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'File 38/3 II P. C. L. Qatar Concession' [‎101r] (201/336)

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The record is made up of 1 file (166 folios). It was created in 21 May 1947-7 Oct 1949. 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. .

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Confidential
PETROLEUM DEVELOPMENT (QATAR) LTD.
Memorandum
From: Company Representative,
Doha.
Mail Div: Liaison.
Subject: Security Jebel Wakara
To: Liaison Officer, Dukhan.
Memo No.P/16/103
Date 22nd July, 1949.
The C.E. department Umm Said intend re-commencing
operations upon the erection of a beacon upon Jebel Wakara.
Work is due to start tomorrow morning July 23rd.
Upon receipt of request for guards I instructed the
Emir at Umm Said to provide two guards for a probable duration
of five days. Camp Boss Umm Said would arrange for a tent and
rations.
Upon learning the destination of the guards the Emir at
first refused to provide them saying thatlhe was responsible for
Umm Said area only. He then added the pleasing information that
even if they were ordered to go he doubted if they would do so.
He suggested that as the affair was between the Ruler and Shaikh
Saud of Wakara the former should provide some from his own body guard.
I informed him that the work emanated from Umm Said and that
the guards must come from him. At last he grudgingly agreed but
added that they were only responsible for prevention of thefts.
I informed him that they and he wculd be held responsible for any
form of interference to Company property.
Saleh states that he has replied to the Company on the matter
and appears to consider that it is no longer any business of his
but rather the concern of the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. .
Since I understand the Company are now only erecting a single
wooden telegraph pole the erection may this time be achieved without
incident. Shaikh Saoud's previous objection was that after stating
we were going to erect only one beacon we actually erected four
although each one of the four combined to make the one beacon.
I will go to Wakara early on the morning of July 22nd and
contact Shaikh Sauds representative there and inform him that we are
erecting yet another beacon on Jebel Wakara.
The local population were completely unaware of the presence
of one of H.M. Ships off the coast on the 13th inst. I had it
reported to me about that time that some noises of explosions
had been heard out to sea but I nor I feel, any of the locals
imagined that it had any particular significance.
Even if this construction passes without incident it will not
be a guarantee of immunity for the Company for any future operations.
It will exist as a running s^ore until the Ruler makes his own
settlement.
(Sgd.) Tirbutt
c.c. Terminal Supdt.
cpd/ACM

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Content

The volume contains correspondence relating to the work of Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited, a subsidiary of Petroleum Concessions Limited, in Qatar. The correspondence is principally between the Political Agent A mid-ranking political representative (equivalent to a Consul) from the diplomatic corps of the Government of India or one of its subordinate provincial governments, in charge of a Political Agency. in Bahrain, the Political Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. in Bahrain [ Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. Political Residency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, established in the provinces and regions considered part of, or under the influence of, British India. ], representatives of Petroleum Concessions Limited (at their offices in Bahrain and the United Kingdom) and Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited, the Foreign Office, the 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. , the Government of India, the Senior Naval Officer in the Persian Gulf The historical term used to describe the body of water between the Arabian Peninsula and Iran. , the Staff Liaison Officer (RAF) in Bahrain, and the ruler of Qatar, Abdulla bin Qasim al Thani [‘Abdullāh bin Qāsim Āl Thānī].

The papers contained in the file cover the following matters:

  • use of certain radio frequencies by Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited;
  • jurisdiction of the Shaikh of Qatar over non-Qatari and non-British subjects in his country;
  • employment of foreign nationals, including Iranian drivers and mechanics, Palestinian welders and other technicians, and Hungarians and Romanians;
  • employment of the Lebanese firm Contracting and Trading Company to recruit skilled labour;
  • use of the telegraphic address PETROQAT QATAR by Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited;
  • the provision of meat for workers in the field;
  • the extent of the Qatar concession, specifically if it covers its waters and islands;
  • interference in the erection of navigational buoys by Su'aad bin Abdur Rehman Al-Thani, Shaikh of Wakrah;
  • advance payment of concession royalties to Shaikh ‘Abdullāh of Qatar;
  • the Shaikh of Bahrain's claims on Zubarah 18th-century town located 105 km from Doha. .

Folios 155-66 are internal office notes.

Extent and format
1 file (166 folios)
Arrangement

The file is arranged chronologically.

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. An additional foliation sequence is also present in parallel between ff 2-152; these numbers are also written in pencil, but are not circled, and are located in the same position as the main sequence.

Written in
English and Arabic in Latin and Arabic script
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'File 38/3 II P. C. L. Qatar Concession' [‎101r] (201/336), British Library: India Office Records and Private Papers, IOR/R/15/2/865, in Qatar Digital Library <https://www.qdl.qa/archive/81055/vdc_100025667477.0x000002> [accessed 29 March 2024]

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