Oil and Gas Companies

Saudi Aramco is the state-owned national oil company of Saudi Arabia. It is the largest oil corporation in the world with the largest proven crude oil reserves and production. Headquartered in Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, Saudi Aramco also operates the world's largest single hydrocarbon network, the Master Gas System. It was known as just Aramco between the years of 1933-1988, an acronym for Arabian American Oil Company.
As of the end of 2006, its yearly production of only crude oil neared 3.4 billion barrels (540,000,000 m3) and it managed over 100 oil and gas fields in Saudi Arabia totaling at least 264 billion barrels (4.20×1010 m3) of oil reserves and 253 quadrillion scf of gas reserves.Among those fields fully owned by the company is the Ghawar Field, the world's largest oil field; the Safaniya Field, the world's largest offshore field; and the Shaybah Field, one of the world's largest of its kind. It is thought to be by far the world's most profitable company.
Saudi Aramco dates back to May 29, 1933, when the Government of Saudi Arabia signed a concessionary agreement with Standard Oil of California (Socal) allowing them to explore Saudi Arabia for oil. Standard Oil of California passed this concession to a wholly-owned subsidiary called California-Arabian Standard Oil Co. (Casoc). In 1936 with the company having no success at locating oil, the Texas Oil Company purchased a 50% stake of the concession..
After a long search for oil that lasted around four years without success, the first success came with the seventh drill site in Dammam, an area located a few miles north of Dhahran in 1938, a well referred to as Dammam number 7. The discovery of this well, which immediately produced over 1,500 barrels per day (240 m³/d), gave the company the confidence to continue and flourish. The company name was changed in 1944 from California-Arabian Standard Oil Company to Arabian American Oil Company (or Aramco). In 1948 Standard Oil of California and the Texas Oil Company were joined as investors by Standard Oil of New Jersey who purchased 30% of the company, and Socony Vacuum who purchased 10% of the company, leaving Standard Oil of California and the Texas Oil Company with equal 30% shares.