Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1917-11-19
MAY USE MEXICAN OIL
TANKERS ON NEW JOB
Transatlantic Service Is More
Important With Demand
for All Ships.
WASHINGTON,

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1s.-Tank
vessels engaged in bringing oil from
Tampico and Tuxpam TO Baton Rouge,
La. where is located the largest re-
finery in the world, and to other
points in the United States. are so
badly needed for transatlantic service
that a number of them probably will
be withdrawn in the near future. From
present indications the United States
will Be able to produce all the pc
troleum products for which she win
be called upon by her allies and for
domestic uses. 1t Is believed here that
II VIII be easier to procure production
than 1t will be to transport petroleum
products to Europe for this reason.
careful survey of tanks shipping Is
being conducted so as ~ nlace o"
tankers than can be spared IN the
transatlantic service.
Refincrs Need OIL.
Calculations Of the refihers are un>
derstood to call for imports of four
hundred Thousand tons of crude Pc
troleum from Mexico during the conf
ing year. 1t is believed that this
amount can be reduced by more than
one half. The difference can ne sup
without inflicting hardships and in
this way number of tank steamers
can be released These steamers vary
from two thousand to seventeen thou7
sand tons capacity. Tank ships i.
present are engaged in carrying crude
petroleum from Tampico and Tuxpam
to the following American ports
New Orleans, Galveston, Port Aransas
Port Arthur, Sabine, Texas City, Tam
pa. Key West, Jacksonville. Ph:ladel-
phia. Baltimore. Norfolk. Newark,
NJ hA. I
and Portland, Maine.
Some Oil men are of the opinion
that it would be feasible to use ships
only In transporting Mexican Ietrc-
leum between Tamplco and Tuxpam
and Galveston. Galveston is less than
five hundred miles from Tampico.
BY using only this route, the release
of many ships will he. possible The
oil would then be distri buted in Gal
Weston by rail- or barge. Barges are
towed successfully along the edges
of the gulf and some suggest the re-
finery at Baton Rouge could secure
some Oil in this manner AS the
dearth of tank cars is less IN pro-
portion than the dearth of tank ships
1t is claimed that further distribution
could be effected by rail. Attention
Ia also called To- the fact that tank
cars can be constructed much mora
quickly than can tank ships.
Ships Badly Needed.
A pipe line from the Tampico field
to Brownsville or some other point in
Texas also has been proposed, but
the length of time which would be
required to carry out such a project
initiates aaginst its serious consid-
Grafton. The need for ships is inn
mediate. This is greater now, it is
confidently believed, than It will be
a year hence. The difficulties of Sc
curing the pipe for a line which
would be more than three hundred
miles long would be considerable.
Time certainly would be lost in Sc
curing permission of the Mexican
government to build the line, and po-
litical conditions in Mexico. at present
are such as to make extremely dubi-
Gus its projections.
Oil operators in Louisiana and
other fields will benefit decidedly
when imports of asphalt and bitlfnen
will have been suspended. 1t is be-
lieved here that ships engaged in this
trade soon will be withdrawn en-
tirely. Asphalt is imported from
Venezuela and Trinidad. This in
wolves an average of more than two
thousand miles and ties up a num-
Der of ships. The imported asphalt
is considered superior to the asPhal-
tic materials manufactured in this
country from crude petroleum, but
since the domestic product serves all
purposes fairly well and probably
will be adequate for the countrys
needs, no good reason is seen for con-