2. Family Tree 1
AMERICAN BRITISH(Persian/Dutch)
STANDARD OIL SHELL ROYAL DUTCH OTHER SMALL COMPANIES
35 OTHER SMALL COMPANIES
(sohio, amoco, Vacuum, etc.)
ROYAL DUTCH BP (BRITISH PETROLEUM)
SOCAL MOBIL EXXON SHELL
TEXACO
GULF
POST
THE
SEVEN
SISTERS
SAUDI ARAMCO EXXONMOBIL
ROYAL DUTCH
BP
CHEVRON SHELL
NATION IRANIAN OIL CO.
CHEVRON
TEXACO CHEVRON
GAZPROM PETROCHINA
3. Exxon
Standard Oil Sister
‘Independent’ in 1911
Overseen by John D. Archbold
Largest Oil Company in the World
People’s distrust in American Companies
Money, Markets, Very Little Oil
Business Overseas
4. Mobil
Standard Oil Sister
‘Independent’ in 1911
Overseen by Henry Clay Folger
Smallest of the Seven Sisters
Merged with Vacuum in 1931
Huge Markets (England, China), No Oil
5. SoCal
Standard Oil Sister
‘Independent’ in 1911
Formed only 11 years prior to Standard’s split
Exported oil across Pacific to China
Owned 26% of total U.S. oil production by 1919
6. Texaco
Founded by Joseph Cullinan in partnership with
Arnold Schalet, 1901
Houston Headquarter, 1913
Drilled at Spindletop
Inland trading (Mississippi sugar planters, Standard Oil)
Produced 5% of All American Oil by 1904
Company direction based on Texan Leadership
Elgood Lufkin succeeds Cullinan, 1913
7. Gulf
Formed by James Guffey and Galey
Financed by Thomas Mellon
Oil first found at Spindletop, shortage soon after
Sold out to Standard in 1895, Founded in 1901
Oil found again in Tulsa in 1906, Guffey ousted
Opened first drive-in filling station in Pittsburgh, 1908, in
response to increasing popularity of automobiles
Large fleet, Markets, and Large Production of Oil
8. Shell
British (Dutch) Sister
Founded by Marcus Samuel in 1897
Drilled in Russia, competed with Standard
Large Fleet, Transport Disadvantage
Named after shells
Taken over by Henri Deterding’s Royal Dutch Company
First sister agreement with Gulf, 1901
Less Distrust in Oil Companies by the people of England
9. BP
British (Persian) Sister
Founded by William Knox D’Arcy
Burmah Oil Company -> Anglo-Persian Oil
Company -> Anglo-Iranian -> British Petroleum
Overseas Drilling
BP vs. Shell for British Loyalty
Half owned by Churchill by 1914
Supplied British Navy
10. Modern World
Transformation
]
Oil! The Rediscovery SHORTAGE VS. PRODUCTION
Organized Industry PRICE CUTTING
Government Intervention
PUBLIC VS. PRIVATE
Post WWII Carve-Up
NATURAL MONOPOLY
11. Onto the 21st
Century...
Exxon merges with Mobil - ExxonMobil(4)
Royal Dutch Shell remains in Top 7 as of 2012 (7)
SoCal merges with Gulf - Chevron (9)
Texaco merges with Chevron - ChevronTexaco, Chevron
BP remains in Top 7 as of 2012 (6)
Government (Middle East, China) Owned Companies in
Top 102
12. Work Cited
This PowerPoint Presentation was based on my reading and comprehension of
Anthony Sampson’s The Seven Sisters.
Sampson, A. (1976). The seven sisters: The great oil companies and the world they shaped. (Bantam ed.). New York,
NY: Bantam Books, Inc.
The information on the oil companies post 1976 (after the book was published)
used in this presentation was retrieved from the following site:
1,2- Helman, C. (2012, July 16). The world's 25 biggest oil companies. Forbes, Retrieved from
http://www.forbes.com/pictures/mef45gkei/not-just-the-usual-suspects/
