'File 39/23 I Negotiations for seabed oil in Bahrain, Trucial Coast and Qatar' [‎29r] (57/66)

P2/9/49.
Secret.
Agency An office of the East India Company and, later, of the British Raj, headed by an agent. . Sharjah
8 March. 49.
Will you please refer to your telegram no 20 of 4 th Ma*ch
regarding Sea bed oil.
On 5th March, I ssv Veightman and had a short discussion vith
him and his American colleague. I promised to arrange transportfes
far as possible, warning them that this would prove difficult
owing to the fact that I also was providing vehicles for a party
of surveyors going to Muscat, and that this would cause a shortage
of good vehicles locally.
3. Weightman informed me that whilst Superior Oil Co was American
and was registered in Los Angeles, the proposed company which wou
-Id exploit any possible concession would have a British element
(Central Mining) vtfiose degree of participation would depend on
the extent of Dollar expenditure necessary for the development
of the oil field. The larger the dollar expenditure of the prop
Y^sed company, the greater the American share in it.
4. On 6th and 7th March, I was in Abu Dhabi where I spoke to
the Ruler alone on the lines already indicated by you in your
unnumbered manuscript letter of 3rd March.(Your suggestion that
I should prepare a ’set piece}with the Aid of a dictionary,
proved most helpful, and I am reasonably happy that Shakhbut got
a fair picture of the position). He was characteristically
reasonable about the whole matter and seemed to understand the
somewhat delicate position.I think he is sufficiently afraid of
extravag-nt claims by Qatar or others"xo betray any confidences.
He is also on his best behaviour now 'that the border with Dubai
is under arbitration. ^ j
5. He seemed anxious lest his refusal tb give Weightman a de• ini
-te answer on 10 March might fee cause him to sheer off ' never to
return. I assured him that the proposed discussions of 10th March
would not be the only ones, that Weightman would understand
position and would no doubt be willing to return when K.M.G. had
clarified the situation regarding extension of- jurisdiction. He
seemed fairly happy about this eventually and expressed a wish to
see Bertram Thomas at some future time. I promised to p^ss this
6. The whole question of sea bed drilling came as no surprise to
him, as he had read of the development of the technique and was
cxDecting to be approached about it. He is also intelligent
to realise'that he cannot entend his jurisdiction without
"^This^etter has not>of coursei heen handled by the Office,hut
'alkeejing a copy vhich I will hand over to my successor
C.J. relly Ssq 0 .B.E,
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. Bahrain.