frem Julian Atkinson
The director of the big American company, Gulf Oil Corporation, met in Lisbon recently. Gulf Oil works in Angola and MoZambique through its subsidiaries, Cabinda Gulf 0il and Mogambique Gulf Oil The chairman, Mr. E. D. Brockett, met Salazar and the 'President' of the Republic. The Overseas and Finance Ministers were also at the meeting with some other members of the Portuguese Government. These personal contacts between the Gulf Oil Chairman and key figures cf the dictatorship, indicate the importance attached by Gulf Oil to the oil resources of the two major Portuguese colonies. Becauso of growing instability in the Middle East the oil consortiums are looking for other sources of supply, and governments, like Salazar's, which are docile to their interests, and will enable them to gain control of these new oil fields. Without giving details, Mr. Brockett made the point at his press conference that good results had been attained in Angola and Mozambique. The Review ‘Marches Tropicaux et Mediterraneens' believes that Cabinda (Angola) resources are of the same 2s Nigeria's (Vida Mundial, Lisbon 18.8.67). Gulf Oil Corporation had a total net profit of nearly #300 million US for the first six months of 1967. Prices of petrol and fuel oil have recently been raised in Portugal, because, it is said, of the closure of the Suez Canal.