244 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1940 



discovered in 1928, and during recent years other discoveries at Gach 

 Saran, "Wliite Oil Springs, and Agha Jari have been registered. 

 These new discoveries are required to maintain production and to 

 offset the gradual decline of the older fields. Oil-field discovery 

 in Iran is rendered particularly difficult by the unusually complicated 

 geologic conditions, and a large program of geologic, aerial, and 

 geophysical surveys is continuously required. 



Hitherto the oil production of Iran has been confined to these 

 southern regions, but it is well known that oil indications and pos- 

 sibilities exist in the northern Provinces of the country. Five years 

 ago an extensive concession in northern and eastern Iran was ac- 

 quired by an American company and several years were occupied 

 in preliminary geologic investigations. In the end however it was 

 concluded that, although oil possibilities undoubtedly exist, the ex- 

 pectation of quantity in view of the remoteness of seaboard did not 

 make oil export economically possible at the present time, and the con- 

 cession was relinquished. During 1939 a Dutch company acquired 

 a concession for minerals and for oil exploration over certain areas 

 in central Iran. 



KUWEIT, BAHREIN, ARABIAN COAST, QATAR PENINSULxV, AND SOUTHERN 



ARABIA 



Drilling has been carried out at Kuweit for several years, and after 

 an initial failure success was registered in 1937. Further wells are 

 now being drilled, but as yet the extent of the oil field has not been 

 determined. The operating company is under joint British and 

 American control. 



An important oil field has been developed by American interests 

 on Bahrein Island, and its current production is approximately 1 

 million tons per year. The island itself is formed by a single anti- 

 cline, so that in this case there is no expectation of other similar oil 

 fields within the limits of Bahrein territory. A refinery has been 

 erected on the island and a marine loading terminal serves ocean- 

 going tankers. 



Important concessions of considerable size in Saudi Arabia are 

 also held by American interests, and a number of exploration wells 

 have already been drilled in the Hasa Province. So far one oil field 

 has been discovered at Dammam and is now beginning regular pro- 

 duction and export. An oil well accidentally caught fire last summer 

 and was prominently reported in our press. 



The Petroleum Concessions, Ltd., a subsidiary company of the Iraq 

 Petroleum Co., hold a concession for the Qatar Peninsula, which lies 

 east of the Bahrein Island. Geologic surveys have been in progress 

 for some years and an exploration well is at present being drilled. 



