The History of Oil

I have started reading The Prize by Daniel Yergin, which is an epic whirlwind tale of the history of oil.

Like others, I found it interesting to read about the early risk takers and power brokers who seized upon new opportunities in the exploration, production, refining, distribution and consumption of oil and gas, starting first in the U.S. (Pennsylvania, Texas, Oklahoma) and then spreading throughout the world. It was also eye-opening to see how much national politics and strategic influence have played a role since the beginning. A century ago, the predecessors of companies such as Exxon/Mobil (nee Standard Oil), Shell and British Petroleum (nee Anglo-Persian) competed for oil in the Iraq, Iran, Russia, Venezuela and Mexico. Understanding that Mosul and Kirkuk were (already) the object of intense Western attention a century ago puts today's news in some historical perspective...

Reading The Prize reminds me of a video by Robert Newman on the History of Oil, which presents a humorous but also deadly serious monologue on oil and its past context, and in particular mentions that World War I was not only about Europe but also involved a parallel struggle for the oil in the Middle East.

(Robert Newman also discusses how the current U.S. dollar is propped up by its use as the currency for purchasing oil (a.k.a. "petrodollar"), and gives an analogy in the form of an anecdote about Salvador Dali, who would draw sketches on the back of his personal checks to guarantee that they would not be cashed.)