, 1922-09-21
P. & R. owners ON
INSPECTION TOUR
VISIT OF COMPANY OFFICIALS REVIVES
SPECULATION ON BUILDING OF
LOCAL REFINERY

A party of officers and directors
OF the Producers & Refiners cor
poration, n of the largest oil COM
pan1es in the country and one of the
heaviest operators and producers in
Wyoming, arrived in their private
car early Monday morning and, aft
er a brief rest proceeded on an
automobile our of inspection of the
Rawlins oil fields, where their COM
pany is extensively Interested. Aft
err viewing the local fields. including
the latest gusher on the property of
the Hughes Oil company, which
came in late Thursday night. the
party drove on to Casper, which is
Wyoming headquarters of the COM
pany.
Among the capitalists who made
up the party were: w. L.. Kistler,
president, and F. E. Kistler, chair
man of the board. both residents Of
Chicago; J. c. Cowdin, w. A. Kunkel.
and E. F. Hayes, all directors and all
residents of New York, and r. E.
Wertz, also a director and a resident
Of Casper. The gentlemen were met
at the Ferris Hotel by a representa-
tive of The Republican and asked II
there was any special significance to
their present tour of inspection, but
the reply was that this Is an annual
event and hat beyond viewing the
oil fields in which their company
either has holdings or is engaged in
actual operations there was nothing
out Of the ordinary in their visit.
In spite of the vigorous denial Of
the officials Of the Producers & Re-
timers. which was quite natural in
| yinW ~ tho ~, q nptt,ln - tho ,yA1n
takings which are known to have
been under tentative consideration
for some time. but which have not
yet reached a stage where an author
lied announcement would be consid-
cred advisable, it is certain that the
brief s%oiourn of these representa-
tives Of the vast u of the
Producers & Refiners cooperation is
fraught with great possibilities to
Rawlins and Carbon county.
This Is h company, which after a
conference Of officials early in June
Of this year. in which many OF those
present in Rawlins Monday took
part, decided to purchase and put In
the field Immediately six entirely
new Strings of standard drilling
tools and to commence at once drill
ing II new wells on the eastern part
Of the Ferris Done, this involving
also the erection of II new standard
derricks, all constituting the largest
single development movement in the
history of the Rawlins fields and an
initial expenditure Of at least a quar-
ter of a million dollars.
From the fact that pipe line ia
~cilitfes from the Lost Soldier field
to the rails of the Union Pacific at q
point near Fort Steele, although
greatly augmented during the pres
emit season by laying larger pipe, was
already inadequate for the proper
handling of the present output of
wells Immediately tributary to the
pipe line, not to mention prospective
production which is being brought
in all the time 1t has been concluded
by the oil producing fraternity gen.
orally that the Producers & Refiners,
as their and others local production
demanded, would seek an outlet to
the market over the Union Pacific
railroad and that the present line of
the Illinois Pipe Line company from
the Bair field to Fort Steele was but
q forerunner of many others which
would terminate at that same ad-
vantageous loading and distributing
point.
The same conditions and deduc-
tons which force this entirely log
ical conclusion are, in the opinion Of
those best informed, responsible for
the current report that the Produc-
ers 4 Refiners will at an early date
commence the construction of q pipe
line. terminating at Fort Steele and
not only tapping the rich and pro-
ductive Rawlins oil fields, but ulti-
mately drawing upon the famous Salt
Creek field and thus bringing suf-
ficient crude oil from all fields tribu-
|tary to the pipe line to warrant the
erection of a refinery at Fort Steele,
which It is we'll known is the fixed
purpose of the leading spirits of the
Producers & Refiners corporation.
From this strategic point which
presents every possible advantage for
the location Of a refinery, q vast
market could be supplied with gaso-
line and other refinery products at o
minimum of freight haul and onse-
auent expense. One need not there
fore be a prophet, or the son Of q
prophet, to visualize within . short
space Of time a complete and we'll
equipped refinery on the banks Of
the North Platte river at Fort Steele,
which is practically . suburb OF Raw
FMS.