PARTEX OIL AND GAS

The Partex Oil and Gas Group has been instrumental in the development of the international oil and gas industry through its presence in the historical oil concessions of the Middle East. Its founder, Calouste Gulbenkian, a descendant of an illustrious Armenian family, was a pioneer of the exploration and development of the oil fields in the Middle East. In 1928, after laborious negotiations in which Calouste Gulbenkian played an influential role, the shares of the Turkish Petroleum Company (today Iraq Petroleum Company) were divided into four oil companies: Anglo-Persian Oil Co. (now BP), Royal Dutch-Shell Group, Compagnie Francaise des Pétroles (now TOTAL), and Near East Development Company (now ExxonMobil).

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An understanding of the Partex Oil and Gas Group starts with the Founder, Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian, and continues with the the foundation which inherited his oil interests, the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation.

Calouste Sarkis Gulbenkian may justly be considered one of the creators of the world oil industry. He was born in Scutari (now Üsküdar), Istanbul, on 23rd March 1869, the son of Sarkis and Dirouhie Gulbenkian, members of an illustrious Armenian family.

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In 1928, the signature of the Red Line Agreement and the confirmation of the shareholding participations of the Turkish Petroleum Company (TPC) marked the consolidation of Calouste Gulbenkian’s firm involvement in the oil industry in the region. TPC then changed its name to Iraq Petroleum Company.

A decade later, in June 1938, Calouste Gulbenkian decided to incorporate his assets in the oil business in a Company that he created in Panama: Participations and Explorations Corporation. The name of the Group – PARTEX – originates from the name of this Company.

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