New-York tribune., 1918-08-07
ShipDiversion
Cut Mexican Pete
Revenue $6,ooo,0oo
1917 Dividend Surplus
Equal to $10.23 a Share,
Against $15.78 for 1916

E. L. Doheny, president of the Mexi
can Petroleum Company Ltd, of Della
ware, estimates that the corporation
sustained a loss in excess of S6,000,000
in earnings in the last six months of
1917 as a result of the diversion of the
larger part Of its tank steamers to gov
ernment service for war purposes. The
annual report issued to stockholders
yesterday shows the balance available
for dividends last year was S4,986,O20,
and the surplus, after deducting the
preferred dividends, was equal to $1023
a share on the $39,342 900 common
stock, compared with s15.7S a share in
1916. Gross earnings of the company
were s1S,121, ,789, compared with $685.
463 in 1915 and S5,o0O,SS9 in 1915. The
company charged off $1,500,o16 for de-
probation last year, against 100000
for the preceding twelve months. Tax
charges in 1917 were S957 1876, compared
with $215,757 the year before.
Considerable space is given up in the
report to discussion of the taking
over of the company's steamers by the
government. "1n the month of June"
says Mr.. Doheny to the stockholders,
when your company had nine steam
ships of 60,540 tons, one having already
been commandcered by the British gov
ernment, six of the remainder were vol
unteered at the request of the Navy
Department, and were placed in the
service of the United States govern
mcnt to carry petroleum products
transatlantic. AS new steamships
which had already been ordered built
for your companys services were COM
pletcd, additional takings were made by
the government. with the result that
$4,000 tons of shipping provided for
moving oil for your company from Mex
leo TO Its customers were used to carry
petroleum products of other companies
from North United States Atlantic
ports to the war zone for the use of the
various Allied armies"
More Oil Tankers Needed
According to Mr.. Doheny, the prnci-
pal obstacle to greater market is the
lack of transportation facilities. "The
tanker fleet of the Allied nations" he
says, "is not yet large enough to carry
all of the oil that is needed for war and
essential industrial purposes from the
places where it is available on land to
the points overseas where it must be
delivered eDr consumption. The entire
production of the United States is
being made available for local uses by
reason of very adequate pipe lines and
tank car facilities. The war zone re-
qulrements, however, must be supplied
by tank steamer, and the total surplus
OF the United States oil fields is not
sufficient to supply that demand, even
though sufficient tank steamers were
available to carry the same from North
Atlantic ports to the war zone.
Nv Wlthln the last few years there has
been built and contracted to be built
fleet of nearly one hundred tank steam
ers. They were built or being built,
IN very nearly equal numbers and ton
mage. in the United States and Great
britain, and were intended largely for
the the P purpose Of transporting oil from
the Mexican oil fields to overseas mar
kcts. 10 the existence Of this oil fleet
IS due the possibility of carrying on the
present war: Its service can be better
appraised when one realizes that aero
planes, motor lorries, trucks, auto
mobiles, motorcycles, submarines, sub
marine chasers, destroyers and many
warshlps could not operate without a
supply of some class of fuel petro-
leum.
"Of the supply of oil so needed dur
ing last year 54,000,0O0 barrels was the
product of the wells of Mexico: not ali
exported to the United States. how
ever; some of it-several million bar
rels-went to South America. where
1t Is said to be used in the production
OF war necessities, and few million
barrels were consumed in Mexico. The
greater part of Mexico's production
was consumed directly in sustaining
the war and peace industries of the
United States and it's allies"
Oil Brought Nearly 81 Barrel
During 1917 the company sold IT,
7,13S barrels Of oil which produced
In the aggregate S17,457,292 in rev
enues. an average Of 99H cents a bar
rel. In former years the average price
received was much less, being SIS cents
in 1916, 81 cents in 1915, 64 cents in
1914 and So cents in 1913. The report
states, however, that the greater price
received for the oil in 1917 was not
due to any increased price for the oil
at the point of production in Mexico,
but rather to an increase in the pro-
portion which was refined and which
was delivered at distant points.
The various companies of the Mexi-
can Petroleum group paid $1,S12,6S8 in
taxes to the Mexican government dur
ing the year. A total of $2,41O,769 was
expended for capital account in in
creasing facilities for handling the