German Petroleum Supplies

[gabriel pagliarani]

Extremely interesting consideration, MarkV! Standard Oil was the 1st American Company to be downed by mean of Anti-Trust Federal Laws a lot of time before Du Pont de Nemours/General Motors super-trust during '50 and the actual Microsoft legal cut. So"IG Farben= rednecks" in a nazi european monopolistic environment...the probability of a "simple waste of time" originated by USAAFE H.Q. in bombing IG Farben is reduced to zero.

[Redbaron1908]

As far as I know ( I haven't studied this...) from about 1942 on Germany produced most of its petrol ( and oil ? ) from coal, of which they had vast reserves.
Question for the present time ?..........
I live in Australia, which has huge coal reserves, as does USA,England, Canada...and many others, Why not produce petrol from coal ?
Not economic ?, but I bet it soon will be.....


Dave Moffitt

not to go off the subject but i think if contries with high coal resources like the us starting making sintetic fuel it would not last forever i believe that people should start looking more into hydrogen powered cars they work very well the germans have beeen testing them the only problem is that there is a high risk of fire with hydrogen the good thing is that there are basically endless suplies

[Andy H]

To qoute from Overlord by Max Hastings

"In May'44 Spaatz began attacking Germany's synthetic oil plants. Employing only 11.6% of his bomber force in June, 17% in July and 16.4% in August, he brought about a fall in German oil production from 927,000tons in March to 715,000 in May, and 472,000 in June. Luftwaffe aviation fuel dropped from 180,000 tons in April to 50,000 in June and down to 10,000 tons in August"

Andy from the Shire

[ravensclaw]

Apologies for not getting back earlier but I've had bush fires to worry about.

I can't remember my source specifically for that bit of trivia but between dodging fires I did a little research. As a fair point I'll remember to do this for future statements I make on this forum.

The vague stuff:
I can't remember the tv documentary but it was regarding Secrets of WWII (allied doco). It covered spys, enigma code cracking, misinformation on allied Euro landing etc. The doco stated that at the end of 1939 germany had a surplus (excess) of oil. English spys established a fake US organisation dealing in Imports/Exports of commodities. The company purchased the oil (legitimately and for the asking price) and once it was received in the US was immediately shipped to England where it was used in the war effort against Germany.

As far as the blockade goes the doco did not cover this and I don't know much about it generally. Ask me the name of the doco and I simply can't tell you.

What I have found out. From a knowledgeable source at the Australian War Memorial.

Some merchant/freight ships successfully breached the blockade. Few tried though. Germany continued trading with the US right up to US involvement in the war. This was mostly done with foreign freighters from neutral countries e.g. spain.

[gabriel pagliarani]

Thanks, Andy!
From your infos, 3 months only of strategic bombings in Mid 44 on IG Farben simply halved the reaction of Luftwaffe....extremely impressive! But what a loss for "rednecks' interests" in Germany!

[Andy H]

But what a loss for "rednecks' interests" in Germany!

Not sure what your point is here-sorry

Andy from the Shire

[varjag]

Ravensclaw - for heavens sake get back to those bushfires if you're anywhere near the ACT or the Snowies - we here in Australia have a 'mini-Dresden' on our hands - and the 'storm-troopers' are our gallant and skilled Bushfirebrigaders defending in an inferno - not sighted since Capt. James Cook planted the Union Jack on these shores.
As for blockade-breaking - yes, there was plenty of it - but 98% was homeward bound - I think u have copped another of those TV docu's that sound ever so authentic - but contain little fact - but PLENTY of advertising.
Now back to those fires mate - Varjag

[gabriel pagliarani]

To qoute from Overlord by Max Hastings

"In May'44 Spaatz began attacking Germany's synthetic oil plants. Employing only 11.6% of his bomber force in June, 17% in July and 16.4% in August, he brought about a fall in German oil production from 927,000tons in March to 715,000 in May, and 472,000 in June. Luftwaffe aviation fuel dropped from 180,000 tons in April to 50,000 in June and down to 10,000 tons in August"

Andy from the Shire

Simply the figures you showed, Andy. These performances could be exploited during 1943 shortening 1 year WW2 and saving at least 5 millions lives (...not only Nazi-lives!) But nobody could be able in demonstrating definitively that Standard Oil was the real hidden owner of any portion of IG Farben in order to avoid the "care" of American Anti-Trust Legal Power. This kind of hidden "oligopoles" are absolutely illegal at very today, and Standard Oil (originally owned by Rotschild Jew family, was hit during '20s and '30s by Anti -Trust and split in the "7 sisters" actual accomodation better known as "rednecks") So I cannot ask for you further evidences about this argument, one of the most hidden secrets of WW2, but some details like the yours have the value of evidences powered by themselves. WW2 was pretty an industrial war inside the western economy and finance had an heavy weight in it. +
I am thinking to bushfires menacing Varjag: I hope you'll never be damaged in any case.