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'File 4/14 I Bahrain Development' [14r] (27/344)
The record is made up of 1 file (172 folios). It was created in 23 Dec 1937-12 Sep 1945. It was written in English and Arabic. The original is part of the British Library: India Office The department of the British Government to which the Government of India reported between 1858 and 1947. The successor to the Court of Directors. Records and Private Papers Documents collected in a private capacity. .
Transcription
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At about the same time the California Standard Company* s senior
geologist was in Bahrain and enquired whether cement was made
here, and it not why not* These two remarks led to the thought
that it might be possible to manufacture cement in Bahrain, and
I have had some discussion on this matter with Thornburg. Broadly
speaking there are, I gather, three main requisites — fuel,
limestone and clay. In Bahrain we have unlimited fuel -- the
waste gases from the oil which are burnt off at present | we have
unlimited quantities of limestone, though we should want to know
something of its relative purity; and there is clay, used by the
potters of ’All. We do not know how extensive the clay beds are,
but I have suggested to Belgrave that he might be able to borrow
or hire a geologist from the Oil Company to make a rough survey
of the (more or less) surface clay deposits. If these are ade
quate then it seems highly probable that a most profitable indus
try can be started. I think it is uncommon for the three main
requisites to be found located - practically free - in so small
an area, and this factor should go a long way to ensuring that
Bahrain can manufacture cement at highly competitive prices.
The demand of course exists, and though the Bahrain Petroleum
Company may not require so much cement in future, certainly the
California Arabian Company will be using thousands of tons;
probably Petroleum Concessions Limited would be a big purchaser;
Abadan (which I think uses Japanese cement at present) might be
a good customer if we can disguise origin; and Iraq with its
irrigation projects and so om should be a most valuable customer.
All this of course depends on Bahrain being able to produce a
really high grade Portland cement at a competitive price.
3. If once one industry is started others can get going also.
I still think that the mother-of-pearl button Industry is a
possibility, but this would depend to a great extent on India
giving Bahrain a preferential customs rate. I think I am right
in saying that pearl buttons in India are almost a Japanese
monopoly /-
About this item
- Content
This file contains correspondence between British officials regarding an expansion of government administration in Bahrain that had been made possible by an increased level of oil revenue being received by the state. The correspondence discusses the intended direction of this expansion, the state's investment policy, a number of possible economic development projects in Bahrain and the condition of the country's water resources.
The file contains two reports written by officials of the Bahrain Petroleum Company (BAPCO) regarding the possibility of manufacturing cement in Bahrain (ff 35-39 and ff 48-51), as well as a report entitled 'Water Resources of Bahrain' that was also written by a BAPCO official (ff 58-66). A report on BAPCO's water supply at Zellaq is also included in the file (ff 86-92) , this report contains a map on folio 92 that is entitled 'Sketch Map showing Approximate Position of Drainage Ditches Carrying Surplus Irrigation Water to Sea.'
The file also contains extracts from a Memorandum entitled 'Water Resources of Bahrein Island' by Mr. Max Steineke of the Californian Arabian Standard Oil Company (ff 112-116).
A number of letters in Arabic from Shaikh Ḥamad bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah, the ruler of Bahrain, to British officials are contained throughout the file.
- Extent and format
- 1 file (172 folios)
- Physical characteristics
Foliation: the main foliation sequence (used for referencing) commences at the front cover and terminates at the back cover; these numbers are written in pencil, are circled, and are located in the top right corner of the recto The front of a sheet of paper or leaf, often abbreviated to 'r'. side of each folio. Two additional foliation sequences are also present in parallel between ff 2-12 and ff 13-158 respectively; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence. A previous foliation sequence, which is also circled, has been superseded and therefore crossed out.
- Written in
- English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script View the complete information for this record
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'File 4/14 I Bahrain Development' [14r] (27/344), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/207, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100025648598.0x00001c> [accessed 18 April 2024]
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Copyright: How to use this content
- Reference
- IOR/R/15/2/207
- Title
- 'File 4/14 I Bahrain Development'
- Pages
- front, front-i, 2r:30v, 32r:45v, 51v:56v, 66v:74v, 76r:81v, 83r:86r, 92v:99v, 101r:102v, 107r:108v, 110r:110v, 117r:119v, 121r:121v, 123r:124v, 127r:129v, 131r:154v, 158r:171v, back-i, back
- Author
- East India Company, the Board of Control, the India Office, or other British Government Department
- Usage terms
- Open Government Licence