Baku oil field. Baku oil industry before and after the abolition of the farming system

The fundamental oil report of the Union of Russian Commercial and Industrialists told the following story:

"The first attempts to use oil in industry were made in Russia on the Absheron Peninsula. In 1823, that is, ten years after the final annexation of the Baku Khanate by Russia, a Russian peasant named Dubinin founded the first oil refinery in the Caucasus, which, of course, was built very primitively, but still was the first in history. industrial enterprise of such kind".

The Dubinin plant, followed by a similar enterprise of the engineer Voskoboynikov, built in 1830 in the vicinity of Baku, produced kerosene, which was in short supply at that time. This seemed like a lucrative business.

A pood of oil cost the first oil owners 30-40 kopecks, and a pood of kerosene, obtained from three poods of oil, was sold in Central Russia for 40 rubles.

However, in reality, kerosene production barely made ends meet. The endless war with the Caucasian highlanders and the lack of railways made the delivery of products to the metropolis and the importation of everything necessary to Baku a very problematic and expensive affair, and therefore there were no people willing to establish new enterprises "in a territory that ... was completely uncultured" for quite a long time.

Only after the end of the Caucasian War and the consolidation of the Russian administration on the newly acquired lands, new industrialists were drawn to Absheron. However, both mining and oil refining went neither shaky nor rolls. The wells were dug by hand to a depth of no more than 25 meters.

A large amount of oil was lost due to primitive methods of transportation - in wineskins on camels. And in processing, the disposal of waste from the production of kerosene - fuel oil - became a serious headache. It's hard to imagine, but then it never occurred to anyone to use it as fuel. And this "oil mud", spending a lot of money, was taken out of Baku, poured into pits and burned.

Nevertheless, the main problem of the oil owners was the peculiarities Russian legislation. Oil production was declared a state monopoly, and oil-bearing areas were leased to entrepreneurs for no more than four years. As a result, in 1850, only a little more than four thousand tons of oil were produced from 136 oil sources in the Shemakhan province, and in 1862 - 5.4 thousand tons from 220 sources.

The real development of oil fields began only half a century after the appearance of the peasant Dubinin on Absheron, when on February 1, 1872, the state monopoly on oil production was finally canceled. Instead of digging wells, drilling of oil wells began, and the daily production of Baku oil increased from several tens of tons to several thousand.

Foreign investors also appeared in Baku. In 1874, the Swede Robert Nobel went there to purchase a special kind of wood that was required for his brother's arms factory. However, the temptation to capitalize on the oil boom was too strong, and Nobel rented a piece of land on which he built an oil refinery. Robert's success impressed his brothers so much that in 1879 the Nobel Brothers Oil Industry Society was registered.

Over the years of its existence, this company has increased its capital a hundred times: from 300 thousand rubles to 30 million, and for the most part due to the introduction of new technologies. The Nobels invited engineers and scientists from Galicia, where the oil industry had been successfully developing since the middle of the 19th century, and from the United States. Swedish entrepreneurs, unlike Russians, were well aware that the main component of success was sales, and therefore they bought pipes and pumps from overseas, were the first to build oil pipelines, and began to produce railway tanks and oil tankers.

Moreover, as the historiographers of the Russian oil industry claimed, the Nobels were the first in the world to produce tankers. The Nobels were the first to build tanks for oil and oil products in large industrial centers of Russia. By introducing all these innovations, the Nobel society managed to achieve a phenomenal reduction in the cost of oil from 10 to 0.5 kopecks per pood. And after they were among the first to start developing Grozny oil, they began to be called the number one Russian oil company.

Another large foreign firm is the French Trading house Rothschild - appeared in Russia in 1886. Three years earlier, the Baku-Batumi railway had been completed and the "Batumi Oil Industrial Society" had been formed to use this route to transport kerosene to the sea and export it by ship. However own funds the founders did not have enough, and the entire enterprise passed into the hands of the Rothschilds, who invested in a promising project - the "Caspian-Black Sea Society" - a whopping 6 million rubles for that time.

Russian oilmen, not without reason, considered the appearance of the Rothschilds a salvation from the crisis. In the seven years since 1880, oil production in Russia has grown six and a half times. In 1887, Baku produced 2.64 million tons of crude oil and 700,000 tons of oil products, which significantly covered the needs of the domestic market. The traditional way of exporting Nobels - by barges along the Caspian Sea, the Volga and further by rail to Germany - had a limited throughput, and the Rothschilds managed to almost double the export of kerosene from Russia in a year. Having concluded an agreement with the British, they began to supply Russian kerosene even to India. The big Russian oilmen also began to set up their own marketing offices in Europe and Asia.

The influx of export earnings stimulated production, and in 1901 Russia came out on top in the world - 11.2 million tons per year (53% of world production). Russian oil accounted for almost half of England's imports, a third of Belgium's, and three-quarters of France's. Moreover, Russia became the main supplier of oil and oil products to the Middle East, which was then suffering from its absence.

And all this, of course, irritated the largest company in the world market - the American Standard Oil.

to be continued...

A detailed acquaintance of the owners of the Parisian banking house of the Rothschild brothers with the Baku oil region of Russia dates back to the end of the 70s of the XIX century, when they acquired the Batumi Oil Industrial and Trading Society (BNITO) of A.A. Bunge and S.E. Palashkovsky due to financial difficulties of the former owners . May 16, 1883 in Baku on the basis of BNITO is established new firm“Caspian-Black Sea Oil Industrial and Commercial Society” (hereinafter referred to as the “Caspian-Black Sea Society”), already fully owned by the French banking house “br. Rothschild". Together with a block of shares, they receive 19 acres of the richest oil-bearing lands in the Baku villages of Balakhani, Sabunchi, Ramana, as well as a kerosene plant in Baku. Immediately, the company develops vigorous activity, buying kerosene from 135 small and medium-sized enterprises on mutually beneficial terms to be sent deep into Russia and foreign countries. Contracts for the sale of kerosene by the Rothschilds are concluded on a preferential basis for enterprises, as a result, the export of oil products from Baku abroad by the company increased from 2.4 million poods in 1884 to 30 million poods in 1889.

In 1907, the Rothschilds subsidized the G.M. Lianozov and Svya”, starting to control other oil companies with the help of this partnership: “Absheron Oil Company”, having taken 40% of its shares; "Shikhovo"; "Melikov"; “Russian Oil Partnership” and others. The “Caspian-Black Sea Society” owes its success to the connections that the Rothschilds (as previously the Nobels) established in the upper echelons of Russian power. David Landau, the father of the future, was the chief engineer of the Rothschild oil field in Baku 1962 Nobel Prize laureate in physics Lev Landau. (L.D. Landau was born on January 22, 1908 in Baku, in the village of Balakhani).

The founder of the "Caspian-Black Sea Society" Baron Alphonse Rothschild (1827 - 1905), who headed the Parisian banking house since 1868, was the son of the most famous banker in Paris, James Rothschild (1792 - 1868). A characteristic detail: for services to the government, King Louis Philippe of France made James Rothschild an officer of the Legion of Honor. After the death of his father, Alphonse began to conduct all Parisian banking affairs. He will be the biggest tycoon financial capital playing an important role in world politics. Suffice it to say that it was A. Rothschild who organized the payment of indemnity to France after its defeat in the Franco-Prussian war in 1871, thereby retaining the head of the French government, Adolphe Thiers, in power. Through A. Rothschild, the tsarist government issued a number of loans in France. As a result, he received the right to preferential ownership of Baku oil enterprises. A. Rothschild controlled the Baku oil business until the last days of his life. After his death, the younger brother, Baron Edmond, began to deal with Baku affairs. One of the main figures of Baku business was Chief Engineer Parisian house “br. Rothschild” Georges Aron, who directly supervised the oil enterprises, the export and sale of oil and oil products. The board of the Caspian-Black Sea Society in Baku consisted of three directors: Maurice Ephrusi (son-in-law of A. Rothschild), Prince A.G. Gruzinsky and Arnold Feigel. Commerce adviser A. Feigel, who supervised all the draft, preparatory work of the company, was an authoritative person: for several years on voluntary he was the chairman of the Council of the Congress of Baku oil owners.

The American Herbert Tvedl was the first to make an attempt at real construction of the Caspian-Black Sea pipeline with the aim of self-assertion both in the Absheron and in the Caucasus. In 1877 - 1878. he, together with an official of the Ministry of Finance, K. Bodisko, prepared four options for a unique project for the founding of the partnership of the Caspian-Black Sea oil pipelines. The main purpose of the established partnership was the construction of oil pipelines from oil fields to the ports of the Caspian, Black and Azov seas (TsGIA Az.SSR, f.92, op.4, d.17, pp. 33 - 37). On the need to build oil pipelines from factories to berths for loading into sea ​​vessels also wrote the greatest scientist-chemist DIMendeleev, who since 1863 studied the economy and the state of the oil fields in Baku. In 1877, D.I. Mendeleev traveled to the United States, in order, as the scientist explained, “... to find out where the reason for the prosperity of the oil business in America is, what is delaying this business with us and what should be done in order to eliminate the delay.”

Having become interested in Baku oil and the development of the oil business in the Absheron, D.I. Mendeleev (the scientist visited Baku four times) did not hide his disappointment when he learned about the sharp divergence of opinions among big businessmen regarding the construction of the Caspian-Black Sea oil pipeline: “If I have now ceased to deal with issues of Baku industry, this is mainly because - The Batumi oil pipeline, in my personal opinion, directed the Baku oil business in a direction undesirable for the success of Russian industry.

At the beginning of 1900, a cartel agreement was concluded between the company “br. Nobel and the Rothschild association Mazut, who decided to harmonize their trade policy in the domestic markets in order to establish control over the sale of petroleum products, i.e. E. Nobel and A. Rothschild joined forces in the export of Russian kerosene to the foreign market. It should be noted that the "Oil Industrial and Commercial Society" Mazut "", created in 1898, was completely controlled by the Paris Rothschild Banking House through Mauritius Ephrussi, son-in-law of Baron Alphonse Rothschild. At the beginning of the twentieth century. the fixed capital of the company was 6 million rubles (24 thousand registered shares of 250 rubles each), the board was located in Moscow. The Mazut Society had a strong regional sales network, own towing shipping company on the Volga, a large fleet of tank cars for the transportation of petroleum products, repair shops in the village. Dyadkovo Yaroslavl province and other service structures. By the end of 1906, the Nobel-Rothschild cartel had warehouses located in many regions of the Russian Empire. Naturally, the main most extensive storage system for petroleum products was created in Baku itself: by 1900 there were about 2,000 different storage facilities with a total capacity of 276.5 million poods.

The first to penetrate into the Baku oil business was French capital (represented by A. Rothschild), and then English capital (J. Wischau and others). If the initial capital of A. Rothschild in 1883 was 1.5 million rubles, then in 1912 - 1913. it exceeded 10 million rubles. The nationalization of the company "Caspian-Black Sea Society" and the association "Mazut" by the decree of the Baku Commune of June 2, 1918 had no direct relation to the Rothschilds, since back in 1912 they sold their Russian oil enterprises to the Anglo-Dutch trust "Royal Dutch Shell" "(the main rival of the American syndicate" Standard Oil "), receiving in return a significant stake in Shell. The Rothschilds became the owners of the banking institution of the Shell company in Paris, and already from 1912, English entrepreneurs began to lead in the oil business of Baku. With reliable information about the impending World War I, the Rothschilds ceded their oil business to the British. An important reason for the sale of their enterprises was the fact that the Rothschilds ultimately could not resist the Standard Oil syndicate in foreign markets, and the company Bro. Nobel". The very existence of the Nobmazut cartel meant the recognition of the leading role of the firm bro. Nobel" in the Russian oil business: it did not exclude, but only modified the forms of the hidden, sometimes open, struggle between the Rothschilds and the Nobels.

In June 1902, the European oil kings Henry Deterding, Marcus Samuel and the Rothschilds decided to combine their efforts in the oil market and signed a comprehensive agreement, as a result of which the British Dutch company was absorbed by more than big company Asiatic Petroleum. At that time, more than half of the oil produced in the world came from Russia. The Rothschilds, during the Russo-Japanese War, gave Japan unlimited credit from the banks they controlled, which allowed the Japanese to fight the war much longer than the Russian command expected. Naturally, during this period, almost all foreign loans were closed for Russia, including, of course, by the Rothschilds themselves. In 1901, a turning point occurred in the evolution of the oil industry: it entered a period of a long and deep crisis, from which it never emerged until nationalization.

The decline in production during the first years of this century is associated with a marketing crisis that occurred just at the moment when drilling activity reached its maximum size: for example, from 1897 to 1900, the number of meters drilled in Baku increased from 85017 to 177388 m. under the influence of such intensive drilling, the next year, 1901, gave a sharp increase in the production of oil thrown onto the market; then all the markets were full of goods, and demand fell sharply. An indicator of a low level of demand may be price movements; Thus, crude oil in Baku in the factory district in 1900 reached 16 kopecks. for 16 kg on average per year, in 1901 the average annual price drops to 8 kopecks. and in 1902 to 7 kopecks. for 16 kg. Under the influence of such a strong fall in prices, drilling activity declined sharply: in Baku, the number of meters covered by drilling decreased from 177,388 m in 1900 to 161,690 m in 1901 and to 76,176 m in 1902. The decline in production, due to the general economic crisis, reached its limit in 1902. Since 1903, the market situation is improving again, demand is increasing, and prices, which in January were at the level of 7.3 kopecks. for 16 kg in the factory area, by the end of the year, in December, they rose to 15.9 kopecks. Since 1903, drilling activity in Baku has increased, and in the next 1904, production increases again; but this new trend to the rise abruptly ends with the revolution of 1905, which was accompanied by the defeat of a significant part of the Baku crafts. In addition, since the beginning of the new century, a sharp drop in the productivity of wells in old areas began to affect. Due to all these circumstances, oil production has been kept at a reduced level throughout the entire period, despite the presence of significant demand for liquid fuel. This low level of oil production after 1905 was one of the main factors in the fuel shortage that continued for many years.

During 1913, compared with 1912, there were no significant changes in the distribution of world production between individual countries, while compared with 1906, the reporting year differs mainly in the size of participation in world oil production by Russia and the United States. States; At the same time, the results are far from being in favor of Russia, especially if we take into account that back in 1901 domestic production oil accounted for 50.6% of world oil production, and North American - only 41.2%. It is interesting to note that the decrease in Russia's participation in world oil production cannot be attributed to the sad memory of the events of 1905, although, of course, these events also had their significance. The fact is that in the period 1901-1905. oil production fluctuated relatively slightly, by only 10 percent (in 1901, 705 m.p. were produced, in 1902 - 671 m.p., in 1903 629 m.p. and in 1904 - 655 m.p.), which fluctuations, obviously, could not reduce domestic participation in world production from 50.5% in 1901 to 43.4% in 1902, 38.6% in 1903 and 35.7 % in 1904, but it was during these years that oil production in the Union. The United States began to develop especially intensively (from 69 million barrels in 1901 to 117 million barrels in 1904), which was reflected in the importance of Russia in the world oil business.

Baku at the beginning of the 20th century - 96 photos.

The beginning of industrial oil refining dates back to the middle of the 19th century, when Baku became the largest oil region in Russia. With the abolition of oil tax cuts in 1872, there was an accelerated development of the oil business, which intensified significantly from September 1877.

The beginning of industrial oil refining dates back to the middle of the 19th century, when Baku became the largest oil region in Russia. With the abolition in 1872 of the tax on oil, an accelerated development of the oil business took place, which significantly intensified from September 1877, when the excise tax on petroleum products was canceled (until 1888). The abolition of the excise tax contributed to the rapid growth of oil production in Azerbaijan. Over the next forty years (until 1917), more than 3 thousand wells were drilled in Absheron, of which about 2 thousand produced oil. However, even before the abolition of the lease, serious attempts were made to develop the oil business. Thus, the first oil refineries were built in Mozdok by the Dubinin brothers (serfs of Countess Panina) and in 1837 by mining engineer N.I. Voskoboynikov in the Baku village of Balakhany, but the work was not completed.

In 1858 - 1859. Baron N.E. Tornau, V.A. Kokorev and P.I. Gubonin are building in the Baku village of Surakhany, not far from the temple of fire worshipers, the first oil refinery according to the German model for processing kir (asphalt). The goal was to obtain lighting oils from tar shales, but the results were unsatisfactory, and kir was replaced with oil, which gave a good lighting oil. The outstanding German chemist Justus Liebig took an active part in the project of this plant, who sent his assistant K. Engler to Baku especially for this.

In December 1863, already in Baku itself, Javad Melikov built a kerosene plant and, for the first time in the world history of oil refining, used refrigerators in the distillation process. The famous Russian oilman V.I. Ragozin described D. Melikov as follows: “Like all people who were possessed by an idea, he saw in every undertaking only a means to embody the idea, and seemed to Baku people an eccentric and a strange person. Still, it would not seem strange when a person was not looking for profit, giving up to the last penny everything he had, not thinking about yesterday, just to achieve the goal. In the history of the development of technical industries, we often meet with such eccentrics who give impetus to industries, move them forward, but themselves remain out of work and die in poverty and obscurity, and the crowd, who did not trust them and laughed at them, takes possession of what was created on their basis. property."

The founder of kerosene and paraffin production in Baku and Grozny, D. Melikov, unable to withstand competition with large oil refining industrialists, died in poverty, forgotten by everyone.

The first borehole in Apsheron was drilled in 1844 by a mining engineer F. Semenov in the village of Bibi-Heybat and gave a good flow rate. However, Semenov's report on this to General A. Neidgart dated December 22, 1844 did not receive due attention. Nevertheless, the drilling of deep oil wells was started right here, on the shores of the Caspian Sea in the villages of Bibi-Heybat and Balakhani, and only a few years later (in 1859) after the first initiative of the people of Baku, deep wells began to be drilled in the state of Pennsylvania (USA) .

It was from 1859, after the discovery of a large artesian source in Vennano in Pennsylvania, that commercial oil field. Until the end of 1860, up to 2 thousand wells were drilled in Pennsylvania with a depth of 20 to 200 m. The success of the oil business in the United States forced attention to the European (Galician), then to the Apsheron oil fields.

In 1864, the public and statesman of Russia N.A. Novoselsky (1823 - 1901) gave the first impetus to the oil business in the Caucasus, he laid the first borehole in the Kuban region.

After receiving official permission in 1868 to drill oil wells in the Apsheron in Balakhany in 1871, a second oil well was drilled mechanically, 64 m deep. the price per pood was 45 kopecks, but after the opening of the famous Vermishev fountain in Balakhany on June 13, 1873, which flooded the surroundings in a short time and formed several oil lakes, it dropped to 2 kopecks. The well of the oil industrialist I.A. Vermishev spewed an oil fountain 611 m high for 13 days and threw out more than 90 million poods of oil within 3 months. This was many times greater than many of the oil inflows received in Pennsylvania.

The abolition of the lease and the granting of the right to private individuals to lease oil-bearing lands contributed to the rapid growth of the oil industry in Russia and the emergence of many oil-industrial firms and trading companies: “G.Z. Tagiev” (1872), “Baku Oil Society” (1874). ), “Nobel Brothers” (1879), Rothschild’s “Caspian-Black Sea Society” (1883), etc.

In 1879, the Baku branch of the Imperial Russian Technical Society (BO IRTS) was established, which contributed to the enhanced development of the oil business in Azerbaijan. D.I.Mendeleev, V.V.Markovnikov, L.G.Gurvich, G.Z.Tagiev, L.E.Nobel, V.I.Ragozin, M.Nagiev and others spoke at the meetings of the society. writer Charles Marvin, visiting in 1882 - 1883. Russia (Caucasus, Baku, Caspian coast) was surprised by the scope of the oil business in these regions and described it in his books “The Russian advance towards India” (1882), “The Russians at Merv and Herat” (1883) and etc. .

The famous Norwegian writer Knut Hamsun (Pedersen), Nobel Prize winner in literature in 1920, also described his memories of a trip to Russia, especially to the Caucasus and Baku, in his book “In a Fairyland”. In Baku, he met with the public of the city and visited the firm “br. Nobel".

It is characteristic that the tsarist government actively supported the formation and development of large firms, since they were more organized in terms of production and better represented the interests of industry.

Soon, lamps appeared in Russia, adapted for Russian kerosene, which is somewhat different from American. Here it is appropriate to note the role of the outstanding chemist D.I. Mendeleev, who first proposed the use of oil residues after the extraction of kerosene to obtain lubricating oils. In his article “What to do with Baku oil?” he described in detail the method of obtaining lighting oil, which he called bakuoil. The scientist carefully studied the oil business in Russia; visited Baku several times (in 1863, 1880 and 1886 (2 times)) in order to study the economy and the state of the technical equipment of the oil fields.

D.I. Mendeleev highly appreciated the active work of the Nobel brothers and the Rothschilds in the Caucasus and Baku, noting their primary role in the formation and development of the oil business in these regions. In spite of complicated relationship, developed between the scientist and L. Nobel, he wrote: “... a special revival in the course of Baku oil affairs came only when, in the late 70s, the Nobel brothers, especially L.E. Nobel, who had a machine plant in St. Petersburg, formed a large company to exploit Baku's oil reserves. Until then, everything was done with small capital, and the Nobel Society invested more than 20 million rubles in the business, started production on a large scale, a huge plant for several million pounds of kerosene a year, arranged an oil pipeline from the fields to the factory and to the pier, acquired many excellent steam tankers on the Caspian Sea and tanker barges on the Volga ... ”.

The name of Mendeleev is associated not only with the history of the development of the Russian oil business, but also with the beginning of the publication of the first books on oil and its processing. Under the editorship of D.I. Mendeleev in St. Petersburg, in the printing house of the partnership "Public benefit" was published " Technical Encyclopedia(according to Wagner)”, 1862 - 1896

The most pressing issue in the 80s - 90s was the construction of oil pipelines between the fields and factories of the Black City in Baku, which was closely tackled by the most energetic firms “br. Nobel”, “G.Z. Tagiyev” and “Baku Oil Society”. In 1877, the construction of the first oil pipeline in Russia between the fields of the village of Sabunchi and the factories of the Black City was completed. By 1890, 25 oil pipelines with a length of about 286 km were laid in the Baku oil region, through which up to 1.5 million poods of oil per day were pumped from fields to factories.

It is necessary to recall the talented engineer, honorary member of the Polytechnical Society V.G. Shukhov (1853 - 1939), who was the main manager of the construction of the Balakhani - Black City oil pipeline and about the professor of the St. Petersburg Technical Institute N.L. Shchukin (1848 - 1924), the author of the project of the Transcaucasian Baku - Batumi oil pipeline.

The construction of the main oil pipeline Baku - Batum, about the need for which there were fierce debates at that time, took 10 years. Subsequently, this unique oil pipeline provided invaluable assistance in the fight against the American oil policy, opening access for Baku oil to the world market.

The creation of tankers for the transportation of oil and oil products significantly influenced the development of the Caspian Fleet, opening a new era in the oil business. For the first time in the world, the oil tanker "Zoroaster" was built by L. Nobel in 1877 in the Swedish city of Motala; Subsequently, he built a whole oil-loading fleet, which included the ships Magomed, Moses, Spinoza, Darwin, and others. Nobel transported oil and oil products to countless tanks built by it in Nizhny Novgorod, Saratov, Tsaritsyn, Astrakhan, Yaroslavl, etc.

Later, ships belonging to other companies sailed along the waterways of Russia. For example, the trade and transport company "Mazut", created by A. Rothschild in 1898, owned 13 tankers in the Caspian Sea, as well as several steamships. By 1912, this society was a solid oil export and trade association.

Since 1880, tankers from the port of Batumi with Baku kerosene have been sent to many countries of the world. In the 80s - 90s Baku oil freely competes with the American one and even forces it out of the European and Asian markets. The kerosene exported from Baku fully meets the needs of Russia, and since 1883 the import of American kerosene into the empire has been stopped.

Comparison of data on oil production in the USA and Russia showed that in 1859 in the USA (Pennsylvania) oil production was 82 thousand barrels; in 1889 - 14 million barrels. In Russia (Baku) in 1889, 16.7 million barrels of oil were produced. In 1901, the Baku oil region produced 95% of the total imperial oil production; in that year, oil production in Russia was distributed as follows: 667.1 million poods from the Baku province and about 34.7 million poods from the Terek region. The number of workers employed in the oil fields of the Russian Empire increased from 7,000 in 1894 to 27,000 in 1904, of which 24,500 worked in the Baku oil region. In 1904, there were 150 oil refineries in Russia, 72 of them were located in Baku.

Of particular note is that the Russian oil industry, until 1917, was represented exclusively by the Azerbaijani (Baku) oil industry. The main deposits of Baku were Balakhani, Sabunchi, Ramany, Bibi-Heybat and Surakhani.

In 1899 - 1901. Baku, having provided more than half of the world's oil production, brought Russia to the first place, leaving behind such countries as the USA, Argentina, Peru, and others. Baku kerosene completely ousted American oil, first from Russian cities, then from foreign ones. For example, in 1885, instead of American kerosene, 37 million gallons of domestic raw materials were delivered to Asian countries from Baku via Batum. The growth of Baku's oil industry at the end of the 19th century put Russia among the leading capitalist countries of the world: after 1901, it kept second place (after the USA) for a long time until it was forced out by Mexico.

To organize and coordinate activities Russian entrepreneurs were the congresses of Baku oil owners, established in 1884. Their main goal was considered "the opportunity for oil owners to express their needs, aspirations and desires to the government." The congress was an association of the capitals of oil firms, in which each firm had a certain share of votes. So, at the 33rd congress of oil owners in 1914, the largest firms had 111 votes: “bro. Nobel - 18, Shell - 34 and Oil General Corporation - 59. Representatives oil tycoons used the Council of the Congress to interact with various government agencies, establish close ties with the state apparatus, participate in interdepartmental meetings, commissions, i.e. to protect the interests of their firms before the government. Since 1898, the Council of the Congress published in Baku the newspaper-magazine "Oil Business", which from May 1920 to this day is called "Azerbaijan Oil Industry".

Large oil producers, in search of new world markets, actively participated in the world's largest exhibitions. L. E. Nobel and V. I. Ragozin were especially successful in this. Their exhibits of oil products from Baku refineries, shown in Paris (1878), Brussels (1880) and London (1881), received the highest marks from experts.

After the death of the head of the company “br. Nobel” Ludwig (March 31, 1888) in Russia will be approved by the Nobel Prizes. L. Nobel (1891) and his son Emmanuel Nobel (1909). Archival documents collected in the Biographical International Encyclopedia "Humanistika" about Russian Nobel Prizes, show the bright contribution of the father and son of the Nobels to the development of industry, science and education in the empire and, in particular, in oily Baku.

Of particular note is V.I. Ragozin, who in 1875 researched lubricating oils for the first time in the history of the world oil industry and built the first factories for this in Balakhna (Nizhny Novgorod province) and Konstantinov (near Yaroslavl). In 1878, lubricating oils from Baku oil, which he exported abroad, firmly conquered the world market.

Thus, Azerbaijani oil as a raw material for the production of lubricating oils has played an important role in the Russian economy. The oil plants of Ragozin on the Volga, Nobel, Tagiev, Shibaev, Nagiyev, Rothschild, Asadullayev and others in Baku, Frolov, Rolls and Petukhov in St. Petersburg received lubricating oils from Baku oils, which successfully replaced American lubricating oils in England, France, Belgium, Holland, Norway, Denmark and other European countries. By the beginning of the 90s of the 19th century, the capacity of Russian oil refineries made it possible to fully satisfy the empire's need for high-quality lubricating oils. Petroleum products obtained at Baku refineries, as well as the bulk of crude unrefined oil, were exported from Baku in four ways: through the Caspian, Transcaucasian and Vladikavkaz (Baku-Petrovsk) railways and a very small amount - tug. So, in 1904, the total volume of exported oil and oil products was about 492.1 million poods.

Since in the 90s Baku oil became the main cargo for the Volga fleet, its accelerated development took place, a large number of barges were built on the Volga to transport oil products, and the fleet was based on wooden barges (about 94% in 1900), which were transported along Volga with the help of tugboats. During this period, the firm “br. Nobel” raised the issue of mandatory replacement wooden oil barges to iron ones, which were much more practical (did not leak oil products) and more durable. However, they were very expensive and were available only to large firms; by the end of the 19th century, they were owned by firms “br. Nobel”, A. Rothschild, G.Z. Tagiev, Sh. Asadullaeva, “Caucasus and Mercury”, etc. These firms had a significant amount of petroleum fuel transported to the domestic markets of Russia. For example, only the firm “br. Nobel supplied Russia with up to 80 million pounds. The formation and development of the Caspian and Volga fleets by the end of the 19th century were of great importance for the delivery of oil fuel from Baku to large Russian cities, and also contributed to the growth of the shipbuilding and ship repair industry of the Volga region.

The accelerated development of the Russian (Baku) oil business was mainly due to a significant influx of foreign capital into it (Nobels, Rothschilds, Vishau, etc.), which from the beginning of the 20th century rapidly penetrated into the oil industry of Russia, and with the simultaneous ousting of Russian and Baku entrepreneurs, not only from the oil industry, but also from the trade in petroleum products. By the end of the 19th century, the firms “br. Nobel” and Rothschild’s “Caspian-Black Sea Society” concentrated in their hands up to 70% of all oil trade in Russia.

Wealth of oil deposits, cheap work force and naturally, the huge profits that the oil business brought to the industrialists accelerated the influx of foreign currency into the Russian oil industry. This was facilitated by the resolution dated May 1, 1880, of the Special Conference on the issue of the admissibility of foreigners to the oil field within the Baku region. Ardent supporters of attracting foreign capital to the Russian oil business were Prince M. Golitsyn, the head of the civil part in the Caucasus, and S. Witte, the Minister of Finance of Russia. Prince Golitsyn wrote: "... Any unconditional restriction of the activities of foreign enterprises in the Caucasus would be tantamount to a serious delay in the industrial prosperity of the country." Finance Minister Witte at special meetings on oil affairs always pointed out: "... The competition of our oil products on the world market is absolutely unthinkable without the involvement of foreign and especially English entrepreneurs and their capital."

Having firmly strengthened their positions in oil-filled Baku, foreign firms tried to control developments in other oil regions of the Russian Empire: in Grozny, in the North Caucasus, the Caspian islands (Cheleken), in Central Asia (Fergana), the Ural-Embe region, etc. World War II (1914), the four largest associations dominated the Baku oil industry: the firm “br. Nobel, the Anglo-Dutch Trust Royal Dutch Shell, the Russian General Oil Corporation Oil, and the financial oil partnership Neft. The total foreign capital invested in the Baku oil business by 1917 was 111 million rubles.

In conclusion, it is necessary to note the great merit of scientists-chemists and engineers: D.I. Mendeleev, K.I. Lisenko, V.V. Markovnikov, F.F. .V.Kharichkova, V.G.Shukhova, N.L.Shchukin, S.K.Kvitko, A.A.Letny, N.I.Voskoboynikova, O.K.Lenz, A.I.Sorokina, P.Semyannikova (the first chairman of the BO IRTS), A.A. Gukhman (a member of the Council of the BO IRTS), V.F. Herr (the head of the chemical laboratory of the BO IRTS) and others who played an invaluable role in the development of the oil industry in Russia, and in particular, Baku.

Azerbaijani scientists (M.M. Khanlarov, M.G. Hajinsky, A. Mirzoev, I. Rzaev, F. Rustambekov, S. Ganbarov, I. Amirov and others), who received higher education in universities in Russia and Europe, worked in the BO IRTS, contributing to the accelerated development of chemical and technical sciences in Azerbaijan.

Bibliography:

1. Ragozin V.I. Oil and oil industry. St. Petersburg, 1884. - 150 p.

2. Big Encyclopedia. St. Petersburg. Publishing Association "Enlightenment", ed. S.N. Yuzhakov. - 1896. - Vol. 12, 14, 22.

3. Akhundov B.Yu. Monopoly capital in the pre-revolutionary Baku oil industry. - M., 1959. - 180 p.

4. Monopoly capital in the Russian oil industry 1914 - 1917. - L.: Nauka, 1973. - 210 p.

5. Nardova V.A. The beginning of the monopolization of the Russian oil industry. L.: "Nauka", 1974. - 150 p.

6. Samedov V.A. Oil and the Russian Economy (80s - 90s of the 19th century). - Baku: Elm. - 1988. - 200 p.

7. Meshkunov V.S. Scientific publishing house biographical international encyclopedia "Humanistics". - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg. book. publishing house, 1998. - 250 p.

8. Mir-Babaev M.F., Fuks I.G. The Nobel brothers and Azerbaijani oil (to the 120th anniversary of the foundation of the company)//Chemistry and technology of fuels and oils. - 1999. - No. 4. - P.51 - 53.

9. Fuks I.G., Matishev V.A., Mir-Babaev M.F. Baku period of activity of the “Nobel Brothers Oil Production Partnership” (on the occasion of the 120th anniversary of its foundation)//Science and technology of hydrocarbons. - 1999. - No. 5. - S. 86 - 94.

10. Mir-Babaev M.F., Fuks I.G., Matishev V.A. Foreign capital in the oil business of Russia (Absheron until 1917)//Science and technology of hydrocarbons. - 2000. - No. 5. - P.75 - 80.

Baku is hosting the XXIV International Exhibition and Conference "Oil and Gas of the Caspian-2017". The event, organized by ITECA Caspian and ITE Group, is an important event for the energy sector of the Caspian region. This year about 300 companies from 30 countries of the world take part in it. Their goal is to discuss with colleagues about the latest in the industry, to study the market situation and to establish new connections.

Over the past 24 years, Caspian Oil and Gas 2017 has been recognized as a platform for establishing reliable business relations, conclusion of important contracts and successfully implemented projects. This oil and gas forum brings together senior managers of leading companies, as well as representatives of line ministries and reputable subject matter experts, providing them with an opportunity to exchange views on topical issues in the development of this industry.

On the eve of the opening of the XXIV International Exhibition and the conference "Oil and Gas of the Caspian Sea-2017" was attended by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and First Lady Mehriban Aliyeva. In his speech, the head of state noted that today Azerbaijan is recognized in the world as a reliable partner that produces and exports oil and gas to the markets. Talking about the path covered over 24 years, during which various energy projects were successfully implemented, the President also shared his future plans. “Today we are thinking about the further activity of the giant Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli oil field, and I hope that in the near future we will come to an agreement with foreign investors on the extension of this project. "Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli" has a huge potential, there is still quite a lot of unproduced oil. At present, the start of work on the Greater Absheron project is next in line. In fact, work has already begun. In 2-3 years, we expect the first gas from the Absheron project - gas reserves there are approximately 350 billion cubic meters. In addition, the Umid-Babek and Dayaz Sulu projects are being implemented in parallel. We are strengthening our oil and gas potential and plan to export natural gas and oil in even greater volumes,” Ilham Aliyev said.

The head of state spoke about the continuation of work on the second phase of the development of the Shah Deniz project and at what stage the pipeline projects are. “The Southern Gas Corridor is a unique project on a global scale, the first among infrastructure projects in the European space. The implementation of the Shah Deniz-2 project is at the level of 93 percent. Soon we will send to the sea and the upper part of the Shah Deniz platform. The implementation of the South Caucasus pipeline is at the level of 85 percent. This pipeline connects Azerbaijan with Georgia. The TANAP project, the contract for which was signed in 2012, is being successfully implemented. The implementation of the TANAP project is at the level of 72 percent. We expect that in next year we note the commissioning of the TANAP project. The fourth project is TAP. The level of execution there is 42 percent. That is, these figures in themselves are an indicator. They show that all work is going according to plan, and we are approaching the completion of the implementation of the Southern Gas Corridor project,” the President noted.

Over the past 24 years, energy projects implemented by Azerbaijan have also received support from the United States. Robin Dunnigan, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Diplomacy, arrived in Baku to participate in the next oil forum and read out a congratulatory message from President Donald Trump. “I appreciate the partnership that the US and Azerbaijan have built over the past quarter century and look forward to its continued growth. The US remains firmly committed to the Southern Gas Corridor and welcomes the efforts of Azerbaijan and its international partners to implement this project. I highly appreciate Azerbaijan's important role in global energy security, including the development and export of energy resources from the Caspian region. We support and welcome Azerbaijan's efforts to diversify the economy and look forward to developing bilateral cooperation in new areas. The US stands ready to work with you as you continue to pursue economic and political reforms. The United States hopes that prosperity and stability will grow in Azerbaijan, and this conference and the Southern Gas Corridor project are important to achieve these goals,” Trump said in a statement.

Azerbaijan's energy projects have attracted the attention of the European Union as well. In his video message to the exhibition participants, the Vice President of the European Commission for the Energy Union, Maros Shefcovic, noted that Azerbaijan is one of the most important partners of Europe. “Azerbaijan is trying to achieve its goals by implementing the Southern Gas Corridor, creating favorable conditions for the strategic diversification of its energy sources by the European Union, making an important contribution to maintaining geopolitical balance and stability in Europe. Today we are absolutely sure that by 2020 Azerbaijani gas will reach Europe. This is a fairly large-scale project. That is why it has taken an important place on our agenda within a tangible time frame. Azerbaijan's pipeline projects have attracted the common interest of the European Union and have been included in the list of important projects,” said Maros Shefcovic.

The international exhibition and conference "Oil and gas of the Caspian Sea-2017" will last three days. During this time, the exhibitors will get acquainted with the stands of companies that, along with oil production and energy transportation systems, will also present a wide range of equipment, services and innovative technologies on maintenance. Thus, a number of expositions are devoted to technologies for fuel purification and production finished products for the use of raw materials. A significant area here is occupied by companies offering raw materials for the chemical industry.

The American company "Pioneer engineering" is engaged in maintenance of oilfield equipment. According to company manager James Gat, Pioneer engineering's clients are BP and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan. “We are participating in this exhibition for the first time and we want to find new potential customers here. Our company already has branches in Dubai, Iraq and Malaysia. The experience of participation in international projects, of course, has a positive trend, contributes to the growth of professionalism. In a short period of time, just four months, the company received several very prestigious certificates, which confirm high quality of our equipment,” said Gat.

Global EnergyAzerbaijan is one of the largest oil producing enterprises in the country. It includes five local companies that are engaged in oil production on land. “We intend to tell the exhibitors about the holding’s promising areas of activity, we will present to visitors the entire range of our professional developments. The Oil and Gas exhibition provides an opportunity not only to demonstrate your technologies and services, but also to establish interesting and useful business contacts,” said Khadija Babayeva, Assistant to the President of Global EnergyAzerbaijan.

Among the exhibitors are the world's leading oil companies, at the stands of which you can get acquainted with the projects they are implementing. Thus, BP, which has been operating in Azerbaijan for many years, has been implementing world-class projects in partnership with the government of Azerbaijan. Having turned the Caspian Sea into a modern hydrocarbon production region, it has made a significant contribution to the development of the industry. Another traditional partner of the country is the French company Total. Having signed an agreement with the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan on the share division of production in the Absheron block, the company carried out drilling operations and revealed sufficient hydrocarbon reserves. Total is also a shareholder in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline, which provides export opportunities for oil production in the region.

While the exhibitions showcase the latest developments and projects in the energy sector, the Caspian Oil and Gas 2017 conference discusses topical issues in the oil and gas industry. Over 40 speakers, including leading experts, representatives of government agencies, heads of major oil and gas companies from different countries the world will make presentations on key issues of production, management and diversification of energy resources transportation.

Postcard from 1863. “Balakhany, from where oil was delivered to the Baku oil refineries in wineskins and barrels, transported on carts and by pack.”

Baku oil and gas region- the largest region in terms of production, oil and gas reserves in the Russian Empire, the Azerbaijan SSR, and then on the territory of modern Azerbaijan. The oil fields of the region are located within the South Caspian oil and gas basin, on the territory of the Apsheron Peninsula and the adjacent waters of the Caspian Sea.

Industrial development began in the last third of the 19th century. Since 1870, more than 2 billion tons of oil have been produced. Here, for the first time in the USSR, the development of oil in the sea was started. There are over 80 oil and gas fields in the Baku oil and gas region. Main fields: Shah Deniz, Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli, Oil Rocks, Bakharskoe, Sangachali-sea, Bibi-Heybat, Surakhani, Karachukhur, Karadag.

Story

First in the world oil well with a positive result, a depth of 21 m was drilled in 1846 near the city of Baku (Bibi-Heybat); while the Americans drilled an oil well only in 1859 in Pennsylvania. The work on Bibi-Heybat was carried out under the leadership of the director of the Baku industries, Major Alekseev.

Chronology of oil production in the territory of the current Baku oil and gas region:

• 1837 - one of the first oil refineries in the Russian Empire was founded in the village of Balakhani under the leadership of Voskoboynikov.
• 1842 - according to one of the regulations of the Mining Regulations, oil produced as a result of drilling in the territory of the Absheron Peninsula was transferred to the state treasury.

Mining during the USSR

In the Caspian Sea, in the city, the Gyurgyany-Sea field was discovered, in the city - Oil Rocks, in the city - Darwin Bank. The largest field was Oil Rocks, which came into operation in the city. It was located 50 km from the coast, at sea depths from 6 to 27 m.