du navire-citerne comme moyen de transport maritime qui a rendu possible l'exploitation de l'huile minérale à l'échelle mondiale. Sans ces navires, le commerce international du pétrole existerait à peine. Ce commerce pétrolier par voie maritime a changé radicalement l'état de l'économie mondiale, et le niveau de richesse de certains pays.

BRIEF INTRODUCTION

For thousands of years oil has been found in various parts of the world in the form of natural seepage through the earth's crust, and those near its sources found uses for it. The Greek historian Herodotus wrote that it had been used in building the walls of Babylon. Oil was used as a fuel in Persia and the surrounding area in the 8th century. It is also possible that around the same time Chinese junks carried oil in the expansion trunks designed for water. In 1725 Peter the Great issued instructions regulating the carriage of oil in bulk on the Volga.

THE GROWING GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF OILFIELDS WITH THE ABILITY TO UTILISE LIQUEFIED NATURAL GASES(LNG)

However, the real commercial potential of oil emerged only in the middle of the 19^th century. There are indications that natural sources were being commercially exploited in Russia in 1856 and in Romania in 1857, but the best-documented early oil production is in the United States, when in 1859 crude oil was produced by drilling in Pennsylvania where Colonel Edwin Drake struck oil at Titusville. Originally it was moved in barrels, and then in tin cases. The development of drilling techniques enabled the oil industry to expand. By the end of the 19th century the United States and Russia were the major producers of petroleum products. By 1902 Mexico and Venezuela had become major producers, and in 1909 the Anglo-Persian Oil Company was formed. By 1970 Nigeria was an important producer but it was not until the oil price rise of 1973 that many relatively small and expensive oil fields were developed around the world(Table 1). As prices became competitive, so did the transportation pattern of crude oil change.