The Standard Oil Company was the largest and arguably the most powerful corporation in the history of mankind. In 1904, Standard controlled 91% of production and 85% of final sales of petroleum products in the USA. Because of its monopolistic powers and unlawful business practices, on May 15, 1911, the Supreme Court declared the Standard Oil group to be an unreasonable monopoly under the Sherman Antitrust Act, and ordered Standard to break up into 34 independent companies.
The resulting independent companies included
• Standard Oil of New Jersey (SONJ) - or Esso (S.O.) – renamed Exxon, now part of ExxonMobil. Standard Trust companies Carter Oil, Imperial Oil (Canada), and Standard of Louisiana were kept as part of Standard Oil of New Jersey after the breakup.
• Standard Oil of New York – or Socony, merged with Vacuum – renamed Mobil, now part of ExxonMobil.
• Standard Oil of California – or Socal – renamed Chevron, became ChevronTexaco, but returned to Chevron.
• Standard Oil of Indiana - or Stanolind, renamed Amoco (American Oil Co.) – now part of BP.
• Standard's Atlantic and the independent company Richfield merged to form Atlantic Richfield or ARCO, now part of BP. Atlantic operations were spun off and bought by Sunoco.
• Standard Oil of Kentucky – or Kyso was acquired by Standard Oil of California - currently Chevron.
• Continental Oil Company – or Conoco now part of ConocoPhillips.
• Standard Oil of Ohio – or Sohio, acquired by BP in 1987.
Now, in the wake of BP's disastrous and criminal conduct, the Obama Administration is poised to permit the reassembling of a corporation deemed one hundred years ago to be too big and too corrupt:
Oil industry sources were quoted as saying that ExxonMobil had been given a green light by the US government to "take a look" at BP. A merger would create a group with a stock market value of $400bn (£265bn). Both firms refused to comment on the speculation.
A cursory review of the corporations listed above as Stardard relics include:
• Standard's Atlantic and the independent company Richfield merged to form Atlantic Richfield or ARCO, now part of BP
• Standard Oil of New Jersey - or Esso – renamed Exxon
• Standard Oil of Indiana - renamed Amoco – now part of BP
• Standard Oil of New York – renamed Mobil, now part of ExxonMobil
• Standard Oil of Ohio – or Sohio, acquired by BP in 1987.
If an Exxon/MObil/BP merger were permitted, these Standard survivors would be brought once again under the same tent, with the ADDITION of British Petrolem, Standard's long-time rival and nemesis. Interestingly, Standard Oil of Ohio (SOHIO/BP) is the only entity which still has the right to call itself Standard Oil, so if Exxon/Mobil buys BP, so perhaps we'll see those Standard signs again.
The only conceivable reason our government should permit such an an agglomeration of power would be in exchange for ExxonMobil's agreement to totally indemnify all those injured by BP's reckless and corrupt practices . . . but if anyone thinks Exxon will agree to accepting such liability, then I have a lovely bridge in a borough of New York City I would like to sell at a deeply discounted price.
The possibility of such a merger must be minutely evaluated and scrutinized before permitting such unwholesome assembling of power. As John D. Rockefeller, the world's first billionaire (when a billion was BILLION) said regarding the oil business:
Competition is a sin.