Burmah Oil Company Ltd.

The Burmah Oil Company was founded in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1896 by David Sime Cargill to develop oil interests on the Indian subcontinent. It became an early and major shareholder in British Petroleum, so restricted its downstream interests to the subcontinent, where BP had no business. It played a major role in the oil industry in South Asia for about a century through its subsidiaries and in discovery of oil in the Middle East though its significant interest in British Petroleum. It marketed itself under the BOC brand in Burma, Pakistan and Assam (in India) and through a joint venture Burmah-Shell with Shell in the rest of India.

Burmah Oil Company created mechanised drilling in Magwe Division's oil fields (Yenangyaung, Chauk, and Minbu). Until 1901, when Standard Oil Company began operating in Burma (now also known as Myanmar), Burmah Oil Company was the sole oil company to operate in Burma. The company operated in Burma until 1963, when Ne Win nationalised all industries in the country.

The company was involved in a landmark legal case, Burmah Oil Co. v Lord Advocate, concerning the destruction of oil fields in Burma by British forces.

In 1966, Castrol was acquired by Burmah, which was renamed Burmah-Castrol.

The Bank of England came to the rescue of Burmah Oil after the company lost its tanker fleets in 1974. The core of the rescue operation was the provision of a year's grace so that the company could become smaller and more viable.

In 2000, Burmah-Castrol was acquired by the then BP Amoco plc (now renamed BP plc).

Burmah sponsored Swindon Town Football Club from 1991 to 1995.

Burmah in Australia

Until the 2000 acquisition of Burmah-Castrol, the company operated a number of service station sites in Australia. Many of the service station sites were acquired by independent retailer United Petroleum and Convenience Store giant 7-Eleven.

Burmah also operated sites under the branding Astron and Major. A majority share in Astron was acquired by Burmah-Castrol from Avi Silver and Eddie Hirsch (founders of United Petroleum) in 1990.

List of Former Astron/Burmah/Major sites in Victoria

Cnr Thompsons & Balwyn Rds, BULLEEN, VIC490 Frankston-Dandenong Rd, CARRUM DOWNS, VICCnr Station St & Darebin Rd, Fairfield, VIC219 Marine Pde, Hastings, VICHume Hwy, Kalkallo, VIC22 Manchester Rd, Mooroolbark, VIC1419 Main Rd, Research, VIC

References

A two-volume history of the company was written by T.A.B. Corley: "A history of the Burmah Oil Company, 1886-1924" (published 1983) and "A history of the Burmah Oil Company. Vol 2, 1924-66" (published 1988).