Petroleum industry

The petroleum industry includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transporting (often by oil tankers and pipelines), and marketing petroleum products. The largest volume products of the industry are fuel oil and gasoline (petrol). Petroleum (oil) is also the raw material for many chemical products, including pharmaceuticals, solvents, fertilizers, pesticides, and plastics. The industry is usually divided into three major components: upstream, midstream and downstream. Midstream operations are usually included in the downstream category.

Petroleum is vital to many industries, and is of importance to the maintenance of industrial civilization in its current configuration, and thus is a critical concern for many nations. Oil accounts for a large percentage of the world’s energy consumption, ranging from a low of 32% for Europe and Asia, to a high of 53% for the Middle East.

Other geographic regions' consumption patterns are as follows: South and Central America (44%), Africa (41%), and North America (40%). The world consumes 30 billion barrels (4.8 km³) of oil per year, with developed nations being the largest consumers. The United States consumed 25% of the oil produced in 2007. The production, distribution, refining, and retailing of petroleum taken as a whole represents the world's largest industry in terms of dollar value.

Fossil fuel

Fossil fuels are fuels formed by natural processes such as anaerobic decomposition of buried dead organisms. The age of the organisms and their resulting fossil fuels is typically millions of years, and sometimes exceeds 650 million years. Fossil fuels contain high percentages of carbon and include coal, petroleum and natural gas. Other more commonly used derivatives of fossil fuels include kerosene and propane. They range from volatile materials with low carbon:hydrogen ratios like methane, to liquid petroleum to nonvolatile materials composed of almost pure carbon, like anthracite coal. Methane can be found in hydrocarbon fields, alone, associated with oil, or in the form of methane clathrates. The theory that fossil fuels formed from the fossilized remains of dead plants by exposure to heat and pressure in the Earth's crust over millions of years (see biogenic theory) was first introduced by Georg Agricola in 1556 and later by Mikhail Lomonosov in the 18th century.

The Energy Information Administration estimates that in 2007 the primary sources of energy consisted of petroleum 36.0%, coal 27.4%, natural gas 23.0%, amounting to an 86.4% share for fossil fuels in primary energy consumption in the world. Non-fossil sources in 2006 included hydroelectric 6.3%, nuclear 8.5%, and others (geothermal, solar, tidal, wind, wood, waste) amounting to 0.9%. World energy consumption was growing about 2.3% per year.

World

World is a common name for the whole of human civilization, specifically human experience, history, or the human condition in general, worldwide, i.e. anywhere on Earth or pertaining to anywhere on Earth.

In a philosophical context it may refer to:

In a theological context, world usually refers to the material or the profane sphere, as opposed to the celestial, spiritual, transcendent or sacred. The "end of the world" refers to scenarios of the final end of human history, often in religious contexts.

World history is commonly understood as spanning the major geopolitical developments of about five millennia, from the first civilizations to the present.

World population is the sum of all human populations at any time; similarly, world economy is the sum of the economies of all societies (all countries), especially in the context of globalization. Terms like world championship, gross world product, world flags etc. also imply the sum or combination of all current-day sovereign states.

Kuwait Oil Company

The Kuwait Oil Company (KOC) is an oil company headquartered in Ahmadi, Kuwait. It is a subsidiary of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation, a Government-owned holding company. Kuwait was world's 10th largest petroleum and other liquids producer in 2013, and fifth-largest exporter in terms of volume of crude oil and condensates. The managing director of the company is Hashim Sayd Hashim.

History

The Kuwait Oil Company was founded in 1934 by Anglo-Persian Oil Company and Gulf Oil as an equally owned partnership. The oil concession rights were awarded to the company on 23 December 1934 and the company started drilling operations in 1936. First oil was discovered in 1938 in Burgan field, followed by discoveries in Magwa in 1951, Ahmadi in 1952, Raudhatain in 1955, Sabriya in 1957, and Minagish in 1959.

The initial development of the oil industry coincided with the end of the British Raj in India and many British and Indian administrators and engineers transferred from there to Kuwait. The oil town of Ahmadi was set up to house these workers, and was segregated on racial lines. Such segregation continued in the amenities and recreational facilities offered to company employees. Race to a large extent dictated the status of employees and conditions of employment within the company.

Saudi Aramco

Saudi Aramco (Arabic: أرامكو السعودية‎ ʾArāmkō s-Saʿūdiyyah), officially the Saudi Arabian Oil Company, most popularly known just as Aramco (formerly Arabian-American Oil Company) is a Saudi Arabian national petroleum and natural gas company based in Dhahran. Saudi Aramco's value has been estimated at anywhere between US$1.25 trillion and US$10 trillion, making it the world's most valuable company.

Saudi Aramco has both the world's largest proven crude oil reserves, at more than 260 billion barrels (4.1×10¹⁰ m³), and largest daily oil production. Saudi Aramco owns, operates and develops all energy resources based in Saudi Arabia. According to 2015 Forbes report, Aramco is said to be the world's largest oil and gas company.

Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco operates the world's largest single hydrocarbon network, the Master Gas System. Its 2013 crude oil production total was 3.4 billion barrels (540,000,000 m³), and it manages over 100 oil and gas fields in Saudi Arabia, including 288.4 trillion standard cubic feet (scf) of natural gas reserves. Saudi Aramco operates the Ghawar Field, the world's largest onshore oil field, and the Safaniya Field, the world's largest offshore oil field.