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Friday, May 3, 2019

The Saudi Aramco Page And The North Dakota Connection -- May 3, 2019

Saudi oil: mentioned in passing the other day without a link, we now have a link -- top oil buyers (Asia, China) want more Saudi crude oil -- Bloomberg.

Cocktail party trivia: quick! Name the North Dakota geologist who went on to become the CEO of Saudi Aramco back in the day. The amazing things that I find out from my readers. Clues (and spoiler alert, answer):
  • born in Minneapolis, MN, 1909 (about the time my grandfather emigrated from Norway)
  • grew up in Linton, ND
  • graduated from UND
  • degree in mining and metallurgy, 1931
  • accepted a job as a surveyor in Saudi Arabia for Standard Oil; interviewed with the company's chief geologist, 1937
  • three years, explored potential oil sites in Saudi Arabia
  • Ghawar field discovered by: this gentleman from ND; Ernie Berg; Max Steineke, along with Bedouin trackers
  • 32-year career with Aramco
  • fluent in Arabic; key "element" in the company's relationship with the Saudi government
  • 1961: appointed Saudi Aramco's CEO
  • 1969: retired
  • 1986: age 77; died, San Diego
  • Answer: Thomas Barger
But there's more: quick! name the North Dakota farmboy who grew up in Regent, North Dakota, and went on to become CEO of Saudi Aramco back in the day. Clues (and spoiler alert, answer):
  • he wrote a book, available on Amazon, c. 2014
  • the title of the book: The Caravan Goes On
  • spend three decades in Saudi Arabia: 1947 - 1978
  • tenure coincided with the Arab-Israeli war; the dramatic oil price increases of the 1970s, the Arab oil embargo and the OPEC hostage incident of 1975
  • joined Aramco in 1947;
  • hired out of college from the University of Washington where Aramco was hiring for Arabia 
  • degree in Mechanical Engineering, 1947
  • recipient of the University of Washington's Diamond Awards of the Deans Awards, 2016
  • for answer, see video below
Frank Jungers

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