IOR/R/15/1/680

The volume contains correspondence between the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf (Trenchard Craven Fowle, Charles Geoffrey Prior), the Political Agent at Bahrain (Hugh Weightman, Reginald George Alban), the India Office (John Percival Gibson, Roland Tennyson Peel), the Foreign Office (Lacy Baggallay, Harry Maurice Eyres), the Petroleum Department (Frederick Charles Starling), Admiralty (Clifford George Jarrett) and Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limited (Ernest Vincent Packer, Basil Henry Lermitte, John Skliros, H H Wheatley) regarding progress with oil concessions on the Trucial Coast.

Discussion centres primarily on concession agreements for Abu Dhabi and Kalba [Kalbā] which had been obtained by Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) in 1938/1939, and the omitted clauses and rewording of the concession agreement which had been undertaken in an attempt to simplify the process. Also discussed are the political agreements between the company and His Majesty’s Government for each concession which would no longer require approval by the ruler of the state and discussing amended clauses to incorporate this decision.

In relation to the Kalba concession matters discussed included ensuring sufficient safeguards and guarantees were in place to protect Shaikh Hamad bin Sa’id [Ḥamad bin Sa‘īd Āl Qasimī], who was a minor, and his state whilst it was under the rulership of Shaikh Khalid bin Ahmad bin Sultan [Khalid bin Aḥmad bin Sulṭān Āl Qasimī] as Regent. A copy of the Abu Dhabi Concession agreement can be found at folios 134-140 and Political agreement at folios 160-162; copies of the Kalba political agreement can be found at folios 64-69 and 164-165.

Other matters discussed in the volume include:

• a five year exploration permit granted by the Shaikh of Ajman (Shaikh Rāshid Bin Ḥumaid Al-Nu`aimī) to Petroleum Concessions Limited, a copy of which can be found at folios 51-52;
• copies of lettersin Arabic and English from Ernest Vincent Packer, PCL to the Political Agent at Bahrain, the Sultan of Muscat, the Shaikh of Sharjah, the Shaikh of Dubai and the Regent at Kalba regarding the lack of an annual report for 1940 as owing to war conditions no work had been undertaken;
• the appointment of F A Ball as Chief Local Representative for Petroleum Development (Qatar) Limited and the decision to retain Ernest Vincent Packer as General Manager at Bahrain and appoint Basil Henry Lermitte as Chief Local Representative for Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limited;
• a report by the Master of the Steamship Barpeta of an oil seepage 15 miles North-East of Halul Island [Ḩālūl] and subsequent investigation into the site where oil was welling up from a submarine gushe;.
• the decision by Petroleum Development (Trucial Coast) Limited in 1941 to exercise its right to a one year extension on their exploration permit and to re-open negotiations with the Shaikh of Ras al Khaimah [Ra's al Khaymah] (Shaikh Sulṭān bin Sālim Āl Qasimī) in the hope of acquiring an extension to cover up to a year following the end of the war.

A series of file notes which were maintained as a record of the correspondence in the volume can be found at folios 192-198.