'Oil Concessions' [‎200r] (408/734)

0aB ii41ftii lnt#r«8t» with a vim to finding sufficient
capital to finance proapecting operations in Batorfin
(if the final geological reports proved favourable)
anfi ultimate coraEeroial development. In this they were
baapered hyan agreemaat concluded between the mrioue
interests participating in the Turkish fetroleum which
ae^arred any one constituent group froat taking up a
oono^seion within an area so defined «© as to include
Bahrein, haoa etc., without previously offering that
eon cession to the Turkish Petrol »um ^ owpany as a wbole.
the American group with whom the syndicate were negotiating
in regard to participation in Bahrein was a the
Turkish Petroleum Company and consequently could not act
independently of that Coapanyl It was therefore possible
that the latter Company wight in fact acquired an interest
in the Bahrein concession. On Veing asked whether it wae
anticipated, if the present negotiations with the American
group were successful, the preponderance of capital would
American, Mr. .Sanson said that such would he the case.
Eis own Syndicate had already ©scpended sone <£6(1,000 on
exploratory work in Bahrein and could not hmselves find
the ®oney to finance prospecting and develo^raeaat. 'fhey had
tried to obtain Snglish capital for the purpose without
success and they had now to loofe to America. Mr. Janson
admitted that, if the capital were preponderantly Ainerican,
the real control would also pass into American hands, bj&t
that the Eastern and General Syndicate would presumably
be kept alive in some form as the nominal concessionaires,
iis did not conceal the fact, however, that the British
Company would %e the raerest facade %thind. which the Ameri can
group would pull timstrings, and that the concession would
probably pass either into the virtual control of the Turkish
^•troleuo Company or into that of an American group of
that Company. Mr# Sanson was reminded that unoer the terms
of