The History of Bp

The History of Bp

  • Submitted By: sohelkbr
  • Date Submitted: 10/22/2013 6:41 PM
  • Category: Business
  • Words: 566
  • Page: 3
  • Views: 107

British Petroleum now more commonly known as BP p.l.c. is headquartered in London. It is one of the giants in the energy sectors in the world. The history of the company goes back to 1908 when oil was discovered in a part of Persia after a long search. Four years prior to the finding of oil William Knox D'Arcy was given permission by the Shah of Iran to explore the region for oil in the region. The Anglo-Persian Oil Company was set up in 1909 that was to become British Petroleum in a few years. In the year 1935 the corporation was renamed as the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company.

After the First World War Mohammed Mossadeq became the prime minister of Iran and nationalized the oil sector of the country. The British government fought the nationalization at the International Court of Justice but to no avail. It then realized that the only way to get control over the Iranian oil was to replace the then prime minister with Mohammed Reza Pahlavi who was friendlier towards the British. In 1953 American and British forces overthrew Mossadeq and put Fazlollah Zahedi in his place. It was in 1954 that the AIOC assumed the name British Petroleum and restarted its operations in the country.

British Petroleum continued to function in the country until the Islamic Revolution that happened in the country in 1979. Ayatollah Khomeini assumed power in the country and brought to an end the presence of BP in Iran. The company however had investments outside the country as well in Alaska and the North Sea and that helped it to survive. During the 1980s when Thatcher was in power, the government sold off its share in BP. In the 1990s the company acquired three major companies including Burmah-Castrol, ARCO, and Amoco. In 1998 when BP bought Amoco the company was named BPAmoco but it was again named BP in 2000. In the same year the company acquired Burmah Castrol plc and Arco.

British Petroleum has several retail brands. The ampm is a store chain that has branches that are spread...

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